So here's some background skinny…
BITD I was foolish enough to look at the Trans Provence footage and think "that looks like fun" and start to do research. Approaching some of the staff who'd worked on it who were friends of friends, it was quickly made clear that the route was not for public consumption, so I had to resort to other means.
Over the course of several years, I pieced together what I could. There were lots of variations, lots of incomplete bits, and lots of options to join them all up. The itch wouldn't go away, so I complied things into a single place:
https://maphub.net/DoctorRad/Tour-du-04-06
Hence what became #EnTOUR0406 became a thing. After mountains of logistics planning, bookings by email, and SNCF train strikes, my then 16yo son and I arrived in Sisteron in late June 2018 to tackle the beast.
Both bikes broke to one extent or another at various points, but spare gears hangers and Decathlon in Digne-les-Bains got us running again. We were carrying far too much gear, and had to miss out some trickier bits. We used the ski lift in Valberg, but still almost missed the kitchen closing at the accommodation that evening. It was some of the hardest riding I’ve ever done, and was utterly spectacular. When he applied to uni, my son said it was the best holiday he'd ever been on.
I barely wanted to get back on a bike for at least 6-12 months… but now I’m itching to get back into some Proper Mountains™, and from the makers of the Trans Provence we have The Stone King Rally…