Wednesday June 29, 2005, 64 km (40 miles) – Total so far: 5,113 km (3,177 miles)

This is the highest we’ve camped yet; 1860m at the ski resort of Val d’Isère, it was a pretty hilly ride to get here too. First we had to go over the Cormet de Roselend (1967m) before descending 1100m to Bourg St Maurice, then we had a steady climb all afternoon spoilt at times by some stormy weather. It’s still raining now at 6.45 p.m. and the thunder is rumbling away down the valley.

A huge storm hit Val d’Isère in the evening. I first heard what I thought was heavy rain in the distance and we could no longer see the mountains down the valley, then a hailstone the size of a golf ball landed in front of the tent swiftly followed by several thousand others. Thunder, lightning and heavy rain following for a few hours and at one point it looked like we were going to be flooded. Our freshly waterproofed tent did OK, but a lot of our gear is now very wet, including my shoes.

Our hotel on the Barrage de Roselend seen from the climb of the Cormet

Agata on the climb of the Cormet de Roselend

Painted roads from past tours

This statue overlooks the Lac du Chevril at Val d’Isère

Chalets in Val d’Isère

Camping in Val d’Isère