Day 20 - Pleyber-Christ to Roscoff

Distance cycled today 24 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury and therefore the final trip mileage 756 miles

Last night's Logis de France hotel was lovely ...... but cold even after the central heating came on at 5pm. Soon after we'd checked in, the wind strength rose and it blew a gale for quite a few hours. Rob and I had both brought mostly lightweight clothing for the warm weather that we'd expected, but we had got some that we could use for layering - just as well!

Our last evening meal was good with an "assiette de fruits de mer" as a real surprise starter, followed by steak, cheese and a dessert. Just the ticket!

We were not only the only diners, but were also the only ones staying at the hotel. The friendly owners said that business was very poor because of the atrocious weather, there'd been very few tourists and they were experiencing a double whammy because passing traffic had been banned until the end of the month by a "Route Barree", due to a small tunnel being built under the adjacent railway line.

We've encountered several "Route Barree" (Road Closed) notices on our trip, including 2 yesterday, and we've gone through all of them on our bikes, the first with some trepidation until we were waved through by some workmen. After that, whenever the road was closed, we just cycled through as though it was quite normal and slowed right down at the part where the "action" was taking place (it would have been undignified to have cycled into an open trench!)

We left the hotel at 9.15 and started the last leg of our journey in fresh (9C) windy conditions but with a bright sky, which turned to sunshine and blue sky as the morning wore on.

We passed a set of wind turbines, each with a pair of flashing "eyes" and flailing arms, and it looked for all the world like a scene from War of the Worlds.

We cycled through Morlaix town and Rob stopped at the open-air market to buy a beret and a string of onions in order to create confusion amongst relatives greeting him off the ferry. Whilst waiting for me to take photos, he bumped into an acquaintance from home who'd emigrated to France 6 months ago and was on a shopping trip from their new home 30 miles away. It's truly a small world.

We ambled on along the estuary and climbed to Carentec, then cycled on to St Pol de Leon where I had my usual baguette, with Rob just taking coffee. By this time it was 12.15. The French are not very inspired when it comes to baguette fillings. It's nearly always ham. I was offered ham and butter, then ham and cheese, at which point the cafe owner saw my head slump. She then offered an "Americain" which I jumped at.........to find it was salad.......and ham!!

We moved on and stopped at a SuperU supermarket, stocked up on pineau, cheese and chocolate, (with Rob taking a couple of dozen oysters and some langoustine as well) and wobbled the last few miles to the Ferryport. I've discovered that the imbalancing effect of a bottle of pineau in a rear pannier can be offset by a small bottle of Cointreau in the bar bag. I study these things, you see!

We reached the Ferryport at around 1.45pm, cruising down the sloping entry road 2 abreast, determined to frustrate any following motorists.........but annoyingly there were none. Then we parked up and shook hands ceremoniously (we DIDN'T hold hands!) to congratulate each other. It's been a memorable 3 weeks for both of us.

We boarded our ferry, the Armorique, at 3.55 for the 4.45pm sailing, in a temperature of 24C and saw our bikes safely secured (without my having to threaten any member of the crew) and will be met by our wives when we disembark. This post is hopefully being sent using the ship's "Wee-Fee".

That's now the end of our journey and we feel fantastic elation.
To quote Del Trotter from Only Fools and Horses:-
"Bonnet de douche! We've only been and gone and done it! Lovely jubbly!"

Thank you so much for all the Comments, e-mails, messages and communications, including via Facebook and Twitter, during our journey. They all meant so much to know that people were following us with such great interest. Near the end, I found it very emotional as I read out some of the congratulatory messages to Rob.

We've been getting over 120 "hits" a day on our blog and this is fantastic, bearing in mind that my mum doesn't know how to use a computer, so it can't be her!

