Summer love: enjoying the view from here

I recently fell in love, all over again. No, Rob needn't be jealous as there are no men involved. I fell back in love with the Alps. It is Summer and the view from here is wonderful. There is a great soundtrack to go with this blog. As I don't know how to embed it, and to keep my sister happy (she is a lawyer with internet/ copyright background) please just open up this link and run it in the background.

We The Kings, "The View From Here"

After over 2 years of living within these spectacular mountains I hadn't noticed, but I had slowly begun to take them for granted. They are a constant backdrop to all my training and can be a companion, diversion, challenging coach, practical joker or even ferocious foe (like early season this year as I descended in a hailstorm off the Col des Aravis) as I ride, run, swim, ski, work, play or otherwise live in and amongst them. Most days I take active notice of something new, changing, interesting or groovy as I travel through their domain. However with mid-season training becoming more specific, time at a premium as I juggle family, coaching and training demands, my comfort and familiarity dulled my early sense of constant wonder. It took a minor change of scene, changing up the training a bit, a good race or two and some wonderful quiet "girl in mountains" moments to rediscover just how much I love this region. 

Since the disastrously timed bout of bronchitis just before Ironman Zurich, I have raced twice, both times in the southern alps of France. The first was Alpe D'Huez, this year for the court distance race (1.2/30/7) before deciding to take on the mythic Embrunman (3.8/188/42.2). I'll do a race report for Embrun separately as it definitely warrants it, but for now I can summarize it as interesting, hard, hot, odd, beautiful and a bit bizarre.

However Alpe D'Huez was a chance for me to see how I was going 11 days after Zurich. It was also an opportunity to head off to the mountains by myself for a few days as Rob was working and the kids had an overnight randonnee in the Aravis.

Still smiling high on the Alpe

I drove from home on race morning thanks to the very civilized 2pm start time. After registering and getting organised up at Alpe D'Huez I rode down the high narrow road past Villard-Reculas to the start line at Lake Vernay. The water was a very manageable 17o this year (vs 14o last year when I raced the long course here) and despite getting fairly effectively worked including an eye watering elbow in the nose, I had an ok swim. Once out of the water, it was hot and a bit windy. I earned my first ever drafting penalty about 500m from the base of the Alpe kicking up in earnest as I was riding about 5m behind one rider (7m rule here) despite packs of over 10 riders passing me cms off each other's wheels :-/. Anyway... I had a much more positive experience on the 21 hairpins of Alpe D'Huez that make up the final 14k of the bike course. Coralie Lemaire and I passed each other a few times before I finally got away from her in the final 5k. Despite being a clear competitor, her partner, who was leapfrogging her up the climb by car, cheered me on every time I passed and poured water over me to cool me down a few times when he had set himself up to do so for her. Très sympa, appreciated! After serving my penalty which was just a short bonus run at T2, I headed off feeling great for the 7k around the Altiport on top of the Alpe. For the first time this season I passed lots of guys on the rolling mountain trails that make up the loop. Unfortunately only one woman was within range, but I finished a pretty solid 9th overall and 1st masters woman.

Given I had been pretty unwell just a week earlier I was happy with the race as it showed I was getting back to form. However race day was eclipsed by the following 24 hours. That evening I drove over to visit some friends in a chalet back in the Vernay valley. It took me longer to drive there than it had to ride there in the morning as at sunset, the mountains were simply spectacular. I kept stopping to take photos and just suck it in. The road and villages stuck precariously to the edge of precipices, colours richened and then softened, lakes and rivers decorated the valleys as they reflected the last of the day's light before the sky slowly merged with the mountains and all faded to shades of dark blues. 

Huez village at sunset

I'll take the high road

Late light, Villard-Reculas

Shades of blue

The next morning I got up late from my accommodation right by the transition area (thanks Tamsin) and decided to put on my runners and go and investigate the mountains above the village. I headed out with no time, distance or speed objective, just to enjoy for as long as I felt like, as long as I was back home in time to collect the kids from their adventure in the evening. In the end I felt like running all morning and some of the afternoon. I found my way up onto the mountain bike and hiking trails around the high alpine tarns that in winter make up the cross country ski area. The area reminded me a lot of the Western Arthur Range in Tasmania. Although it is clearly without the pristine, wild element that remoteness and access difficulty allows SW Tassie as I ran under ski lifts and gondolas full of mountain bikers headed up above me for another run. Still, I saw very few people once high up above the resort and enjoyed the trails with just my own footfall to listen to. Luckily I only had a bit of battery left in my camera, so although I got to take some pictures to share, I then just enjoyed the views without feeling the need to frame them, cutting them back from lifesize to view or display later.

Although I had visited the area a few times before it had always seemed too busy and commercialized to really shine, criss-crossed with lifts and topped with standard order concrete ski condos, bike and ski shops, restaurants and bars.This time I left knowing I had experienced some of what it was that makes this place so popular, away from the crowds and infrastructure. A great sporting location in a physically spectacular region. 

No planned destination. Paths heading somewhere worth checking out

Alpine tarns / lakes

A world away from the concrete of the resort village

Stopping to smell the flowers

Running on high

Back at home in and around Les Aravis and since down in the Embrun / Briançon region of the Alps I have kept this more fresh eyed perspective and enjoyed anew the Alps in summer each day. Whether driving through, from my bike, with runners or swimmers on, visiting old towns, forts and castles or just picnicing by a river or lake with Rob and the boys we have delighted in the variety of shapes, colours and cultural offerings of the French Alps. There are many great places in the world, however I feel truly privileged to call this high corner of France home just now and have the opportunity to explore and get to know it better. Like a love renewed with some quality time together, I am appreciating the view from here.

I hope you too have the chance to look around you and find a great view to love whether in the fresh snow of Canberra, a crowded summer's coast somewhere in the northern hemisphere or some busy, bright, colourful city. Enjoy.