Fair warning, this post is not targeted at serious cyclists.  It describes a beautiful, flat, 17-mile ride along the Nive River in the southwest of France. 

Karen and I have talked about getting bikes and exploring the Basque countryside on two wheels, but she's afraid of hills and I must admit that I get nervous on narrow winding country roads with no bike lanes and no shoulders. 

But every time we take the A63 in or out of the area, we pass over the Nive River and we've been envious of the people who are running, walking, and biking along a paved path that leads inland. 

A couple of trips ago, I did some research and discovered that this path, called the Chemin de Halage, was actually built centuries ago and was used to haul boats upriver to the villages of Usteritz and Cambo les Bains.  It has since been turned into a multiuse path for pedestrians and bikes.  There are still a few homes and farms which are only accessible via the path, so it's possible, but very unlikely, that you might see a car on the path - it's limited to locals only. 

I also discovered that there are several access points to the Chemin de Halage so a year ago, Karen and I did some short walks (she wasn't walking well at that point) along the middle part.  We often saw rowers training on the river.  Then, this summer, Karen's daughter and son-in-law spent a month here.  We talked about the Nive and the Chemin de Halage, and they discovered that the city of Bayonne lends bikes for free.  They took a ride along the Nive. 

Of course, on our return, we had to do the same, so yesterday, we went to the tourist office in Bayonne, gave them my driver's license and a credit card number and we were off.

The bikes are sturdy (and quite heavy).  They come equipped with a basket, a light, six gears, and a lock.  They have signs over the rear wheel advertising the City of Bayonne.  Mine were loose and a bit too close to my feet on the back part of the stroke.  The steering was a bit wobbly, especially with our picnic lunch and gear in the basket.  But the seats were comfortable so we made our way carefully through the traffic around the old city and onto the path which runs along the left bank of the Nive. 

Once you leave the city, you have the river on your left and stands of trees, fields of corn, and patches of Espellete peppers on your right.  There are benches every quarter mile or so.  If you look carefully, you can spot ancient ruined farmhouses tucked away in the trees  and there are even a few spectacular chateaux on the hillsides. 

About halfway to Usteritz, you pass the L'heberge de La Nive, a small hotel and restaurant that also serves as an equestrian center complete with lessons and competitions.  We went by in the middle of the afternoon during the week and were surprised to see that the restaurant was open.  However, we had brought a picnic, so we didn't stop. 

There are also several water fountains and pull-up bars, so runners don't need to carry water.  In fact, if you think about it, we really didn't need to carry water or food.  I'm sure that would have made control of the bike much easier. 

The path is well-maintained with no potholes.  Many of the benches are perched on the side of the river under trees.  With a light wind blowing, they offered perfect places to just relax and watch the water go by.  And the fish. 

I don't know what kind of fish we saw, but they're huge - at least 2 feet long.  They travel in schools so sometimes, large sections of the river lift at once and you think the Loch Ness monster has found its way to the south of France.  I'm sure the many waterfowl, egrets, herons, and grebes, have no problems eating their fill.

Not long before you reach Usteritz, you'll see a waterfall complete with fish ladders.  There are numerous places to picnic, and a bit further, as you reach the outskirts of Usteritz, you find children's playgrounds and large open areas. 

Usteritz itself has a lot of history (as does most of France).  Built in the 11th century, it served as a crossroads for commerce with Spain.  The Nive, which accessed the Port of Bayonne, was a gateway for the interior Basque region and Usteritz flourished.  It was the 'capital' of this part of the Basque country.  In 1174, Richard the Lionhearted captured Usteritz in 10 days to gain control of the region.   Today, the village has about 6,000 inhabitants, a few chateaux - most restored since the 17th century, and a cemetery with gravestones from the 12th century. 

From the tourist office in Bayonne, our turn point in Usteritz was 8.5 miles into our trip.  We probably could have continued towards Cambo Les Bains, but we decided to return since we had thoughts of getting a round of disc golf in before heading home. 