Over the next few weeks and months, I will be adding to the blog with some afterthoughts, to include reviews of our bikes, equipment, things I learnt, things I should have taken......and things I needn't have bothered with. (Note the reference to "I" as Rob has an enormous number of things to do when he gets home including parish council duties, running a business, acting as legal executor in winding up an estate, and simply being a family man. By comparison, I have far more time and just have to pamper my wife when she comes home from work!)
I will also try to add a gallery of photos (and perhaps some video, if possible, as that also gives a good flavour of what we experienced).

Many have asked if I'll write an e-book as a follow-up and it's something that I hadn't contemplated, but will now think about. I will have to revisit my blog posts and photographs and jot down the many things that I didn't report, (some too embarrassing for an open blog!) while they're still fresh in my mind, and then I'll decide.

Rob and I will each hold open the facilities for donating to our charities for a limited period of time. A great thank you to all who have donated before and during the trip. If any were intending to donate but were waiting to see if we would actually make it (and that was understandable) well, here we are and we would ask that your donations are made now, please, before we close the facilities down. Please remember that Rob has bought all the duck that he's eaten, out of his own money, and every penny of every donation is going to whichever of Rob's or my nominated charities that you choose. Please just click on the "Our Charities" tab above and follow the instructions, or just hand your donation to one of us or those who are helping us. Grateful thanks in anticipation.

Regardless of whether you donate or have Commented, both Rob and I send a big THANK YOU now to everyone who has read this blog, as it is likely that many will stop here, having no interest in follow-up reviews. (If you are contemplating a similar cycle trip, though, I hope that my thoughts and reviews will be helpful).

Photos:
Assiette de fruits de mer last night
The market in Morlaix
Journey's end

Day 19 - Carhaix-Plouguer to Pleyber-Christ

Distance cycled today 26 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 732 miles

We had a smashing meal last night in a small restaurant in town - Rob had oysters, I had a 'salade paysanne' and we both had chicken in a mild curry sauce with baked apple and chips(a funny combination but very good) followed by a selection of cheeses.
We were the first customers of the evening and we noticed that 3 young men were running the place. There were no waitresses. Rob and I sat down, then another man on his own came in, followed by 2 men together and after half an hour another man came in on his own. The restaurant was called Le Carrick. Not being men of the world we wondered - were we in a gay restaurant? I'm really not sure ......... but when I said in an earlier post that Rob and I may be holding hands when we come off the ferry on Saturday, I was only joking - honest!

We had a typical French working breakfast of coffee, bread and croissants and set off at around 9am. The weather was not the predicted 4C but 9C (Rob has a thermometer) but it didn't really warm up during the day, apart from the few times that the sun came out. For most of the day, the strong N wind kept temperatures down and at times it was decidedly bleak. Although I was wearing disposable filling-station gloves under my fingerless cycling gloves, there have been many times when I wish that I'd brought full gloves. Today, I had the lot on - jersey, shorts, arm warmers, leg warmers, buff, ear warmers and waterproof jacket.......and I was still cold.

We headed up the D769, passing through Poullaouen, and then north-west along a beautiful wooded valley, by-passing Huelgoat. Then we climbed steadily, non-stop, 4 miles to Berrien, where the scenery had become fairly bleak, reminiscent of Bodmin Moor. By this time it was 11am. The sky darkened and rain threatened so we sheltered in the ruins of a church (Chapelle Sainte-Barbe) as rain, sleet and hail came in. Sleet and hail in May in France?

After about 20 minutes, we pressed on, looking for somewhere to take a coffee break, but to my (pleasant) surprise (as I was map-reading), we came across signs for our destination for tonight, Pleyber-Christ, which is about 6 miles SW of Morlaix. We turned off the D769 and reached Pleyber-Christ at 12.15. We had a 'crepes and cider' lunch until 1.40, dodging more showers that were, by now, sweeping in quite frequently, then checked in to our hotel.
The bikes are safely garaged and we have bathed, changed and are now relaxing.

As I look out of the hotel window, I see how cold and miserable it is today. The French are as fed up with the weather as everyone else and we've been finding that many of the hotels that we've stayed in recently are half-empty. I even heard someone say, yesterday, that snow had fallen in northern Portugal!

