Our/my last ride
Our last day was a bit of a free for all. A group went out intending to do a slightly more mellow but still with more climbing than I wanted. A couple of folk chose to stay at the hotel/chateau. I took a leisurely ride to Navarrenx, a formerly walled city from which the Three Muskets reportedly lived - at least according to the chateau owner. I learned later that the group split as some turned back, some went further and some went on their own. My ride was relatively flat going out. I returned along the cote ridge which was up and down for about a 1,300 feet of climbing over 42 miles. The highlights included stumbling upon the Navarrenx town rugby festival and having lunch at the cheesiest Basque fair in Orlons.
The ride along the cote was undisturbed by cars, populated by cows, figs and scattered vineyards. Weather was cloudy, sometimes threatening, but it never rained. After everyone returned, it was all about packing bikes for departure tomorrow.