I have some good news, Fiascii, after a lengthy Committee debate, the next Autumn club mountain trip will be to the wonderful Pyrenees, with legendary Col de Tourmalet being the highlight of the trip (so good, we will climb it both ways in one day).
We are basing ourselves in Luz-Saint-Sauveur. Pricey, Colonel and myself have been here before on more than one occasion and is set up for our needs.
The dates to put in your diaries are Thurs 20th Sept – Sunday 23rd Sept.
ITINERARY
Thursday 20th September
Fly from Gatwick to Toulouse at 18.40, arriving 21.30 (EZY8339)
Pick up hire vehicles and drive to Luz-Saint-Sauveur (approx. 2hrs)
Arrive late night at accommodation
Friday 21st September
1st thing, pick up hire bikes (if not already delivered to accommodation)
Full day of riding – details and routes to be confirmed later but Tourmalet, Hautacam and Aspin are all within striking distance and there are several options for tackling these.
Evening – A quick peppermint green tea, dinner and bed.
Saturday 22nd September
Full day of riding, different from Friday but will be more mountains.
Evening – A quick peppermint green tea, dinner and bed.
Sunday 23rd September
Lie-in to aid the recovery of our tired legs and then drive back to Toulouse for lunch and then to airport for flight home at 17.20, arriving Gatwick 18.10 (EZY8338).
LOGISTICS
Accommodation:
Will be either in a local hotel in Luz-Saint-Sauveur or potentially a self-catering house, depending on numbers but the emphasis will be on comfort and value for money – ie it won’t be a youth hostel and it won’t be a 5* Spa resort. This will be booked centrally on behalf of all, so no further action required yet, I will let you know when you need to provide money.
Bike Hire:
We have come to the conclusion that the least hassle method is to hire bikes in situ. This saves the cost and hassle of bike boxes and transporting them (bike boxes take a lot of space in cars). Also gives the opportunity to ride a different bike. Luz has several road bike hire places and they all seem to be able to cater for all tastes and sizes. Again we will arrange bike hire centrally and once we know numbers we will get this sorted. If you confirm that you are coming, please can you give me your bike size (S, M, L, XL) and type of pedal required (Look, Shimano SPD, Shim SPD-SL etc)
Additionally, for the uninitiated, bike hire locations tend to have most common types of pedal and we will advise them of our requirements, so bring your own shoes with cleats. In the Alps this year, we all got sore backsides, so I, for one, will also be bringing my own saddle.
Car Hire:
We will book centrally a fleet of hire vehicle(s) to suit numbers and ensure we are comfortable. No further action required yet.
Flights:
Details above but to repeat;
EasyJet LGW-TLS (TOULOUSE) (EZY8339) Thurs 20/09 18.40
EasyJet TLS-LGW (EZY8338) Sunday 23/09 17.20
Travel to/from Gatwick:
Basically make your own way there from work or there is normally a group travelling by train from the Ming. As before, early arrivers will identify a suitable meeting point airside and communicate that to the travelling group. Again, coming home, we can either sort taxis or take the train depending on appetite and numbers.
As you were.
The Chairman