For our last morning tomorrow, the weather forecast is a little better in that it should be dry. We're going to cycle along the side of the Morlaix estuary and amble towards Roscoff, aiming to get there by lunchtime. Our ferry leaves at 4.45 French time and arrives in Plymouth at 9.30 British time.

Photos:
Our hotel in Carhaix-Plouguer last night.
The wooded valley and river L'Argent, south of Berrien.
The long haul up to Berrien.

Day 18 - Pontivy to Carhaix-Plouguer

Distance cycled today 43 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 706 miles

Last night's stop in the Ibis Budget was fine but budget was a key word - a bit basic with towels that had clearly seen fluffier days, plain white cotton quilt covers .....and hard mattresses on planks!
On arrival yesterday, I had noticed that the hotel was split into two - the ordinary Ibis and the Budget Ibis. Hmm. I asked what the difference was and the receptionist explained, but my French is often not good enough to pick up the finer detail. Anyway, the gist was that in the ordinary Ibis, the rooms were bigger and a bit more lavish and the en-suite facilities were completely separate from the bedroom. I questioned this last bit and she repeated that the facilities were "open" to the bedroom in the Budget. This did concern me a little - Rob's a really good pal and we've become close on this trip, but I didn't want to be lying in bed while I could see him, out of the corner of my eye just a few feet away, straining on the toilet! We went up to our room with me in trepidation and Rob in total ignorance of my concern. I needn't have worried. The toilet and wc were separately walled off but it was the wash-hand basin that was within the bedroom. I really must either improve my French or stop having such a fertile imagination!

The difference between Budget and ordinary Ibis cropped up a few more times during our stay. Whenever, we ordered a drink or food we we were asked which part we were staying in and, when we said Budget, the staff seemed to apply different criteria. It was a bit of an apartheid, albeit the staff were always friendly. However, we couldn't charge things to our room (which we'd had to pay for in advance). We were clearly the poor relations! Nevertheless, our basic room had 2 beds, a good shower, wc, TV, free wi-fi, electric radiator and air-con and it suited our purposes just fine.

After doing my last washing session we went to the attached restaurant to eat. Rob continued his crusade against ducks whilst I had a steak, duly followed by a cherry/ice cream/liquer concoction for Rob and a rice pudding with rum and raisins for me.

Our system of finding our next hotel using booking.com let us down last night as the nearest that it could find us was 12 miles beyond our intended destination, Carhaix Plouguer. Luckily, Rob found a hotel smack in the middle of Carhaix via Google and a quick call reserved a room at Hotel d'Ahes at a B and B rate of 58 euros. Yesterday's cycle was over decidedly 'lumpy' terrain and today's promised to be more so; hence our desire not to travel too far, in keeping with our 'winding-down' philosophy.

We got away at 8.15 after a really good value breakfast which more than satisfied our needs. The weather started sunny and bright which is not always a good sign and sure enough the sky darkened to the point of rain. I knew that if I put on my "day-glo orange" rain-jacket it would either attract sunshine or dazzle passing motorists. It did both and we escaped the rain all day.........but the wind! Oh, it was strong and blowing into our faces again from the north.

We cleared Pontivy by 9 and went up to Cleguerec via the D15 and from there to Silfiac, keeping to back roads to get maximum shelter and minimum traffic. In Silfiac, we passed a bar/tabac with a sign painted on the window: "Fish and Chips - frying on Friday" and a little bit further on a sign directing people to the Cricket Club! We pressed on to Lescouet-Gouarec and then stopped for a coffee (Rob) and hot chocolate (me) at Mellionnec. The bar owner, although French, started talking good English and I complimented him. He explained that he had to as so many of his customers were English speaking and that Silfiac, Lescouet and Mellionnec were 33 percent populated by British ex-pats. Indeed, while we were talking, a New Zealander came in for a beer and complained that the weather had been so bad that he felt as though he'd wasted 2 years of his life. Not even Rob could cheer him up.

