Questions for Fall Days

It's been pretty quite around here lately.  The weather turned from summer to fall to winter in about six days and we've been scrambling to cope with the fast plummet into dark days and cold rain.  We don't have any travel dates lined up until November when we head back to Ohio for the annual visit home.  So, we've been hanging around locally and spending a lot of time cycling (trying to stave off the inevitable holiday chub as long as possible, ha ha).  Of course, this time of year is probably the most dramatic visually.  I've been taking the camera out as much as possible when we get a break from the seasonal monsoon.  We did a quick shoot on Sunday and I got out early one morning this week when there was some fog on the river.  The rest of the time it's been pretty wet or we've been out on the bikes.

Every weekend morning when we're home we're cycling.  We also hit the roads a couple of weekday evenings after my husband gets home from work.  We see a lot of incredible stuff on the roads and paths and, of course, the light is always at its best when the sun is just coming over or heading below the hills.  I don't take a camera with me on these rides, just my iPhone, and that's starting to bug me.  It's very difficult to balance the two things I love to do when they both need the same time of day.  The X-E2 is too big to carry in my jersey pockets, and I don't want to carry it strapped to my back (because a. that's not cool and b. it's pretty uncomfortable).  So, I've been using my iPhone.  Every time I pull it out of my pocket to get a shot of a great sunset, like the one below, I curse the absence of a real camera in my hand.  Sorry, Apple fans, they still don't make a phone camera that can stand up to a real camera.

It's raised the question of what my gear priority should be.  Like a lot of X-Series photographers, I'm waiting and waiting for the official specs on the X-Pro2.  In the meantime, I'm kicking around adding a compact to the collection- something small enough to slide into a jersey pocket, but better performing than the iPhone (which wouldn't take too much.)  I originally looked into a waterproof sports camera, but their capabilities aren't too much better than a smartphone.  Plus, they're designed mostly for underwater applications.  So, keeping in mind that a compact wouldn't be weatherproof, I started to check out some models with higher end glass and a few other features that I would like to have access to.  That's dumped me at the door of Sony and it's Cyber-shot RX100 III (yeah, I realize there's a IV but the older model is cheaper).  It's small, has a slick pop-up view finder, tiltable screen, multiple shooting modes, WiFi, and good optics from the Zeiss lens.  It's a tantalizing choice.  The price, though, isn't.  Knowing that I will be adding another X-Series body for my regular shooting sometime next Spring, the cost of an RX100 III would dip into the budget quite a bit.  But, I'm missing a lot of shots while out on the bike...

Decisions, decisions...

While I ponder this dilemma, I'll keep heading out on the paths with the X-E2 in between the deluges.  It has been absolutely stunning out there lately.

Chamoniiiiiiiix!

Well, I wrote this post once already today, then Blogger had a problem and highlighted all the text, and then it just deleted the whole post all together.  So, here I am, once again, writing a blog post on Chamonix-Mont Blanc, France.  Sigh.  Oh, and as I said in the original version, I was intending to write about the Fujinon 10-24mm lens, but I'm going to leave that for a later date.  Ok, here we go.  Again.

The city of Chamonix with the Mont Blanc Massif towering above

 Last weekend, we drove down through Switzerland to Chamonix-Mont Blanc, France.  Chamonix-Mont Blanc (usually just called Chamonix) is one of the oldest tourism based towns in Europe.  It is pretty much located where the borders of France, Italy, and Switzerland meet.  The famous dome of Mont Blanc towers high above the town.  Mont Blanc is the tallest mountain of the Alps and the tallest in Western Europe.  It was the first major peak in the world to be climbed; the first ascent took place in 1786.  Some of the greatest climbers in history were either from Chamonix or spent significant time there.  Back in the day, the "Chamonix Guides" were men of legend.  Mont Blanc is still one of the most important mountains to ascend for mountaineers, usually the first major climb done by Europeans starting out in the sport and it's a must do for those attempting the Seven Summits.  The town is usually packed with climbers in the summer attempting the various routes of Mont Blanc, Grand Jorasses, or the many Aiguilles.  I'm fascinated by mountaineering and its lore and have always wanted to visit the valley from which the greats like Herzog, Terray, Messner, and Walker climbed out of into the clouds.  It's a sobering experience to see the spurs, walls, faces, ridges, and peaks in the flesh.

