Sur le pont d’Avignon

… there is a rainbow after thunderstorms.

The second part of the Via Rhona runs from Lyon - as well as the Rhône itself - always quite straight to the south up to the cities Avignon and Arles. The river valley and the river are much wider here than in the first part. The landscape is dominated by the Cevennes, vineyards and orchards. In addition, there are a multitude of places and small towns that invite you to take a break and visit them. They are characterised by romantic old town centres, Roman archaeological sites, mighty churches and castle ruins, which often sit enthroned on rocks and hills, visible from afar. Many of these villages are twin towns on both sides of the river and are connected by imposing and beautiful bridges. It is hardly possible to visit everything interesting on the way. We made a stop in Vienne to visit the Roman theatre and the first church of Christendom in France, slept well under the mighty castle of Rochemaure and admired in Avignon the bridge and the power of the Pope’s palace.

We spent a special day in Tain l’Hermitage/Tournon sur Rhône on the occasion of Catherine’s birthday. After about 50 kilometers we crossed the bridge in this double village at noon. When at the end of the bridge we once again came across a barrier that we couldn’t cross - the French are very creative when it comes to erecting barriers and barriers along cycle paths and footpaths; unfortunately, when it comes to dimensioning, the panniers of touring cyclists and bicycle trailers are all too often forgotten - Matthias noticed the extremely nice hotel “Les deux côtes” right next to the river. With the ulterior motive of having to pack only once a day, he sent Katharina to ask if there was any room available. And indeed, fate meant it well with us: The best room of the hotel - the only one with a balcony on the river - was still available despite the weekend. We took advantage of the opportunity and enjoyed a relaxed afternoon on the balcony, visiting the chocolate museum Valrhona - (Tip for all Austrians and those who want to become one: Zotter has a more interesting one ;-)) and enjoyed an excellent dinner in the restaurant L’Assemblage.

Also we hold Arles in good memory. Besides a sightseeing tour through the historic old town, we were unexpectedly surprised with modern art exhobition in the newly built Fondation Luma. This rebuilt former railway area offers various exhibitions. We could visit a school building by Jean Prouve as well as an exhibition Gilbert & George and dive into the light installation “Pixel Forest” by Pipilotti Rist, where we felt like Alice in Wonderland. Basically, one can say about the Via Rhona that it has a lot to offer in this part, even off the beaten track, as well as a number of side detours. You can spend the night either in nice hotels in the many little towns and cities or on the cosy camping sites. So we slept wonderfully at the campsite “L’Ile de Pêcheurs” in Condrieu, about 50 km south of Lyon, where only cyclists are allowed except permanent campers, and at the campsite of Tarascon, where we shared our pitch with a fig tree and free-range chickens. This part of Via Rhona is well developed except for the first 20 kilometres to Lyon and the last part from Avignon to Arles. On these two sections we also experienced our three adventures of these days:

1. Shortly after Lyon we had our first real patchwork of this trip - not caused by material damage but by a broken piece of broken glass. While we were repairing the hole, a worried Frenchwoman asked if we would be hurt because her husband had fallen a few days ago and broke his collarbone. How much better we were off!

2. While we searched our way through the bacon belt of Avignon into the city center, thick thunderclouds came up. As fast as possible we pedalled there. As we caught a glimpse of the old city walls and the famous bridge, the first thick drops fell. Now we had to really accelerate to get to the campsite. We went over the bridge to the biggest Rhone island, turned right and one left, parked our bike, dismantled valuables, rushed into the reception. The thunderstorm started immediately. Thanks to the long queue we waited there until the rain was over. Afterwards we had a wonderful view of the old town of Avignon, the bridge - and the rainbow above.

3. Shortly after Avignon Matthias thought he was having tire problems again and actually this time the hose had given ko. Meanwhile Matthias was a master in repairing rear wheel splashes and accomplished the feat within 15 minutes without having to remove the front pockets or turn the wheel around. Again a local wad worried about us. This time a police officer in civilian clothes felt responsible to stand escort so that we were not overlooked at the roadside. He then told us to drive up to the next part of the cycle path.