We left Mellionnec and just above Bonen came across the Nantes-Brest Canal and my old mate, EuroVelo 1. We followed this for a few miles but it deteriorated from being a smooth tarmac surface to a gravel-covered hardcore, which was simply uncomfortable on road/touring bikes. So we rejoined the road, having by-passed Rostrenen, and had lunch of a chocolate bar and a coffee at Mael-Carhaix at around 2pm.
We arrived at our hotel at 3pm and saw our bikes safely locked away in the owner's office. We followed our usual routine of showering and getting ourselves respectable. Rob dealt with his work and we enjoyed a few beers in the hotel bar (while I do this blog).

For tomorrow night, we wanted to cycle and rest up just short of Roscoff, to give ourselves a relaxed day on Saturday. Tonight's hotel owner kindly found us the Hotel Restaurant de la Gare in Pleyber-Christ (73 euros B and B for both of us) which I rang to reserve a room and who will safely garage our bikes again. That's it - the last hotel we'll be staying in on this trip and it leaves us about 20 miles for Saturday morning ..... and time to do a bit of shopping or browsing and to reflect on what we will have done.

France has not yet done with us though. The bar owner in Mellionnec has said that the temperature tomorrow morning is forecast to be 4 degrees and we know that the headwind is going to blow until the very end of our trip.
C'est la vie!

Photos:
Storm clouds gathering.
The bar at Mellionnec.
A sunny interval.
Lunch stop at Mael-Carhaix.

Day 17 - Locqueltas to Pontivy

Distance cycled today 33 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 663 miles

Last night we had a great evening.
After arriving at Hotel La Voltige, I discovered that my friends, Monsieur and Madame Tabard, who owned the hotel previously, now live in the house immediately opposite the hotel. So I decided to visit them but was told that they had arranged to come over to us, which they duly did. It was lovely to see them and we reminisced for over an hour. They haven't changed a bit and still look so young. Despite having sold the hotel on 1 May they were working until Sunday (19 May) handing over to the new owners. They have now taken a well-earned retirement.
Monsieur et Madame Tabard, nous vous souhaitons les bonnes retraites!

The new owners of La Voltige looked after us well and we sat down to a lovely "plateau de fruits de mer", washed down with a good white wine and followed by a delicious apple and ice cream dessert. We wish them every success with La Voltige and understand it is the first hotel that they have owned.

We set off at 9.15am this morning after a good breakfast and were waved off by our friends.
We headed north and decided to avoid all primary roads as far as possible. We managed this for all but about 3 miles. Today's target distance was always going to be low and we were happy with that ......... although we did meander deliberately to increase the mileage for fear of the shame and humiliation that would be brought on our families if it was too low!

The sun shone again, the temperature climbed to 20C and all was well. There was still a fresh headwind but, what the hell - we're accustomed to it now. We wandered up to Bignan and then Moreac where we stopped for coffee at 11.30. Then on to Naizin where I bought my usual baguette (and Rob breathed his usual fresh air) and we stopped a few miles up the road for me to eat.......and Rob to breathe! We continued along country lanes until Noyal-Pontivy, then hopped onto the main road for the last 3 miles to our hotel.

We've booked a room at the Ibis Budget Hotel on the east side of Pontivy, close to the autoroute D768. We've paid 65 euros for Bed and Breakfast for both of us and there's a restaurant adjacent. Our bikes are safely garaged and secured in the hotel's underground car park.

Tonight, I may do what I hope will be a last laundry session before our return to Plymouth. I'm pleased to say that neither of us have resorted to the old student trick of wearing our underwear right way round and then inside-out to prolong the "service intervals", as we are fastidious about ensuring that our clothes are clean. After the episode in the bad weather on the Spanish/French border, when my white cycling socks were so grimy that the dirt was difficult to remove, I had serious words with my socks and warned them about their future behaviour. One pair of white socks ignored me completely, became oily in La Rochelle and was duly binned. This seems to have brought all the other socks to their senses and they are now behaving themselves!