The ride back was just as interesting as the ride out.  You see things, particularly on hillsides, that you missed going in the other direction.  The wind had picked up, so we had a bit of a headwind on the return, but the trees on either side of the path seemed to block it well and the return wasn't any more difficult than the way out. 

And as we passed under the A63, thinking of the cars passing overhead who were probably envying our leisure, we saw the twin spires of the Bayonne cathedral.

We made our way through the old city to the tourist office where the friendly woman returned my driver's license and the document on which she'd noted my credit card number. 

The ride along the Nive was a very pleasant way to spend an afternoon.  We'll definitely do it again.  But the Nive offers much more - kayaking, boating, fishing, horseback riding, and more.  The Chemin de Halage is a great way to access it.  On our next visit, we'll be taking our kayaks.  Since this part of the Nive is tidal water and tide changes here range between 12 and 25 feet, we'll see if we can time the upriver paddle with the end of the incoming tide so we can have a nice easy downriver return.  If we're successful, I'll try to post some pictures from the river itself. 

Since this chapter is several pages long, I'm just posting enough to give you a bit about this character.  Let me know if you want to see more about his psychological break and his condition and I'll start making short Word documents available.

Mark Johansen made his way slowly up the stairs past the bakery on his way to his first outpatient session with Doctor Samantha Louis since his psychotic break several weeks before.   

God, it smelled good.  Lately he’d had challenges controlling his eating and coming here certainly wasn’t going to help.  Maybe it was the medication. 

It had been a rough year since Janice left him.  He’d been depressed.  He’d started drinking.  Then it was the cocaine.  It seemed to help elevate his mood.  When using, he felt like he was almost back to his normal self, the charismatic CEO of Johatchen Software.

But as he now recognized, what he thought were brilliant new presentations were just rants.  What he believed to be his renewed enthusiasm for his work was perceived by his team as mania.  When he thought he was bringing them closer, he was driving them away.   And then Janice appeared. 

At first it seemed normal,  he’d see a woman on the street and would mistake her for Janice.  Then she showed up at work.  At least he thought she was there.  Every day he’d see her in the break room sipping coffee. But it wasn’t her and what was really scary was that it wasn’t anyone else either.  No one saw her.  He tried to pass off his questions about the woman at the table as just a joke, but unbeknownst to him at the time, his overly intelligent team saw through him. 

He did his best to ignore her appearances, but then she started following him around.  She’d show up everywhere.  He’d be sitting on the toilet and when he looked up, she’d be there looming over him, shaking her head in disgust. 

She showed up in meetings.  Just when he thought he’d gained some sense of normalcy, she’d show up and give him a dirty, disapproving look.  He’d stop in mid-sentence and would stare, hoping she’d go away.   His team recognized the gaps. 

But it really got bad when she started talking to him.  She wasn't talking to him; she was lecturing him.  And it didn't stop.  He became paranoid, looking around corners, and behind plants and large objects to make sure she wasn't there, plotting to leap out at inappropriate times.  But she did.  He'd cover his ears, but nothing he tried could drown out her criticism.  He'd stop mid-sentence and  run out of a meeting for no apparent reason. 

Most of the reason we came to France so early this season was that Karen was invited to play in a disc golf tournament sponsored by our local club in Tarnos on the 7th of September.  Because of demands at work and some new injuries, Karen didn't play much disc golf this past summer so the week before we left and the few days after our arrival, we practiced as much as we could, getting her used to new discs and to having me as her caddy. 

The day of the tournament, everyone was surprised that I wasn't going to play.  After Karen and her friend literally begged me to play, I reluctantly agreed.  I have never wanted to play in a disc golf competition.  I compete with myself, not with others.   

The tournament went smoothly, Karen finished second among the four women playing.  The one who beat her plays on the French National Women's team.  I finished in the middle of the pack of excellent, experienced players.  I was pleasantly surprised. 

