The Vosges

The Vosges are a low mountain range in northeast part of France.  It is also the name of the Department, where Joan of Arc was born.  The Vosges has been traded back and forth between Germany and France for the last 150 years.  After the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), the Alsace and Lorraine regions of the Vosges became part of Germany only to be returned to France under the treaty of Versailles in 1919.  There is still quite a bit of German influence in the area.  Half of the channels on the TV in the hotel were German, and it's common for people to speak both French and German in this part of France.

I stayed at the Hôtel du Rangen in Thann.  The rates were reasonable, the petit déjeuner (breakfast) was good, and the owner is an ex-bike racer.  He came out to make sure that I was reassembling my bike correctly, and I spoke to him (in French) for a while.  I don't get to use English again until I get to the Pyrénées on Sunday.

(courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Thann has a population of about 8000, and the nearest large city is Mulhouse, about 20 km away.  Mulhouse is in the area where France, Germany, and Switzerland meet.  The city shares an airport with Basel, Switzerland.  There is a wonderful cathedral in the middle of the Thann, La Collégiale Saint-Thiébaut.  The construction of the cathedral began at the end of the thirteenth century and was finished in 1516---more than 200 years.  Fortunately, the cathedral escaped the heavy destruction that the city suffered during World Wars I and II.  It looks very similar to the cathedral in Stasbourg.

The Vosges are a low mountain range.  This is cycling paradise.  Larry Smith and Veloski Sports will be leading a tour of the area in September.  There is a dedicated bike path running up and down the valley, and it was only a ride of a few kilometers to the beginning of the Grand Ballon climb.  I saw lots of other cyclists, and there are many side roads that I didn't have time to visit.  The Grand Ballon at 1424 m (4672 ft) is the highest point in the Vosges.  It is a big round-topped mountain whose name literally translates to the "big balloon."

(courtesy of Wikipedia)

The Grand Ballon climb gets hard during the last 7 km with an extended section of 8+%.  The road is two lanes all the way and pretty wide.  The pavement is good with the exception of a couple switchback turns, where they decided to use cobble stones for some reason.  I was very cautious on the descent and can't imagine what this would be like in the Tour de France if it was raining.

(courtesy of Wikipedia)

The plan for the second day was to ride the Ballon d'Alsace, but I ended up doing a short recovery ride due to rainy weather.