Contents: Tours (4) Trails (2)
Reports by Tracey Maund and Colin Champion
All descriptions are in English, unless otherwise noted.
Tours
| Cycling in Umbria and the Marches
tour started May 2003 We spent a week each in Umbria and the Marches in May and June 2003, staying in rented properties. In Umbria we stayed on the edge of Assisi in a 1000 year old tower. The countryside there is hilly and full of lovely old towns. In the Marches we stayed at Le Piane, midway between Amándola and Sarnano. The towns are less striking, though still often pleasant and well situated, but the terrain is mountainous. We chose the location becauseof the vicinity of the Sibylline Mountains, and when we went cycling we piled on the vertical metres. Tracey took a road bike and Colin a mountain bike. |
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| Cycle Touring in Sicily
tour started May 2000 The notes of ``[a fortnight spent] touring western Sicily in May/June 2000, staying in hotels.'' Includes fine pictures. |
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| Cycling in Corsica
tour started June 1998 [We] visited Corsica for 2 weeks in June 1998. We'd booked a week at each of two gîtes, and spent our final night at a hotel at Calvi. The first gîte was between St. Florent and Oletta, and gave us access to Cap Corse and the Conca d'Oro, both of which are pleasant, as are the two towns mentioned. The second gîte was in the village of Casanova somewhat to the south of Corte, giving access to the Castagniccia and the gorges of the central mountains. This gîte no longer seems to appear in the brochures. But it is a wonderful region for cycling. The Castagniccia is made up of beautiful forested hills with ancient villages on each spur, topped by elegant campaniles. It's hard riding on idyllic lanes; paradise for the fit cyclist. We would coast down to Corte and take long rides in the hills, stopping for delicious lunches. We'd return to Corte and fill our panniers with wine, mineral water, milk ... all the necessities of life. But it was 250 vertical metres back to Casanova, a ride which we did every day for a week. We felt that final climb. |
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| Cycle Touring in Tunisia
tour started June 1994 [We] spent about a week touring Tunisia in June 1994. We took road bikes and stayed in hotels. It was nice and sunny, but there was sometimes a stiff north westerly breeze. |
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Trails
| Mountain biking around Tafraoute
tour started March 2004 We spent the first week of March 2004 cycling to, around, and back from Tafraoute at the western end of the Moroccan Anti-Atlas. We had been there before, trekking with Exodus in late 1992. This time we flew to Agadir and on the following morning took our bikes by minibus to Aït Baha, from where we rode on to Tafraoute. We spent 3 days cycling around - largely on pistes - and then rode to the Col du Kerdous, perched over the coastal plain. An easy descent took us to Tiznit, and we returned to Agadir by taxi. We stayed in upmarket hotels, booked from England by telephone and confirmed by fax. Route-finding was never much of a problem, but it helps to have some acquaintance with the Arabic script since many signposts on tracks and minor roads have no Latin transliterations. We took a GPS unit with us but could have got by perfectly well without it. |
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| Mountain Biking in Morocco
tour started November 2000 The notes of [8 nights spent] in southern Morocco in November 2000. Includes a narrative and gorgeous pictures. |
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