PDS 7: Thus started part two of our day..
Our second half was an extended tour with lunch via Morgins and Champousins to Champery. A quick fire road and single track descent led to the Cabane at La Tovassiere, and a quick bite to eat. As we arrived, a live band were setting up their show. Now we're rocking!
![]()
The coast into Morgins glided by on a stomach full of Tarte aux Murtilles, the beautiful backdrop glittering as the sun started its afternoon descent.
![]()
As single track transformed into fire track, we coasted gently into Morgins and caught a quick ride up to La Chaux and the breathtaking panorama across the Rhone valley and the Dents du Midi (the Teeth of Noon). A short run through cow pastures led to the last lift of the day, from Champoussins to the Point de L'Au.
![]()
Most of these pastures are marked with an electric fence to keep the cattle in. For hikers, there is a turnstile system which looks like a minor humped-back bridge made out of a steel grill. For biking, these look worse than they really are, but some are narrow and demand respect on a bike. Old Man Buster took to them tenderly, and a few early successes saw his confience boosted . We all know pride comes before a fall, and his 4th or 5th attempt saw him clip the adjacent fence post with his handlebars just enough to send him off-line. Unfortunately, off-line in this case was a barbed-wire fence which he got badly hung up on, his Lycra-clad form offering a canny pastiche of the Sound of Music and The Great Escape. Laugh? I nearly shat myself. He also drew some pretty impressive blood.
![]()
The last section, walked in the main by the Old Man and his now tattered ego, was freeriding of the purist kind: a little bit of climbing followed by some wicked single track. I was having too much fun to stop and take photos, though. Suffice to say that this section forms part of the Freeriad Classic, a 70km tour of the Portes du Soleil which picks the best lines and takes a whole day to complete. Mrs Swiss Buster and I had enough time to get to know the local wildlife before the Old Man caught up.
![]()
Herbivor meets Carnivore: It's wierd looking at this to snapshot now when thinking of what we later had for dinner.
From Les Crosets, its a small climb around the valley to the Pointe de Ripaille, where you can coast to back to Champery. This gives a different perspective on the Dents du Midi, and one which by the time we arrived, was starting to fill with the promise of an afternoon thunderstorm.
![]()
To me, this is one of the most amazing aspects of the alps in August: blisteringly hot days followed like clockwork by evening thunderstorms. As we sat down to Steak Parisien with a bottle of Chilean wine, the blood, sweat and tears wiped away after a long shower, the lightning storm rolled in. Finishing our cheese platter later, we were treated to the most amazing rainbow with the Dents du Midi as a backdrop when the sun broke through the clouds before setting. "Damn" I though as we counted the distance to each peal of thunder, "I have to go to work tomorrow, Old Man Buster gets to do this everyday". Who's laughing now?
Our second half was an extended tour with lunch via Morgins and Champousins to Champery. A quick fire road and single track descent led to the Cabane at La Tovassiere, and a quick bite to eat. As we arrived, a live band were setting up their show. Now we're rocking!
The coast into Morgins glided by on a stomach full of Tarte aux Murtilles, the beautiful backdrop glittering as the sun started its afternoon descent.
As single track transformed into fire track, we coasted gently into Morgins and caught a quick ride up to La Chaux and the breathtaking panorama across the Rhone valley and the Dents du Midi (the Teeth of Noon). A short run through cow pastures led to the last lift of the day, from Champoussins to the Point de L'Au.
Most of these pastures are marked with an electric fence to keep the cattle in. For hikers, there is a turnstile system which looks like a minor humped-back bridge made out of a steel grill. For biking, these look worse than they really are, but some are narrow and demand respect on a bike. Old Man Buster took to them tenderly, and a few early successes saw his confience boosted . We all know pride comes before a fall, and his 4th or 5th attempt saw him clip the adjacent fence post with his handlebars just enough to send him off-line. Unfortunately, off-line in this case was a barbed-wire fence which he got badly hung up on, his Lycra-clad form offering a canny pastiche of the Sound of Music and The Great Escape. Laugh? I nearly shat myself. He also drew some pretty impressive blood.
The last section, walked in the main by the Old Man and his now tattered ego, was freeriding of the purist kind: a little bit of climbing followed by some wicked single track. I was having too much fun to stop and take photos, though. Suffice to say that this section forms part of the Freeriad Classic, a 70km tour of the Portes du Soleil which picks the best lines and takes a whole day to complete. Mrs Swiss Buster and I had enough time to get to know the local wildlife before the Old Man caught up.
Herbivor meets Carnivore: It's wierd looking at this to snapshot now when thinking of what we later had for dinner.
From Les Crosets, its a small climb around the valley to the Pointe de Ripaille, where you can coast to back to Champery. This gives a different perspective on the Dents du Midi, and one which by the time we arrived, was starting to fill with the promise of an afternoon thunderstorm.
To me, this is one of the most amazing aspects of the alps in August: blisteringly hot days followed like clockwork by evening thunderstorms. As we sat down to Steak Parisien with a bottle of Chilean wine, the blood, sweat and tears wiped away after a long shower, the lightning storm rolled in. Finishing our cheese platter later, we were treated to the most amazing rainbow with the Dents du Midi as a backdrop when the sun broke through the clouds before setting. "Damn" I though as we counted the distance to each peal of thunder, "I have to go to work tomorrow, Old Man Buster gets to do this everyday". Who's laughing now?