During the third round, on the most difficult par 4 hole, Gilbert Carniel, one of the older players (my age) who is the primary contact for the Coutras club, helped me out of a difficult situation.  The shot looked impossible to me, but he showed me a trick and I dropped my disc next to the pin.  After being down quite a bit in that last round and suffering from the 90+ degree heat, something about learning a new shot inspired me and I subsequently had 4 birdies and finished the round a respectable 2 over par.  Gilbert's 15-year old son Mike, who is on the French National Junior team, easily won the competition 9 under par while his sister Kim took the honors for the women.

I mention this because the real story in this blog is about the next tournament which was sponsored by the Gilbert's club in Coutras on Sunday the 21st of September.  It was the last disc golf tournament for the season which was part of the Southwest (France) tour.   

Six of us from the Tarnos club made the 3 hour trek to Coutras for the tournament.  Unfortunately, several of the other club members had other obligations.    As we entered the town, I realized that Karen and I had been there before.  We had stopped there for lunch on our way back from the Dordogne two years ago.   

Coutras is a village of about 8,000 people that sits where two rivers, L'isle and the Dronne meet.  It is considered the gateway to the spectacular Dordogne region and is a only few minutes away from the famous Saint-Emilion wine region. 

We were greeted warmly by Disc Golf Club Coutrillon (Coutrillon is what people from Coutras call themselves) and a light breakfast was waiting.  In addition to Gilbert, Mike, and Kim, Steve, another son who is on the French National Team, was going to play.  Gilbert's wife managed the refreshments and scoring, and between matches, his grandson who was about two tried to throw discs.  I think you get the idea here.  

The course was challenging.  Every hole had OB areas (out of bounds - in the map, white lines are the paths to the baskets; red lines indicate the out of bounds areas around each hole) which made the course very technical.  Don't go wide or it costs you a stroke.  Don't go long past the basket or it costs you a stroke.  Don't go too short or it will cost you a stroke.  Two doglegs had very tight restrictions.  But the most interesting thing was hole number 2 - the 'ilot' - the island.  The basket was in a small field and was surrounded by an OB rope.  The diameter of the island was about 6 meters.  The tee was on a ridge that ran along the highway.  It was about 150 feet away but about 20 feet above the island and the island was at about a 30 degree angle to the ridge.  You had to stand on the ridge and land your disc in the island on the first shot.  If you missed, you got a second shot with no penalty.  If you missed again, you took a penalty and moved to the closer tee which was about halfway to the basket along the ridge where you got to keep trying. 

The island was Gilbert's idea and from what I understand, he previously has done quite well with it.  I felt really bad about taking 6 on that hole after being under par until then (our group started on hole 6), but Gilbert consoled me by telling me he scored 10 (the max) on it.  Karen on the other hand landed in with her first shots during her first two rounds. She was a contender for the 'closest to the pin' prize until the last round when Laurent from the Lagorce club, who was otherwise having a very bad day, beat her out by a few centimeters. 

I learned a lesson from these competitions.  As much skill as you may develop, Disc Golf, like many other sports, is a psychological game.  Much as Gilbert's trick helped me on to much better performance at Tarnos, my poor performance at the Island dragged me down on subsequent holes.  And it did it on each round - I got discouraged.  Fortunately, on the second round, it came near the end, so it was only my last few holes that showed the effects.   This is something I really need to work on. 

Putting aside my personal challenges with the day, I can't deny that the weather conditions were ideal, everyone had a great time, and I learned a lot about what disc golf can be.  The DGCC club sponsors community disc golf events, bringing children and families into the park for festivities and disc golf lessons.  This particular tournament was a handicapped event, so even those who didn't play well had a chance of winning a prize.  And it was fascinating to see a family so dedicated to the sport.   

I note that in France, the cities provide a small amount of funding to clubs who bring recreational activities to their communities.  The clubs must be what we would call corporations, with officers, annual meetings,  and a plan for each year.  Some of the disc golf clubs are also sponsored by local businesses. 

While disc golf hasn't yet exploded in France, if the club at Coutras is any example, it won't be long before it becomes a great family sport here.