Thanks for your comments, Chris, Rob and Sarah and Steve. Rob West has a photo of the pizza machine as we couldn't believe it either!

Photos:
Hotel La Voltige
Monsieur and Madame Tabard, the previous owners
Plateau de fruits de mer
Our coffee stop at Moreac

Day 16 - Camoel to Locqueltas

Distance cycled today 36 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 630 miles

Last night, our decision to trust to a vending machine for our evening pizza backfired. It was broken, so we resigned ourselves to missing food. The hotel owner found out and would have none of it. He bundled us into his BMW X3 and whisked us off to Penestin where we had a fabulous meal of soupe de poisson, followed by lamb cutlets. Then he insisted we ring him so that he could take us back to the hotel. What a great gesture! We bought him a bottle of wine as a 'thank you' and he was made up!

Today, we got going at 9am and it was dry and bright! Although I started in full battledress, by mid-morning, I had bare arms and legs as the sun shone and the birds sang! Bliss! This is what cycling in France is about.
We ambled up to the Barrage at Arzal, crossed the bridge, and no sooner had we done so than the alarm rang, the bridge was raised and we watched a flotilla of yachts go through. What a great start to the day!

We then cycled up the D139/D1 to Questembert, taking quiet back roads wherever we could cut corners. We had a coffee in Questembert at 11.15, and then stayed on minor roads until we stopped again for 'lunch' at Elven at 12.45. Rob only had a coffee as he can survive on thin air but I asked for a sandwich which raised so much discussion and eyebrows that you would have thought I'd asked to marry the owner's daughter. Why don't bars do sandwiches? It was only a ham baguette - anyway I eventually got it and all was well with life.

We continued to Monterblanc which my wife knows well as we cycled through there during a cold March 2008. I then took Rob on a small detour to Vannes Aerodrome where the parachute school operates and we had a pleasant hour watching people jumping out of planes. These were seriously good and the speed that people were coming in at before 'braking' at the last second was alarming. I also took a video of a girl packing parachutes for some of the parachutists. I bet no-one wanted to upset her!

We arrived at the hotel La Voltige (booked via Brittany Ferries at £60 B&B for both of us) at Locqueltas, which is just NW of Vannes, at 3.15 but it was closed until 4. Nevertheless, we were able to sit in the garden using the wi-fi until the new owners turned up.
Our bikes will be in a locked room tonight, and I've arranged to treat Rob to a "plateau de fruits de mer". I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the new owner-cum-chef is as good as the one that has just sold the hotel. I will report tomorrow.

We estimate that we have just over 100 miles left to Roscoff and although we scheduled 3 more cycling days and 1 further rest day, we may well forsake the rest day and spread the mileage out over 4 days, arriving at Roscoff early on Saturday, perhaps to do a bit of shopping that we won't have to carry too far! The last 2 days of reduced mileage have been far more relaxing and the weather has now started to play its part.

Thanks again for the Comments, Dad, Gareth and Steve. Dad, you were spot on about the Barrage. Steve, I doubt that we'll be on the EV1 again unless we stumble upon it, perhaps near the Nantes-Brest canal. Gareth, we'll talk about another cycle trip - my legs are starting to ache! (Muuum!)

Photos:
The raised bridge at Arzal Barrage
Me at lunch in Elven
Rob watching the parachutists
Rush hour in Brittany

Day 15 - Pornic to Camoel

Distance cycled today 35 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 594 miles

Nice meal again last night but in keeping with the hotel's room rates, a bit pricy. Rob had baked camembert, I had an assortment of prawns, salmon and ham and both of us followed that with beef brochettes (and chips) with a beautiful compendium of little desserts to follow.

We got away today at 9.15 and the rain, which had held off over breakfast, started again ....... and the wind blew.
As our hotel was just a couple of hundred metres off our route, we quickly got back on track. We wanted to tackle St Nazaire bridge while we were fresh and when the traffic was light, as today is France's Whitsun Monday and a bank holiday. We duly arrived on the south shore of the Loire at 10.

