Overview

Day	Start	Distance	Elevation gain	Route
1	Lausanne	158 km	1198 m	Day 1
2	Belley	172 km	931 m	Day 2
Total		330 km	2129 m

Day 1

I wake up around 8. I have 160 km to ride today from Lausanne to Belley. I'm not in a hurry. The days are long, weather forecast is sunny, 20 degrees I have all the time to enjoy my morning coffee while reading the news.

My gear is almost ready. I'm taking my Ortlieb saddlebag, plus a small frame bag for the lights and for a spare battery. Should be enough for a multi day trip.

I'm reviewing what cables to bring. I have a charger cable for my phone, the Garmin head unit, the pedals with power meter and my shifters. They are all with different connectors.

It feels strange to have four kinds of batteries in my (non-electric) road bike. Anyhow, during a 1000km trip I need to be ready to charge their batteries, so I bring four different cables with me. I pay the price for choosing the latest tech.

Just before leaving, I remember that my cleats are completely worn, so I change them quickly before starting to roll.

Until Geneva, I know the road well I don't need sightseeing and I advance well: 60km in 2 hours.

I cross Geneva in the lunchtime peak traffic. My Garmin takes me through a few loops, but I don't second guess it because I don't know the city well.

West of Geneva I find the Via Rhône cycling road and the car traffic completely disappears. The road is well signaled and pretty calm. I cross many cyclists. I need to stay on this path until Belley where I booked a room for tonight.

At around 15:30 I'm at 100km, and I stop at a bakery. On the bike I ate a Clif Bar and two bananas. Now I pick a grilled vegetable sandwich and a coffee. The sandwich is huge, tastes great. There's no shade around the bakery, so I finish it quickly and get rolling. 60 km to go.

I start the see the Rhône next to me. The road goes up and down, there are even a few longer climbs, but nothing too steep.

Day 2

I start the day at 8 A.M. with a typical French breakfast: baguette, butter, jam, homemade cake with fruit juice and lots of coffee. I have 170 km ahead of me, I store as much energy as I can.

Rain is forecast, I'm planning to wear with my rain gear. When I leave it's covered and wet, but, fortunately, not raining.

I ride three hours, time for lunch! Just like yesterday I find a boulangerie at a center of a small town. I pay 9.5 EUR for a sandwich, coke and a cake.

Now it starts raining for real, so I put on my raincoat. It rains for about an hour at low intensity. Later even the sun comes out!

Today there's more unpaved section than yesterday. Fortunately, the gravel is well compacted it rolls well. My bike however becomes filthy. I'll wash it tonight.

I cross Lyon along the Rhône. There are walkers, runners and bikers sharing the large promenade on the banks. Friday evening traffic is terrible. I need to pay attention with the heat and the accumulated fatigue. I arrive to Irigny, a few km south of Lyon. There's a short climb to reach the apartment.

I'll spend the next two days in Lyon resting and sightseeing, then starts a six day tour in the Ardèche.