France · Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur · Var

Five rides across eight days in autumn 2011 — the oldest French rides in the archive, and the only ones with genuinely varied routes each day.

Ramatuelle and Bormes-les-Mimosas both sit inland from the St Tropez coast, in the hills of the Var — real cycling country, hillier than the coast itself suggests. Five separate rides here in late September and early October 2011, no two the same distance, which points to actually exploring the area rather than repeating one loop.

Ramatuelle

Three rides, 28–29 September and 1 October 2011. One note survives: "Lovely area for cycling."

Real GPS route map of a ride from Ramatuelle, Provence, France
The longest of the three Ramatuelle rides (1 October 2011), plotted from my own GPS track.

Bormes-les-Mimosas

Two rides, 4–5 October 2011, straight after the Ramatuelle days — the same trip, different base.

Real GPS route map of a ride from Bormes-les-Mimosas, Provence, France
The 4 October ride from Bormes-les-Mimosas, plotted from my own GPS track.