x-alt.fun: events

  • Home
  • All Events

A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.
Lao Tzu

pages: 
  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42
  43. 43
  44. 44
  45. 45
  46. 46
  47. 47
  48. 48
  49. 49
  50. 50
  51. 51
  52. 52
  53. 53
  54. 54
  55. 55
  56. 56
  57. 57
  58. 58
  59. 59
  60. 60
  61. 61
  62. 62
  63. 63
  64. 64
  65. 65
  66. 66
  67. 67
  68. 68
  69. 69
  70. 70
  71. 71
  72. 72
  73. 73
  74. 74
pages: 
pages: 
pages: 
  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42
  43. 43
  44. 44
  45. 45
  46. 46
  47. 47
  48. 48
  49. 49
  50. 50
  51. 51
  52. 52
  53. 53
  54. 54
  55. 55
  56. 56
  57. 57
  58. 58
  59. 59
  60. 60
  61. 61
  62. 62
  63. 63
  64. 64
  65. 65
  66. 66
  67. 67
  68. 68
  69. 69
  70. 70
  71. 71
  72. 72
  73. 73
  74. 74
27

Le Veurdre

Wed 13th July. Le Veurdre to St Pourçain: 71km, avg 13.8km/hr, max 52.6km/hr, 5hrs riding 11hrs time.

After the heavy rain in the night I ferried stuff to the covered play area to pack up, no one else on the site. Got going late because of the rain though, 8.45am.

One of many unsuccessful attempts to photograph birds.  That small white dot just in the treeline a third in from the right is a heron.  Magnificent in real life.  A small white smudge in my photo.

The first bird passed overhead, easy to see when you're lying back on a recumbent and I wondered whether I was going to be able to get the phone out from my zipped pocket, turn it on, start the camera, say "OK" to the warning it would alway's give about incurring roaming charges, before the bird flew off.  I decided I couldn't.  Then a flock of eight flew overhead and I cursed not having started, so I did.  Sure enough by the time I'd gone through the above rigmarole I was left with the small white smudge you now see.  Somewhat.  If you look closely.

As you can see the sky is grey and the light drizzle quickly changed to rain, persistent and then heavy.  So, upper body largely dry, other than sweat, and lower body utterly soaked and legs cold.  Better to wear shorts though and keep warmer long trousers for later.  It was also hilly again with some long bottom gear ascents.  Odd how struggling up long, steep hills in pouring rain can be fun.

28

Not sure why I took this: the small humbly-crumbly cottage at the end, the perfect tarmac, or the high hedge through which one can't see but a dog still knew I was there and was barking at me.

My entire journey through France had a soundtrack of barking dogs.  Whether they could see me or not they'd start barking at one end of the fence and chase along barking until the other end.  Sometimes the high soprano of small dogs, sometimes the deep bass of dogs as big as pit-ponies.  I figured all of them were more or less saying the same thing: 'come here and I'll eat you'.  Except in French.

Luckily, for the most part, though not entirely, they were all behind fences.  Also luckily, the few that were roaming free I managed to out-run.