Day 7: Pralognan-la-Vanoise
After a very long day yesterday, we got a bit of a reprieve today. We had a relaxed breakfast and left the chalet at 9:30. The plan for the day was to bike right from the chalet and ride down towards Bozel. Jo and Eileen rode the support van and enjoyed the views of the surrounding Alps, and Matt got a head start in the van and started his ride in Bozel.
Heading right out from the chalet
From Bozel, we went through Planay to Pralognan with the support van stopping along they way to provide snacks and water to the riders if they needed anything. Once everyone arrived at the main road in Pralognan, we went through the side streets of the small ski village for cappuccinos and to prepare for the next part of the ride.
If we don’t get coffee in Le Planay, we can always go with Plan B
Plan B
Cappuccinos always make me smile
Matt left the cafe about 10 minutes early to get a head start on the 6km, 3-7% ride to La Bergerie, the restaurant and inn where we had lunch. Once everyone arrived, we got a table outside to take in the amazing views as we ate.
Matt is having a great ride
Beautiful scenery exhibit A
Exhibit B
Exhibit C
Walking up to lunch
Lovely little lunch spot
Having reached our furthest destination for the day, and with plenty of time to spare, there were a few options to get back after lunch. Matt decided to bike the entire route back to the chalet, including the 6 switchback turns at 7% up to the chalet.
Looking at pictures before food arrived
Getting ready to head back to the chalet
Nice views for the ride back
It’s hard to have a bad view here
Climbing up to La Praz
Jo and Eileen took the van back and picked up a rider just at the start of the 6 turns. We arrived at about 2:00 (much better than the 11 pm last night) and took the free time to relax and watch the Tour on the chalet TV. Matt arrived less than 2 hours later, in time to recover and watch the end of the race.
Recovery and Tour de France
The other guest were trickling in as it got closer to dinner time and all spent time together in the living room. We had a great dinner and prepped for tomorrow — the final day of biking before we fly home on Sunday.