Then something happened. "Someone up there" decided that we had clearly suffered enough over the last few days and gave us a break. The rain stopped, the headwind eased a bit and the sky became brighter. Thank you, whoever was responsible!

There's no doubt that the bridge is spectacular and we felt that we had an advantage over the motorists using it in that we could stop and take photographs ........ whether the authorities liked it or not! It was certainly an experience .... and a good climb to mid-span. The cross-wind was easy as we ascended as our bikes are heavy when loaded. However, the "wobbly" moments when we really felt the cross-wind came on the fast descent, particularly over one or two of the bridge joints that have been plated over for the 1m wide cycle lane. Nevertheless, the traffic around us was not intimidating albeit that you had to concentrate on keeping in the cycle lane and couldn't enjoy the views. We did stop at the top though, and at each end, and took some photos.

Rob had suggested a route which missed out the city and we passed the big Airbus factory, east of the city, and then headed north towards the Marais, a large area of marshlands, and Herbignac.

The weather held, my mood lightened (Rob's always so damned happy!) and it was glorious - not warm or particularly sunny, but dry and bright. We had a hot chocolate stop in a bar in Roze then ambled along the road through the Marais, stopping frequently for photos. The Marais is teeming with wildlife and beautiful to look at and is what I would think would be a French version of the Everglades.

We got to Herbignac at 1 and, knowing that our hotel was relatively close, stopped at a creperie for gallettes (goat's cheese, smoked duck and onions/salad), washed down with Breton cider, served in cereal bowls. Did I say cereal bowls? Yup. Rob assures me that this is traditional in Brittany, whereas I'm only used to cider from Normandy where they've moved on to glasses.

We had pre-booked a room at the Hotel du Littoral in Camoel for tonight at a rate of 72 euros, B and B for us both, having been reassured again that parking of our "velos" was "pas probleme". We've really had no issues with this, yet it was a major concern of mine during the planning stage. Camoel, which is about 3 miles NW of Herbignac, is a little further than we wanted to go today, but our choice of exact destination does tend to be influenced by hotel availability. Notwithstanding that, our final mileage for the day came under what viamichelin.co.uk predicted (eh?)

We arrived at the hotel at 3 after a bit of deliberate dawdling and the owners have been helpfulness personified. There's no restaurant at the hotel and the only one opposite is closed tonight. The owner has offered us 2 alternatives: one is a takeaway pizza from a vending machine which the owner says we can eat in our room and he will supply the cutlery. The other is an offer to run us into the next town to find a restaurant. Really, so kind. I have chosen the former knowing that the pizza won't be up to much but not wanting to mess up the guy's evening......especially as we ate pretty well at lunchtime.

Last night, I also rang ahead to tomorrow (Tuesday) night's pre-booked hotel, La Voltige at Locqueltas (N of Vannes and near the aerodrome), to confirm our arrival because they're normally closed on Mondays, and they had expressed incredulity that we would actually make it to them from Spain by bicycle. I had spoken to "Madame", the owner, just a few weeks ago. My wife and I and our 2 sons have stayed there before several times over a 27 year period, most recently in 2008, so I was really looking forward to a reunion and "catching up".
Perhaps, I wasn't as popular as I thought as they sold the hotel on 1 May ....... 19 days ago! Surely they couldn't have found out about my cycling socks in that time.

Yesterday, I commented on the fact that we didn't stop to taste wine when we came across a "degustation" vineyard, and this has prompted me to review the expectations of our trip as we start to draw near the end.

In planning this journey, I set a daily mileage target (what I call a "progress" mileage) at what I thought was a modest 40 to 45 miles. I believed that we'd do most of that by lunchtime and spend the rest of the day sightseeing. I had visions of warm sunny weather, meandering through little villages, stopping at several locations each day, as anything took our fancy. (A bit like today in some respects).

