Loire Bike trip 2012

Bicycling the Loire Valley with VBT
  • Arc-de-Triomphe -- Paris, France
  • Pat, on a bridge over the Seine River.
  • Gene, near the Eiffel Tower.
  • The Eiffel Tower on a clear day in Paris.
  • The bridge at Avenue Winston Churchill.
  • Pat enjoys a view of Paris at Montmartre.
  • The Eiffel Tower from Montemartre.
  • The famous Moulin Rouge in Pigalle. We didn't watch the Can-Can show.
  • This man was selling sorbet from his model-T, which he drives to this site each day.
  • Notre Dame Cathedral.
  • The altar at Notre Dame. Pat and I attended Mass here.
  • A fence loaded with locks - near Notre Dame. Don't ask me why.
  • The front of our hotel in Tavers belies it's elegance. Behind this front is a beautiful terrace, swiming pool and outdoor dining facility.
  • Church in Tavers.
  • Joan of Arc monument, in the square at Beaugency. Joan passed through this area on her way to Orleans.
  • The market at Beaugency. The market was large, covering several blocks.
  • The whole group, with Pierre, one of our leaders, kneeling in front.
  • Me and Pat at Chateau Chambord.
  • A walking tour guide provides information about Blois to the group.
  • City street in Blois.
  • The Chateau de Chaumont overlooks the river.
  • Our hotel in Amboise.
  • The view from our room at the Manoir de Minimes. The Chateau d' Amboise, overlooking the Loire River, is visible in the upper left of the photo.
  • The man in the center gave us a tour of his wine caves in Bloise.
  • Josh, Susan, Ben, Me and Pat enjoy the cycling in the Loire Valley.
  • The Chateau Chenonceau was built over the river Cher in the 1500s. This beautiful place was used in WWI as a hospital and in WWII as an escape route to the unoccupied south of France.
  • Pat, Susan and Josh at the Chateau de Chenonceau.
  • The Chateau Villandry, as seen from one of the gardens.
  • Pat and me in one of the Villandry gardens.
  • Some of the Villandry gardens, as viewd from near the chateau.
  • This 'fixer-upper' chateau was recently purchased by an American.
  • The Chateau de Brou in which we spent 2 nights.
  • Our room, Descartes, in Chateau de Brou. The rooms each had names, rather than numbers.
  • A rose garden in one of the villages.
  • A troglodyte (cave dweller) house, dug into the limestone walls of a cliff. The year-round temperatures stay in the 60s in these houses.
  • Entering a typical Loire Valley village.
  • The village of Crissay-sur-Manse.
  • Chinon, France viewed from near the fortress. Chinon was the last place we visited.