Touring - I did this ride./Mt. Ventoux.-Pic included.

Looking at cycling web sites; found this picuture of a ride I did..Mt. Ventoux in Provence..Just looking at this same road makes me happy...The lavender fields will stick in my mind forever..Now, my wife prepares all kind of Lavender dishes which are a speciality of Provence..
I went to the top the easiest approach..From the east, from Sault..like 16 miles and grade no more than 8%...This same road...Now this will be on my desktop..Get to Provence, do this ride..and when you get to the top and pass the Simpson memorial, at the gift shop..eat some of the Lavender ice cream...
and since I went up this ride alone, might add- no one took a pic of my behind.you are lucky.

Mt. Ventoux in the background..Before the ascent..This tour did a little loop about the Luebron..a ride and region not to be missed..

A nice lady in Eugene makes lavender ice cream, as well as rose ice cream. Looks like a great ride, hope you sampled a bit of wine also.

Shifty . Wine flows like milk in France..Sample the wine..always, Brought back a couple bottles of Chataneur du Pape...most famous wine from the Region adjacent to Luberon.. .
.yes, we grow lavender in these parts, but pretty insiginificant compared to the mile after mile of lavender in Provence... local lavender growers about our area, mostly produce Lavender honey.

Thanks for the description and the picture. I love that area, too. The lavender is really spectacular. And when the lavender-bale trucks pass, the air becomes filled with the scent of lavender. Beautiful!

Velogirl..Wish I could have posted some of my pictures of my 'easy' climb of Ventoux, but back then I did not put my film on disk....Wheneven the smell of lavender eminates from my wifes ' bath or the sauce that she puts in our dinners , I am transported to the hills of Ventoux...Velogirl..You did this climb from Sault? THink Provence is my favorite part of France...Did you bring back some of the 'lavender liqueur.' ? think like 12% alcoholic and the taste is so fragrent.
Wonder if the pros are so effected by the smell of lavender trucks as they ascend..no, guess it would be descent..they do the difficult way..
I get back to Provence, I gotta sign up for this organized ride from which I posted..ps---I will not even descent the difficult way...The grade is so steep, I would be shaking in my cleats...

Cyclezealot, you flatter me. I have not ridden my bike up Mt. Ventoux! I honestly don't know if I'd be up for it, with the tour busses going by and all, oh, and my lungs and legs. However, Sault is spectacular and I can imagine riding from Sault on some great roads, Jean Giono books going through my head all the while.

The bike I keep in France is a mountain bike, not a road bike. It's a long story that I won't get into here. It's my Paris city bike.

Seems like it's about time for another trip to the Old Country.

For those in the Southern California area..The climb up Mt. Palomar...in northern San Diego county..The east climb up to Mt. Ventoux, the easiest, from Sault ; I thought to not be much worse than Palomar. Elevation gain is about the same..And like 16 miles.

For those in the Southern California area..The climb up Mt. Palomar...in northern San Diego county..The east climb up to Mt. Ventoux, the easiest, from Sault ; I thought to not be much worse than Palomar. Elevation gain is about the same..And like 16 miles.
Not meaning to brag or anything, but what the hell... Last year my wife and I spent 4 nights in Sault in the middle of our tour. On our first day there we rode around the base to Bedoin and did the ride up Mt Ventoux from there. That was a decent climb, 10% for a long way. Not the most scenic climb though. We returned to Sault just in time for a drink & desert at that fantastic bar with the view looking out to Mt Ventoux. The next day in a fit of peak we rode up again from Sault over the top and down to Malaucene stopping for a huge pasta hit before returning the same way! The climb from Malaucene was quite scenic too. The last day we spent wandering through the Luberon based on the recommendations of a local we met at the supermarket (who needs a tourist office?). We really enjoyed our stay in Sault

Nomad..We stayed in the town of Bonnieux, but had my bike transported to Sault for the climb. Some of best riding we have ever seen...Luberon is a favorite...Don't think riding up Mt. Ventoux is comparing us to what the pro's do..They do the hard ride from the direction of Vaison La Romain...That I could not do. Not strong enough. wish I could make that boast.
anyone read this month's Bicycling Magazine about Mt.Washington...in New Hampshire...wonder what is the world's steepest bike climb..
Mt.Ventoux gets its' share of attention. Mt. Washington claims a 1/4 mile to be about a 20 % grade. Is that not defying gravity.?
Maybe one aspect of thinking Mt. Ventoux not much worse than our local climb//Recall that long forested segmet before you get to the actual face of the mountain..Must be 5 miles at about a 2-4 % grade.

Ventoux. Sounds nice... something to dream about.

FYI, I don't think Mt. Washington is the steepest, but when you throw in some of the changeable weather and powerful wind gusts, it is formidable. Guy at my LBS has done it twice - he claimed the last time a snowstorm forced them to descend prematurely, but he had no brakes since the finish is normally at the top :eek: .