The dome of Mont Blanc

The Aiguille du Midi with its visitor center on the peak.  The cable car to the center is the
highest reaching vertical ascent car in the world.

Alpen glow on one of the peak of the Aiguilles

But, it's not just a town for climbers.  Chamonix hosted the first Winter Olympics in 1924 and it's still a top destination for skiers in the Winter.  And, there's plenty for hikers, paragliders, runners, and cyclists too.  Chamonix is an outdoor sports enthusiast's playground year round.  It's basically a French speaking Aspen; heck, it's actually Aspen's sister city.  Everyone walks around wearing Columbia, Patagonia, Jack Wolfskin, Northface, or Odlo, even if they're just going to the pub.  The town has been supporting the tourist trade since the early 19th century and it shows.  The center is lined with fondue restaurants, outdoor equipment stores (some with espresso bars), pubs, hostels, hotels, and gourmet food shops.  It's a bit shabby, despite the popularity.  Sleepy alpine village it is not, but for those making a first time visit to the Alps, Chamonix is good place to start.  Despite being a little worn around the edges, it has excellent facilities, good food, and the friendliest French townspeople we've ever met.  And, of course, the views will never get shabby.

View from center looking southeast on the chalky white Arve River

We were kept down in the valley due to snow on Friday, the first real snow we've seen this year (a bit odd to experience it in May).   That allowed us time to get some local provisions like Savoy cheese and saucisson, génépe, fresh bread, and some bottles of Chignin Bergeron.  It was also a good time to check out the Crystal and Climbing Museum too.  The weather was a bit tricky for most of the weekend, as it tends to be in mountainous regions.  It was foggy in the mornings, clear for about 5 minutes in the afternoons, then cloudy again in the evenings.  I threw the 55-200mm lens in the bag as an afterthought, but ended up using it quite a bit to get tight shots of the peaks and ridges (like the ones above) when there was a break in the clouds.  It also came in handy for shooting rock climbers scaling a wall down in the valley.

We did a 10 mile hike on Saturday.  For that I packed the 18-55mm, 55-200mm, and the 10-24mm lenses.  I cannot get over how much easier it is to use the Fujifilm system on a long hike in comparison to my old DSLR.  I packed the photo equipment (tripod, filters, etc) in my Hama backpack and still had plenty of room for extra clothing, lunch for us and The Dog, and other oddments.  That pack was still lighter than the other small daypack we had with a few additional supplies and water!  While I was definitely hankering for a weather sealed system on the snow day, I was thankful to be running the super light body of the X-E2 during the hike.

View of the valley from the Petit Balcon trail shot with the 10-24mm lens

House in Chamonix passed at the end of the hike. Shot with the 18-55mm. 

The rapidly receding Taconazz glacier.  Shot with the 55-200mm lens from across the valley
on the Petit Balcon trail.

Thanks to the weather, we really only got in one proper outdoor day.  It was a bit too early in the season for high altitude trekking as those trails were still under snow and many others were undergoing repairs.  It wasn't proper mountaineering season yet either.  There was a high risk of avalanche and we heard several from across the valley during our hike.  Of course, there were still plenty of climbers hanging around tackling clearer, lower routes.  The lower trails had a steady stream of hikers and runners, the roads were filled with cyclists, and the skies dotted with paragliders.  If ever you're headed to Chamonix I recommend giving it at least 5 days so you're more likely to get some clear weather.  The view from the Midi is supposedly worth the crowds and price.  Unfortunately the cable car wasn't running during our visit because of the weather.  So, summer is definitely the time to go (unless you ski).  There's enough to do in town on a bad weather day.  The cuisine is rich and hearty alpine fare (vegans may have some trouble).  The locals were all incredibly friendly and helpful.  Although it's a tourist town, Chamonix attracts a different type of tourist and generally the place has a laid back vibe.  While it's not my favorite spot in the Alps, I believe it is worth a look.  For someone who climbs (or, like myself, is just fascinated by the sport and its lore) Chamonix is definitely a must see.  However, its slopes and trails will be much more crowded than other alpine spots. So, don't expect to be alone in nature for long periods of time.  Unless, of course, you're clinging to a rock face high above the valley.

