The alarm clock rang at 7am. To increase my chances of success and explore other alternatives, I needed to be the first customer when the doors of the dealership were going to open at 9am. There were several other dealerships for other brands in town but Ducati had to be the first.
The drive from the camping was about 30 minutes and when I arrived, another surprise was awaiting me: The building was black colored but instead of the red-Ducati an orange-Harley-Davidson logo dominated the scene… The owner explained that in fact they recently moved in while the Ducati relocated to new building in Franois, another town just few Km away.
In Franois, the big and modern building of the photo below was awaiting me. Inside, Thomas, a young head of services greeted me and we had a chat in French. I explained to him the situation and he disappeared in the back, only to resurfance few minutes later with two brand new Pirelli Scorpion Trail II tires. Exactly the one I needed!
He drove Lollo to the back and I sat on a black leather couch admiring all the new Ducati models for 2023. To replace the tires shouldn’t take that long but something was broken and Thomas ordered it wirh quick delivery for that very morning. My friend and neighbour at home Andi, had texted me the day before asking me, if I was going to write a blog. I didn’t plan to but now I had some time to kill. Thanks Andi 🤣
Just after noon, thanks to Thomas and Ducati Besançon for the friendly and professional support, Lollo was ready to roll.
The ride with the brand new tires was fabulous to say the least. More stability, more confidence, lots of fun 🤩
All good, right? Well, what do you expect? A new surprise: on the road another deer 🦌 decided it was time to cross the road! It jumped out of a cliff on the left side while my tacho was showing about 100 Km/h. I believe Ducati came to my help this time too. No electronics would have saved me but the loud distinct sound of the Desmo engine plus the red colour of Lollo made probably clear, it wasn’t the best time to cross. And so, the deer as soon as touched the asphalt and I was sweating to find a solution, turned around and disappeared. With the silent engine of an electric motorbike, the story might have gone very much differently.
Along the way, many new impressions as I approached the French Jura.
I was heading to the Hèrrisson Waterfalls, recommend to me by Candice’s sister Marine. Just few Km before getting there, a sign for the “Gorge of Langouette” made me change my route.
Few kilometres later, I understood it had been indeed a good idea to change route. The initial view of the gorge from the bridge was stunning. At least 100m deep below a river was running through the gorge.
It was going to be a long day! Beautiful landscapes, vibrant colours until I finally reached the entry point to the Herrisson waterfalls.
For long walks, I take the time to change myself and get rid of the warm and clumsy motorbike gear, in favor or hinking clothes. The only thing buried deep in my luggage are my trail shoes, so I asked a lady how far was the waterfall. She replied about 3-4 Km so I opted for my flip flops. Actually there were going to be 7 waterfalls and I hiked for over 8 Km with flip flops on rocks 😆 I even encountered a snake 🐍 (see photo).
Snake 🐍 
Overall a great hike which for its iconic number, reminded me the 7 Rila Lakes in Bulgaria 🇧🇬 Finally I reached the last big waterfall:
What a wonderful day, full of experiences. The hike was a blast and made my day very special. A refreahing beverage and an Internet search for a nice camping later, I was again chasing curves through canions and finally arrived at one of the best camping sites I’ve ever been, with private view on a lake.
A loud croaking sound of hundreds of frogs accompanied my sleep, ending a glorious day in the best possible way.