A superb stay in a Basque working farm with wholesome home made food - pate, sausages, honey and bread gave us a good start for the day.
A misty start with fine drizzle soon eased off and we were straight into climbing the Col de Marie Blanque (1035 metres). At first the small Barescou Valley seemed gentle with meadows sitting below soft flanks. There was little traffic and the tourist sign announcing that we were on the route du fromage only added to the soft lethargy. But soon we were into the climb with 3kms of 12 to 13%. A final hairpin announced the summit and just over an hours climbing was at an end.
It wasn't a morning for hanging around at the top and Chris and Phil who were ahead of me, texted me to tell me to meet them in Laruns for a welcome coffee and bun.
The next climb was the Col de Aubisque, one of the big ones, a legend of the Tour. A steady start for 4kms and then it ramps up to 13% and it's hard work all the way to the summit at 1709 metres. We lunched on the top and enjoyed a hearty meal - with burning off nearly 5,000 calories a day you can eat as much as you like.
The first part of the descent was cold but it soon warmed up as the valley approached - a temperature difference of 20 degrees. The last part of the ride up to Luz-Saint-Sauveur I knew very well, having stayed at Luz on 4 separate occasions with the family.
Luz is a spa village straddling the confluence of the Garvarnie and Bastan rivers with an older 12th century part and a more modern 19th century quarter of Saint-Sauveur.
Monica Murphy kindly let us stay at her lovely holiday home - where we had stayed as a family in 2010,2011 and 2014. Reading the visitors book was quite emotional as previous visits here came flooding back. We enjoyed a superb set meal at the Templiers restaurant (a reminder of the town's links with the Knights of St John) and retired early.
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