Day 42- Chateau Thierry to Paris
The ride today was going to be a long one so we were up at 5.30am and after breakfast in the apartment we were ready to go by about 6.45am…
The weather’s was quite cool and it started with intermittent drizzle which increased during the morning to make things a bit more difficult for riding.
The first climb of the day was up to a WW1 memorial which overlooked Chateau Thierry. It was a memorial which recognised not only the French soldiers but also the Americans who fought alongside the French. Looking at the memorial you will see that it very much has an American “feel” about it. It seems that there was quite a bit of action near Château-Thierry which is quite close to Paris.
The ride then proceeded along country roads through farmland and rolling hills. There were quite a few climbs along the way but we seemed to handle them quite well.
The key stop for me was at Verreddes at the 45 km mark where I made a brief appearance by zoom at the Alkira Board meeting. Unfortunately I was unable to find a quiet cafe and had to make do with shelter in a garage. By this stage the drizzle was quite heavy and my phone battery was getting flat due to the zoom meeting and my charger wouldn’t work as the phone connection was wet… one of the trials of the day! Quite frustrating….
Anyway, I met Chris and Steve who found a cafe where I had a cup of hot chocolate to warm me up. The time in the cafe also allowed me to dry off a bit.
The weather cleared a bit and we were off again along the Marne River valley. It is quite interesting to see how close farming takes place to Paris… by my reckoning there was farming of an intense nature not more than 30 km from the centigrade Paris
For the last 25 kms we were on the canal de l Ourcq which took us right into our accommodation at the UCPA Sports Hostel. This is a very comfortable place which is right near several of the key railway stations such Gare de Nord, Gare de Est and we have view of the Eiffel Tower and the Sacre Coure cathedral from our window which is on the top floor.
On the way in we saw some evidence of the venues for the games including the Decathlon. There was also a heavy presence of military personnel with guns and police doing checks ahead of the commencement of the games.
So here we are after completing the second major objective of the ride in reaching Paris. The first on for me was Stelvio.
I am happy we are here and am looking forward to seeing something of the games.
Today we rode over 98 kms and climbed 776 metres . In all the riding so far to Paris has been 2530 kms and we have climbed 16,996 metres… I think that is two Everests!!!
The pictures today are a bit light on a my phone was playing up and the battery went flat…
The route
2 pictures of the war memorial and the graphic of the WW1 battlefields in the area
A view of the Marne River at Château-Thierry
An Olympic venue for the Decathlon on the side of the canal we rode along
Our accommodation in Paris… very comfortable
