Day 37 – to Bize-Minervois

140 km
The morning started cloudy but during the day the sun came and apart from some tiny raindrops it remained dry. There was a rather tough wind from the northwest and that meant for me in my back. After 6 km I was on a piste cyclable near the Canal du Midi in Gardouch. In Naurouze after some 12 km the signs for the cyclists disappeared. I tried to use the footpath, but it was rather narrow and after 2 km I switched to minor roads and used the Garmin to lead me to the start of the next part marked as cycle path in Castelnaudary. Now I saw some signs for a cycle route no. 2, but without indication of a destination village. In Castelnaudary was a series of locks and the bridleway was good for cycling. But also this stopped after some kilometers and all the way to Carcassonne the bridleway was in a bad condition due to the roots of trees that made the path rough.
On this path I had my first flat tire (it was the tire of the Extrawheel. After repairing it I continued to Carcassonne, still using the bridleway. In Trèbes I switched to one of the tracks and used a smaller departmental street, but there was quite a lot of car traffic on it. In Pouzols I went to a camping Les Auberges (two stars). I tried to get the pins of my tent into the ground, but after a while I gave up, packed my things and asked my money back. Then I cycled to the next camping in Mirepeisset.The reception was closed already and I asked at the camping bar. Oh we are full and very expensive. Now I started to look for a suitable place in the wild.
But before I had a last look on my map and saw a 3rd camping in the neighborhood. That was my last try. It was a camping municipal with old, but sufficient infrastructure. Just before darkness my tent was set up.
Paul
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Day 36 – to Nailloux

147 km
In the morning it was foggy with sometime a light rain. Because the wind was coming from the northwest I expected rain in the Pyrenees valleys. Due to little differences in height and moving to lower heights & wind in the back I had a higher speed than the other days. Near Saint Gaudens I had to decide and I opted for the cycle route along the river la Garonne. It was signed out properly and I had good views to the river and the villages were nice.  I followed the route until Capens and then switched to the D622 to bypass Toulouse on my way to the Canal du Midi.
The weather improved during the day and coming further to the east. After leaving la Garonne I had to cross some hill chains with an height varying between 200 m and 270 m.
On the camping it seems that there was no rain today. And the approximaty to Toulouse with the Airbus works was clear: Int the camping a family from Hamburg, both parents working at Airbus wanted to see the town Toulouse before traveling home.
Paul
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Day 35 – to Capvern

90 km
In the morning I thought to hear some raindrops in the tent. It was some condensed water that felt from the leaves of a tree.
I packed my things as others also did. One of the guests on the camping municipal was a woman labeled Isabelle (on one of her bags). She travelled on roller skates and had a one wheeler to carry her luggage. She said, she had problems to come forward on some streets, due to loose pebbles. She was heading for a competition for runners and skaters this weekend. I whished her good luck   as she left the camping.
My route started with a light climb and then I cycled on about the same height for 20 km’s until Nay, where I crossed the river la Gave du Pau and then followed the river to Lourdes. And really in Lourdes there were some raindrops as predicted by the weather forecast. I now cycled on a route I did last year already. In Lourdes I bought the food for the weekend and had lunch.
The next part to Bagnères de Bigorre was steeper then I had in my memory. In order to cross the river le Luz the road descends about 200 m,  that I had to climb afterwards again.
Just before the bridge is an old monastery. During the climb to Mauvezin I saw rain showers in the high mountains. Short before Capvern I was in the middle of a thunderstorm  and flashes of lightning were nearby. I decided to stop at the nearest camping. I waited in the sanitary building until the wo worst of the thunderstorm was over and pitched my tent. This time I installed the outer part of the tent first and them the dry inner tent. After the rain came a clear sky and relatively high temperatures..
Paul
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