The Annual Bike Trip - Day 1

Planning for 2024’s week-long bike ride began months agon when Roger emailed a suggested itinerary in France’s Jura region to me, Tom, and Gérard.  The plan was to take the train to Lons-le-Saunier and then immediately bike to a lake near Chancia, then to Saint-Claude, to Labergement-Sainte-Marie, to Champagnole, and finally back to Lons-le Saunier where we would stay overnight and catch the train back to Lyon. The route suggested is very mountainous in some parts, so even with electric assist bikes, we would be challenged at times.  Roger’s wife Dominique did her usual great job of finding us pleasant, low-cost accommodations.  Meanwhile, David did a bit of research on the route with regard to the sights and the history of the Jura region and also the towns where we would be staying.  During this research, he discovered that while most of the trip would be sharing roads with cars and trucks, the last leg back to Lons-le-Saunier was mostly along a very scenic paved, car-free old railroad right-of-way.  More about this later.

David, who does no bike-riding at home, did lots of practicing around Lyon; Roger and he even did a two-night trip down the Rhone Valley on the ViaRhona, as documented in earlier posts.

Unfortunately, Tom Papa had a house purchase pending and felt unable to participate this year.  We filled out the Group with John Robbins, a retired physician from California, and an experienced biker.  We all met at about 8:00AM on Monday June 16 at Gare Part-Dieu to catch the 9:41 train for Lons-le Saunier.  Everyone appeared on schedule, posed for the obligatory photo by Anna, and boarded the train for an uneventful hour and twenty-minute trip.  Arriving in Lons-le-Saunier, we unloaded our bikes, put our various types of bike-bags on them, and went down the street for a few blocks and stopped so Gérard could get his GPS oriented for the day’s trip.

The Happy Group about to Board the Train

About to Start from Lons-le Saunier

Unfortunately, as mentioned in other posts, the weather has been very unsettled in France this spring – lots of clouds, drizzle, and some rain.  Certainly, with the proper gear rain can be easier to handle on a bike than extreme heat, but it does make the experience a bit less enjoyable.  This first day fell into the pattern – drizzle began soon after departure from the train station.  At one point, as we worked to ascend a hill, Roger looked at me and said, 'why do we do this to ourselves'??

We set off through town – there was lots of uphill.  At one point we got on to a very steep, muddy, rocky logging road where we actually had to push our bikes for a kilometer or more.  At one point my saddlebags fell off and I did not even notice it.  Luckily for me, Roger who was quite a ways behind picked them up.  [I definitely owed him a couple of beers for that!]  All of us struggled mightily with this section, but we finally got to the top and stopped so everyone could regroup.  The road, while still dirt, was much better, without a steep up-hill section.

On the Road to Chancia

Taking a Short Break

The Ever-Present WW I Memorial in a Small Town

We finally arrived about 4:15 PM at our ‘camping’ facility on Lake Coiselet outside Chancia.  It turned out to consist of cabins that were fairly nice – no bath towels, soaps, or shampoos, however.  Luckily John had some shampoo and small soap and most of us at least had a small towel.

Our Cabin for the Night

Having a Beer after Arrival at Lake Coiselet

The Resort Setting - Lake Coiselet

The place had a swimming pool and restaurant, so we were able to have a beer and then a nice dinner.  The restaurant had a TV, so some of us watched the Euro Cup soccer match where France beat Austria 1-0.

Total distance for the day – 58km or about 11km per hour.  Pretty slow and a testimony to the rigors of part of the route.