Day 1: Pauillac to Margaux – 45km

We have spent a good amount of time on our bikes in the last few days. Between cycling and wine, I have not found time for any updates so today I will endeavour to catch up a bit.

The first day’s ride to Margaux was the most challenging so far. It was a relatively hot day (28-30 C), and most of the ride was in the sun. It was my first time doing more than 10km on a bike since messing up my back (which has mostly been ok). My legs were fine, though a tad rubbery at the end. The bit that rests on the saddle – well that is where Rick and I were both feeling it by the end of the day.

We knew when we started that the batteries on the e-bikes would last about 80km. I had no idea how that translated into what level of assist, so I babied the crap out of that battery. Most of the ride was powered by Robyn with an infrequent, assist up a hill at the lowest possible setting.

Most of the ride was through, or past, vineyards and many, many chateaux. I had no idea how many wineries there were in the tiny area around Pauillac, 115 to be exact. I imagine we passed a good percentage of them, ranging from pretty and petite to large and impressive, like Chateau Lafite Rothschild. (I rode on to the back of the property to get some photos, until I arrived at the “Prive” sign, and the curious stares of 6 or 7 workers taking a break.)

I did not take a ton of photos on this first day. Part of the reason was that I was just enjoying the ride; the contented feeling of speeding along, wind in my face, while I thought about ‘things’ or occasionally burst into song.

“Country Roads”, frequently showed up on my play list. I attribute that to the stunning scenery as we whisked through vineyards and past the many chateaux. There was also a lot of “Onward Christian Soldiers” which probably came about as a result of Rick’s frequent call to our bikes “Onwards!”. It’s such a powerful melody. I never really thought about the lyrics before, but there is so much time to think when riding for 3 hours. They are a tad worrying in these days of radical Christian right: “Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus going on before.” Justifies a lot….

We never found a place to stop for a coffee or a snack, which did make the ride feel longer. We went through a lot of water and nuts, our primary fuel for the day.

The final 10km was a bit relentless. We were basically heads down and pedalling with our eyes on our odometers. Any discomfort had simply given way to quiet acceptance. I stopped thinking about my legs and my breathing and my saddle soreness. I just wanted to be done. It wasn’t misery, we were just out of steam.

We finally, gratefully, arrived at our hotel in Margaux, a small BnB, very charming and right next door to the famed Chateau Margaux. Was the Chateau named for the region? Or was it the other way around? Which came first? It is just behind the church and a little off in the distance.

We unpacked a bit, showered and headed out to a nearby wine tasting that Ken had been smart enough to book in advance. The Marquis de Terme was a short walk through the charming town.

The wines were enjoyable and the tour interesting. The winery was quite busy, as it was nearing the end of the harvest, so there were places we could only peak into. The winery is quite experimental and tries different types of vessels and methods to improve the wine-making process and the results. I was quite enamoured with the mix of old and new technology – clay barrels, wood barrels, glass vats and the giant egg, one of only about 50 in the world.

We strolled back to our hotel, with 1 purchased bottle of wine in hand, only to discover that our dinner that night was already organized – in the Marquis de Terme restaurant. Now that was a pleasant surprise! We changed our clothes and strolled back through the twilight. I do think this walking really helped keep our legs from seizing up entirely.

Dinner was marvelous! Although not a Michelin restaurant, the service and presentation was at the level one would expect from a Michelin. Since the meal was included in our tour cost, it was only the wine that we ended up paying for; a truly marvelous local recommendation by our waiter.

On reflection, I take pride in demonstrating to myself that I was capable of a 50km ride. I am happy that my back survived the mounting and dismounting and the spectacularly bumpy sections of the ride. And I was also pleased to see the results on my exercise app; my calorie burn was almost 3x my daily norm. That felt pretty good and opened the door for a dessert and just one more glass of wine.