Despite the terrible weather report and threatening clouds at our start, we had a very relaxing ride with perfect sunny weather and really pleasant countryside.<br /> <br />Aside from some climbing along D936, D42/D117 was relatively flat or very gentle climbing for the most part. D1083 going north from Centre Ville, however, was a terrible road with too much traffic including a number of gigantic trucks. Best to avoid this.<br /><br />During the ride, we passed from the Ain Department to the Jura Department along the D42/D117 segment.
Background:<br /><br />My wife and I have been doing self-supported tours in Western Europe (a majority in France) since 1993. This series of rides covers our 2009 4.5 month route through parts of France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and then back to France. Our beginning and ending point is near Chadurie (south of Angouleme) where our friends have a farm with Gites and Chambres d'Hotes.<br /><br />We rode our Dawes touring bicycles purchased in 1993 heavily loaded with 700Cx32 tires. All of our riding was on paved roads, mostly with very little traffic. Pretty much the only unpaved sections were some bicycle paths in Germany and Austria. Sadly, that wasn't so great as Helen fell a number of times on the unpaved paths. Fortunately, though, no serious injury.<br /><br />If any questions, feel free to email me at jeffkadet@netdiving.com<br /><br />Jeff