May 19: Day 22, Salaise-sur-Sanne-Crêches-sur-Saône

Last night was spent in a Moroccan-themed hotel, and it was good. It was L'Acilya, roughly the same price as the other two dour-looking hotels in town, but with way more character. The rooms were decorated in Moroccan style: blue tiles in the bathroom, with an arched doorway, and an appropriate cover on the bed. Also, they had Spanish-style shutters outside the window which I gratefully closed so I wouldn't be woken by the sun.

They had a restaurant and it was much better than the one in Montelimar. And in the morning they gave me a selection of dried fruits to take! That hasn't happened before.

I'm probably overexcited about it because tonight I'm staying in a charmless hotel in a dour industrial park, with poor WiFi, dubious room AC and no elevator. Unfortunately, this was the best option available ... for some reason, very little was available and finding somewhere that was close to the route and the right distance was a struggle. Maybe it's because Thursday was Ascension Day, and lots of people have taken Friday off and used up all the hotels? If so things will go back to normal next week.

From left to right. The bathroom. The bedroom.

Anyway. The weather today was pretty warm, the route was pretty flat - it was looking like a much nicer day than some of the recent ones. The route out of Salaise-sur-Sanne featured some hills; I was zigzagging through some back streets avoiding the main road so there was a bit of climbing. Complicated backstreets with poor signposting and downhill freewheeling often leads to missed turnoffs, but that only happened once!

The route followed the main road out of town for a few kilometers, then turned off, crossed the Rhône, and got on the cyclepath. From here things got simpler: it was a good surface, flat, no cars, and the sun was out! The headwind was unwelcome but not offensively strong.

This is a very pleasant route. There's a few places where it goes on the road, but if you're looking for a nice European cycling trip, going along the Rhône is a pretty good option. Just check which way the wind is blowing before choosing the direction!

So today was a low drama day. I rolled along the cyclepath, admired the scenery, made kilometers. Stopped for lunch in Vernaison; probably should have kept going to Lyon.

From left to right: good weather today. Approaching a bridge. Entering Sainte-Colombe.

The route goes through Lyon, because the river does. There's some odd smells along the way, and some derelict areas, and very strange building in the middle that's presumably a concert hall whose architects swung at greatness and whiffed.

The route did take me through a very angry intersection in the middle of town, but there was a safe cyclepath through it. The cycle route was actually quite good for the most part; in the center of town it was so spacious perhaps it’s shared with the bus.

From left to right: Heavy intersection in the center of Lyon, but the cyclepath was calm. Lyon trams. Lycon cyclepath (and my hand). One of the many bridges in town.

There was a good cyclepath along the Rhône, but the route didn’t follow it exactly - it tried to cut the corners, presumably that’s faster. I wasn’t in the mood to wrestle with traffic so I adjusted the route to stay on the Rhône; it added half an hour but I was making such good time I didn’t mind.

And for the most part it was good - the cyclepath was flat, good surface, and no holdups. Except for one section, which was basically a hiking track. It was a bit too small for cyclists; I tucked in and brushed through the trees. The track got a bit bumpy in places too - exposed roots, a drainage channel, and also some muddy potholes which covered the whole path. All this meant I got slowed down an awful lot; I was starting to wonder if I’d made the right choice, but it wasn’t too long before it opened up onto a flat clear cyclepath again.

From left to right: the singletrack, before it got small and technical. Icecream break. Selfie while making good time (powered by icecream). View from the last bridge; the wind was foul.

Arrived about 1840, so it was nearly ten hours on the road. The estimate was 7h50, so I’m a little bit slower than scheduled, even taking into account the extra stops. I blame the headwind.

I’m heading for Cologne right now, which is the midpoint. I’m planning to get there on Friday May 26. I’m going to take a break at that point; I’ll catch a train back to Amsterdam for a few days with the family. That means I need to average about 7 hours/day until then, which is normal - but no rest days are possible. Hopefully the route stays flat, the surface stays good, and the headwind stays away!

What I’m listening to: L / Tycho:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUU6-v0qzgo
This was the trailer music for “Hohokum”, an odd but thoroughly lovely game about being a flying snake and taking your friends for a ride on your back.