The 2026 summer in our house in France was characterised by a single term: 'canicule', which is the French word for heatwave. During our time there we had hardly any rain, and almost every day the temperatures reached 30-35 degrees+. Luckily the mornings were fresh, and we were still able to cycle, hike and do some work around the house. The afternoons were spend relaxing on our shady terrace, reading, some chores inside and many walks with Pippin in the Sarenne river behind our terrain. And when we arrived we saw Paula for a few hours. She was there with some friends of her who were participating in the Marmotte cycling event (for which we volunteered as road marshalls).
Last year Piet signed up for L'Etape du Tour, which is a Tour de France stage for recreational cyclists. The event is a copy of the real professional stage a few days later, over the same routes, that are completely free from cars. As this was the hardest stage of the Tour Piet had to plan some serious training, and together with several cycling friends from Bourg d'Oisans he did many long rides as preparation. The day itself went well, by pacing himself Piet managed to finish in reasonable shape, after more than 10 hours on the bike, and after climbing the Cols Croix de Fer, Telegraphe, Galibier and Sarenne, ending in Alpe d'Huez. Never again?
Dorien and Lars spend two relaxing weeks with us, escaping from a very busy time at work, but mainly from buying a new house. They decided to leave Oegstgeest, as they both had long commutes to work, and found a new house in Nootdorp, at cycling distance for both of them. The signing, move and sale of their old house were all scheduled directly after their return. Dorien worked a few days in our house, and they had some of their good friends staying the second week.
This year the Tour de France was in town again, with two stage finishes on Alpe d'Huez. The week before many, many fans arrived, creating a complete chaos in the Oisans valley with campervans, limited parking, and people and cyclists everywhere. We left the car at home, and enjoyed the oasis of peace of our terrace, only to venture out to watch the stages. The first one was the classic climb of Alpe d'Huez, which we saw from the garden of some friends, just before the first incline of the climb. The second stage did the same route as Piet 6 days earlier, and we cycled with Dorien, Lars and friends a few kilometers up towards Col de la Croix de Fer, where it was relatively quiet.
Due to the heat we did very few long hikes, and stayed mainly in the valley, close to the water, to allow Pippin to cool down frequently. And we enjoyed several evenings with our local friends, catching up on the latest news and local gossip. And then it was time to return to The Hague, planning to come back soon!
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