After Ventoux, we were all in need of a rest day. We went to a nice street market in Sault (drove there this time) in the morning, then relaxed in the afternoon before going to Gordes for dinner. Pictures below are of an abbey near Gordes, complete with lavender fields, and a view of Gordes from a distance. 

The next day we drove to Alpe d’Huez, another famous Tour de France climb in the Alps. We delayed our start until ~4:30pm since it was far hotter than we were hoping. There are 23(?) switchbacks along the 14km route. The toughest section is the first 2km at 10% grade, but the remaining sections are a relatively easier 8-9%. After Ventoux, this climb seemed far more doable. It took us about 1.5 hours to go up, with a fantastic descent dropping back down to town. 

Thanks to fearless RVK for meeting up with us to tackle these incredible climbs (also for giving us all of the Gu gel and bringing bike necessities from the States…). His flight home departs the following day, so we will continue touring north to Chambéry and into Switzerland from there.