Looking towards Grand Ballon, beyond descent to Col d'Amic |
Already 60km done by this point, 2hours to the start of the climb, so a good warm up for the ascent to Grand Ballon. Much nicer going from Cernay as you climb to the war memorial at Hartmannswillerkopf then recover with a drop to the col d'amic, so you've had a good warmup and rest before the final steep 6km climb to the highest point on the route. Looking back, the Swiss alps were visible on the skyline, Schwarzwald to the east, and the Vosges all around. Very strong side winds today on the last few km of the climb.
Always good this time of year along the high route, I carried on to col du Bonhomme before stopping for a sandwich and coffee. Met a nice Swiss man there who was staying near Colmar for a week, cycling the Vosges.
Great descent down to Sainte-Marie, then over another climb to Ribeauville before picking up the route du vin as the 3rd segment of the ride. Still harvesting grapes, the leaves on the vines are all yellow now, but the high road which is just to the north of Ribeauville, Riquwihr is absolutely worth putting up with the steepest ramps of the day for the speedy roll down towards Colmar and the train home.
Biggest milestone ever! the half way marker |