At De Ronde

So, last week I mentioned that we were up in Ghent in order to catch De Ronde van Vlaanderen cycling race.  When we lived in Luxembourg we tried to catch as many weekend single day races as we could, Omloop, Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, Liege-Bastogne-Liege, Paris-Roubaix, Amstel Gold, etc.  "The Classics" are my favorite races of the season.  The big grand tours are great and all, but the luster has worn off a little over the years.  With the never ending doping sagas and the monotonous and predictable tactics, they no longer grab my attention as they once did.  The action of a single day race, however, is still magic.  While I adore LBL and Paris-Roubaix, in my opinion, the best race to be there for is De Ronde.  There's nothing like being on one of the Flemish hills with a big screen TV, a cone of frites, a plastic cup of beer, and a bunch of Belgian cycling fans.  Nothing.

We were on the Paterberg in 2013 before the sun came up and I took a ton of photos all day of the action on the hill.

The rest of that set is up on my Flickr page, if you want to see some rider photos and shots from some of the other races.

This year on the Paterberg was about the same.  We still got there before sunrise and watched a hill in the middle of nowhere turn into one of the biggest parties Flanders probably sees all year. The medic ambulance got stuck in the mud again.  The burgers and frites were still hot, good, and messy.  The beer was flowing, but improved with Kwaremont being served instead of Jupiler.  The big screen was there so we didn't miss a moment of the action of the men's race (they still refuse to broadcast the women's race).  There were a few differences, though.  I don't know if this was a new thing for the 2015 edition or not, but there was a huge VIP pavilion at the top of the climb which created a weird dynamic early in the day with folks tramping up and down the hill in formal attire, while the rest of us were in jeans and waterproofs.  The organizers also have added free stools at the TV which were eagerly snatched up and carried off.  I spent most of the morning shooting time lapse, so I didn't take very many spectator shots.  I'm still working on the time lapse stuff (very laborious business, time lapse is).

The moon was incredible this year

Free stools

VIP area

The crowd was a little more rowdy than in 2013.  The beer flowed a bit more freely, there was some pot smoking going on, a few little brawls, and, alas, some unfortunate behavior from some of the fans.  A word of wisdom to all my fellow English speakers, please be careful what you say.  Pretty much everyone in Flanders understands English.

Anyway, the races themselves were awesome.  I would have loved live footage of the women's race before they arrived at the Paterberg, but I gotta tell ya, we were all really surprised when Elisa Longo Borgihini showed up totally on her own.  I was completely unprepared with my equipment so here is a really out of focus shot.

I'm not into sports photography, and there are so many amazing and talented people out there shooting cycling I don't really feel the need to be.  Of course, when the riders come through I can't not pull out the camera.  The intense crowd jostling this year really made it a challenge to get any race shots and the spot down by the TV is the wrong place to be if you want a good angle anyway.  Be that as is may, here are a handful of shots from down in the thick of things.

Alexander Kristoff and Niki Terpstra on the last pass of the Paterberg

De Ronde is a really special event, and I highly recommend it to any cycling fan or for anyone wanting a unique cultural experience.  The great thing about De Ronde is its huge local importance.  This is the biggest sporting event of the year in this part of Flanders.  If you sit at one of the major climbs, the men pass by a couple of times, the race is up on a TV, there's food, toilets, drinks, pretty much everything you could need.  Plus, there's the women's race, so you can actually see some of that action.  Now that going up to Belgium for a weekend is no longer so easy since we moved to Bavaria, we can really only make it up there for one race.  We'd be hard pressed to choose a race besides De Ronde.