The French Riviera!

Sunday April 6, 2014, 128 miles (206 km) – Total so far: 1,516 miles (2,440 km)

April 3, 2014 57 miles During breakfast the weather forecast showed winds at 90 kph which sounds bad but after conversion is 45 mph out of the east (our direction). We walked around outside a bit but it seemed okay so we took off for the coast. It was another very hilly day but the wind didn’t pick up until the afternoon. When we reached the near coastal city of Frejus a full gale was blowing. We hunted down two campsites that ended up being closed for the season. After riding around looking for a stealth campsite we would up in a hotel thoroughly exhausted.

April 4, 2014 46 miles We left the hotel in a steady drizzle and quickly found ourselves on the French Riviera. We had a late breakfast at a beachside restaurant in Cannes and afterwards the sun came out. The red carpet was nowhere to be found for us so we continued riding this beautiful coastal area with many small towns. The wind was down and the hill work fun. We soon arrived close to Nice and searched for our warmshowers host. As we were riding a car stopped and our host Sandrine jumped out and gave us directions. What a coincidence as she just happened to be driving by. Our hosts Ludovic and Sandrine prepared an excellent meal with some fine French food.

April 5th, 2014 25 miles Ludovic took us on a tour of the walled Village of Saint Paul. It was very nice driving in a car for once. We then said farewell to another excellent warmshowers host and quickly found the bike path to Nice and beyond. It was a beautiful sunny day and since it was Saturday the crowds were out. We travelled around some of the historic areas then headed to the town of Beausoleil which is right next to Monaco.

It was very hilly climbing as we searched for the apartment of our next host Ludovic Hubler and his wife Marisol. Ludovic spent 5 years hitchhiking around the world and didn’t spend a penny on transportation including hitching a ride on an icebreaker to Antarctica. He received a lot of press and wrote a book. If you Google his name you will be fascinated by his story. He and Marisol prepared a lovely lunch for us.

The French countryside.
The French countryside.
Our first look at the French Riviera.
Our first look at the French Riviera.
Most towns have many flowers alongside the roads.
Most towns have many flowers alongside the roads.
A wet but fun day.
A wet but fun day.
A beautiful cottage.
A beautiful cottage.

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Train bridge.
Train bridge.

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Looking down over a very short wall.
Looking down over a very short wall.
A typical Mediterranean harbor.
A typical Mediterranean harbor.

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Cannes. We looked for the red carpet.
Cannes. We looked for the red carpet.
Our lunch spot on the water.
Our lunch spot on the water.

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The Cape Canaveral "Hillbillies" on the French Riviera!
The Cape Canaveral “Hillbillies” on the French Riviera!

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Med ties.
Med ties.

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A proper bike path. I guess this will have to do for our "red carpet" welcome!
A proper bike path. I guess this will have to do for our “red carpet” welcome!
Exploring the walled village of Saint Paul. All the shops are artisans.
Exploring the walled village of Saint Paul. All the shops are artisans.
Nice walkway.
Nice walkway.
A view from the rampart.
A view from the rampart.
A horse fashioned out of horse shoes.
A horse fashioned out of horse shoes.
The Village of Saint Paul as it originally looked.
The Village of Saint Paul as it originally looked.
The old church is now a restaurant.
The old church is now a restaurant.
The walled Village of Saint Paul.
The walled Village of Saint Paul.
Our first Chateau, French for castle.
Our first Chateau, French for castle.
The Nice bike path runs along the entire coast.
The Nice bike path runs along the entire coast.
Notre Dame Cathedral of Nice.
Notre Dame Cathedral of Nice.
A sunny ride out of Nice.
A sunny ride out of Nice.
  Jocelyn navigating. We couldn't find any captains for a ride.

Jocelyn navigating. We couldn’t find any captains for a ride.
The town after Nice.
The town after Nice.
Views of the coastline.
Views of the coastline.

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A cool tunnel.
A cool tunnel.
Three days 128 miles.
Three days 128 miles.

One thought on “The French Riviera!

  1. I can hardly wait to see this area for myself! I will fly in the morning of June 5th and hope to get around Nice for the day. You do a fine job of sharing some of the highlights. What a nice bike path till it starts climbing those mountains! I think this is my favorite part of the trip so far! Of course, I am half French!
    j’taime!
    Andee

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