Bédoin is the village at the foot of Mont Ventoux, the white, bald summit that dominates Provence, and it is where the hardest and most famous approach starts. The mountain rises to 1,912 metres, and from far away it looks like it is covered in snow, though the whiteness is bare limestone scree. The ascent from Bédoin is about twenty-one kilometres, climbing through vineyards and cherry orchards and then through a dense forest of cedar and pine, before bursting out above the tree line at Chalet Reynard into a lunar landscape of pale stones, with a weather station and a radio mast on top. The Tour de France has crossed it many times, and the tiny memorial to the British cyclist Tom Simpson, who died near the summit in 1967, is a place of pilgrimage for cyclists.
Long before bikes, the poet Petrarch climbed Mont Ventoux in 1336 and wrote an account that many consider the first record of climbing a mountain for the sheer pleasure of the view. The wind has its own reputation, as the mistral, which blows down the Rhône valley, can gust here at over a hundred and fifty kilometres an hour, and the summit weather changes in minutes. The mountain is a biosphere reserve, with different climate zones from Mediterranean to alpine on its slopes, and it is rich in wild flowers and butterflies.
On a motorcycle, the climb is a delight: a steady, sinuous road with open bends and long views, though crowded with cyclists on summer mornings, so patience is needed on the lower slopes. The surface is generally good, and the upper part is exposed, with crosswinds and cold, so carry a warm layer even in July. The summit road is closed by snow from late autumn until spring, and sometimes at short notice, so check before you go. Bédoin, a village of about three thousand people, has fuel, cafés and bakeries, and Caromb and Mazan are close by with more.
The loop returns through the Gorges de la Nesque, a limestone canyon with a road cut into its walls and tunnels along the way, one of the great Provençal rides. Pack a picnic of local goat's cheese, bread and cherries, and sit above the gorge with your helmet off.