Thursday evening (2006) 1/3

June 22, 2006

"castle of Hohlandsbourg"

22°C 72°F
38 km 23 miles, 2h10 Elev.Gain 960m 3100 feet

16 MTB (Michel, Maurice, Christian, Eric, Loic, Thierry, Franck, Gérald, Anthony, Denis, Christophe, Roger, Jean-Claude, Stéphane, Fabrice, Jean P.)

appointment at 6:30_PM at the church from Westhalten - Pfaffenheim - Gueberschwihr - Voegtlinshoffen - rise towards the shelter from Stauffenmatt (722m) - the GR532 to pass in front of the Turenne rock - castle of Hohlandsbourg (620m) - superb descent in the forest - return by Husseren-les-Chateaux - Voegtlinshoffen - Gueberschwihr - Pfaffenheim - Westhalten

first rise	Gueberschwihr	way	danger!!
GR532	les 3 Chateaux	sight on Colmar	you are also in the box
at the Hohlandsbourg	the doe escapes	Michel ...	next program

- next week:
departure from Linthal ..... return "farm from Jean - cottage from Eric" -- by night (take your lamps with you!)

June 18, 2006: (a sunday morning)

"les balcons d'Orbey"

29°C 84°F
50 km 31 miles, 3h45
5 MTB (Denis, Thierry, Michel, Yves, Christophe)

appointment at 7h30 in Wihr-au-Val (valley of Munster) (338m) - Croix de Wihr

8h50 (890m) - Labaroche - descent towards Orbey (500m) - we use the "Cornelius path" to go to "les Bocheney"

10h40 (982m) - 5mn after it is necessary to find a way in all these fir trees - we finally overhang the "Lac Blanc" (White Lake) around

11h10 (1100m) - "Lac Noir" (Black Lake) - les Hautes Huttes - Col du Wettstein (880m) - le Linge (987m) - 500m after, at the Baerenstall (German military cemetery) we take the small path for a dream descent - it is finished, we are back to Wihr-au-Val

12h30

stairs

... the photo gallery

- hot!! the 2 liters from the Camelbak are not enough !!
- superb area !!

June 15, 2006

"grain noble"

29°C - 21°C 84°F - 70°F
36 km 22 miles, 2h20
11 MTB (Eric, Yves, Thierry, Franck, Franck, Laurent, Fabien, Gérald, Denis, Didier, Christophe)

at the program "~~noble valley~~" ... which is transformed into "grain noble"

6:30_PM Guebwiller - col du Bannstein - rise to the Collar of Boenlesgrab by Engelstein - the way which goes up to the farm of Strohberg (a discovery for Laurent!!) - still 800m in direction of Schellimatt (we are then with 1150m) - descent by Mullermatt - I warn Franck "here on the right, the small path" (*) Horror, it's transformed in a motorway!! - Hilsen - Rimbuhl - Remspach - stop at the cottage from Eric for a feeding - Hoefen - return by D430 from Linthal to Guebwiller

10:10 PM

car park	Yves	pause	walking
rise towards the Strohberg	still a few meters	Christophe	Eric
10/11	chain	express repair	"small" path (*)
white wine	chocolate...	not in the cottage!

- no storm (contrary to the forecasts); Michel would not have needed an excuse ... no need to wash the bicycle!!
- return, vitaminized thanks to the white wine of Alsace

June 8, 2006

"ND of Schauenberg"

23°C - 19°C 73°F - 66°F
33 km 20.5 miles, 2h
16 MTB (Michel, Yves, Eric, Loic, Hervé, Thierry, Franck, Laurent, Fabien, Gérald, Denis, Didier, Jean & Jean Z, Christophe, Hugo)

departure

6:45 PM from Guebwiller
direction Orschwihr by vineyard, Soultzmatt, Westhalten (for those which prefer a more reasonable rise), ND of Hubel (462m), forest (until Heiliger Baum)?. descent towards the forest house of St Marc, stop!!! on the right, the small way which goes up towards the Rock of the Cuckoo. Over there, seen on the plain of Rouffach. The path with cliffside which leads us to ND of Schauenberg is extra.

8:30 PM: the grids are closed, fortunately a sister saw us coming and opens the grids to us. We continue towards Strangenberg, then Westhalten, Orschwihr, Berholtz-Zell?

9:10 PM return to the cars.

the departure	"hot" sand	vineyard	straight for the brave!!
goats	Jean	it's too easy for Loic ... more?	superb forest
descent	then rise	to the Rock of the Cuckoo	grids opening
ND of Schauenberg	Didier	last sunbeam	at the Strangenberg

- weather (finally) ok,
- really good itinerary (from Michel).... (he even envisaged an alternate route for the rise)
- (almost) everyone is at the appointment !!

June 1, 2006

"Hartmannswillerkopf"

and

9°C 48°F at departure time
27 km 17 miles, 2h15 (+X mn carrying in the trenches)
3 MTB (Christian, Didier, Christophe)

6:30_PM Hartmannswiller
ok, weather is not terrible but only 3 courageous at the beginning, it is average!!
The course (not really that programmed!): Wuenheim by the vineyard. After the shooting gallery, small steep path (full west) direction Ruchthal. Then the road ... Kohlschlag farm (at the left) and we arrive at the Col Amic. We continue towards the castle of Freundstein. Little pause (at 859m) to put the (winter) gloves before the descent. From there, it is hard, because we join the trenches of the Vieil Armand (Mégard Rock, then Sermet Rock (910m)). Super visit but with a bicycle and without walking shoes, it is not the best way!! We take then the Serpentine way who leads us to the Zeller Canteen. Superb descent via the cemetery of Uhlans, then small mud bath to arrive near Bertschwiller and finally Hartmannswiller. It is 9:30 PM, Didier and Christian go away, as they came, with the bicycle!!

(wet) vineyard	perfect weather	Didier (avoids 2 stones)	still water
at the Mégard rock	... some barbed wires	Christophe in the fog	Christian in the trenches

For all those which have enough of this sh... weather see Markstein webcam (May 31),
I propose to go to the sun by Gilou
gilouonline.free.fr/blog/

(virtually with the mouse, and if it continues it will be necessary to rent a bus)

May 25, 2006

15°C 59°F

the spare part

May 18, 2006

6:30_PM: Vieux-Thann
proposal: the mythical rise to the Tannerhubel's farm and the not less exciting descent of the same name.

May 11, 2006

"Pastetenplatz"

24-18°C 75-64°F
21 km 13 miles, 1h35

12 MTB (Yves, Michel, Maurice, Thierry, Franck, Laurent, Fabien, Gérald, Denis, Didier, Jean Z, Christophe)

appointment at 6:30_PM

Vieux-Thann - Thann - oeil de la sorcière - then a little walking (warning in the email from Michel) - Pastetenplatz - Hirnelestein - Waldkapelle + - small detour to vault St Urbain + (if not, we will not make 20 km) - Vieux-Thann 9:00 PM

jewel: SRAM XO	rise in group	up there	impossible mission (*) (.mp3 11 sec.)
where are the brake pads ?	explanations!!	red sun

- absent: Jean phones to tell us that he is blocked at home (repair of the road)
- (*) not for everyone
- we have also a MTB without brake pads... braking: not ok! heating: perfect!!
- photographer: 6 photographs without memory card; not bad!! (to be checked the next time before leaving)