The progress mileage targets have worked out fine. 40 odd miles a day often increases to nearly 50, as theory and practice are different, but we have found it manageable. The targets "contained" this journey into a 3 week period, which was important for Rob, and also important for my budget.
Our records so far indicate that we have pedalled a minimum 3.75 hours each day, rising to 5 hours exactly on 2 days. To this must be added time when the bikes are at rest - at road junctions, traffic lights, when we stop for a rest, lunch, make a phone call (Rob's work) or to take photographs. Typically, we have therefore been on the road each day, largely aiming to get from A to B (i.e. with no significant "tourist" diversions in mind), for 5.5 to 7.5 hours (as yesterday).

Have we seen what we expected to see? No.
Has it been as leisurely as we expected? No.
Would we have wanted to divert more to explore (we have done quarter mile diversions) and therefore increase our time on the road? No.

We continue to enjoy ourselves (we have many giggles along the way) and we stop to take photos when we can, as these are our journey reminders and prompts, but the journey is arduous, due in no small part to the poor weather we've been facing. Nevertheless, what we are doing is right for us and represents the challenge that we wanted.

If the sole objective of the trip was to explore and see the sights, I now know that the progress mileage targets that I set would have to be reduced by a half or even more. I think that the trip duration would then become at least 2 months, possibly 3. This is a big country, after all!

From chatting to fellow long-distance cyclists, that we've come across, and who are fully laden, like us, I am amazed at the daily progress targets that some have set themselves.........and their apparent lack of enjoyment is understandable. 80 miles a day leaves no room for anything else and would be physically too much for us!

One or two others have travelled for the sole purpose of getting to a particular destination to meet a friend or spouse, so are not interested in exploring.
Then there are the younger ones who are properly touring, camping on the way and taking as much time as they need. Their route varies as they feel.

If you plan a journey like ours, you need to consider your aims before anything else, as this will be the framework that dictates progress mileages, trip duration, accommodation and budget.

Thanks for the continuing comments.
Justin, in answer to your question, when you set up a Google blog, they supply you with an individual blog e-mail address, such that if you compose your post as an e-mail and send it to the blog e-mail address, the e-mail title becomes the post title, the body of the e-mail becomes the post and any photo attachments are uploaded. Unfortunately, the photos are always positioned first on the post. I put the photo titles at the end to encourage people to read the intervening post text! Hope that explains.
Rob H, thanks for your flattering comments re the wind. The truth is that we have no choice but to endure it. As we're now so far west, I did toy with the idea of ringing Julia to ask her to pick me up at Dover so that I could cycle to Calais with a tailwind!

Photos:
Our compendium of desserts last night.
The bridge at St Nazaire (photo looks poor quality on my BB so apologies)
Mid-span showing the cycle lane
The Marais

Day 14 - La Roche sur Yon to Pornic

Distance cycled today 55 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 559 miles
After our efforts yesterday, we did our "chores", last night, which didn't include laundry as we're just about up to date and, as it's a weekend, Rob didn't have much work to do either.
We then spent a bit of time planning our next stop and decided on Pornic on the coast, as it gives us a flyer over the St Nazaire bridge on Monday (we hope). We've booked into the Best Western in Pornic for 116 euros, B and B for both of us.
As our hotel last night conveniently didn't open their restaurant, Rob and I found a little Italian place around the corner and had lasagne with Ile Flottante for dessert (Rob) and pizza followed by rice pudding with a chocolate sauce for me. As usual this was washed down with a local accompaniment, all in the interests of research, you understand.
Our luck held in that it rained during our meal but was dry when we walked there and back.
I have MSN weather forecasts bookmarked on my Blackberry and they can provide 10 day forecasts for anywhere in the world. They're not always 100 percent reliable but they're not far out. Anyway, they are forecasting N, NNW or NW headwinds for the rest of our trip. This just goes to show that no matter how well you try to plan things (in our case, our South to North trip direction with the 'so called' prevailing winds), you cannot legislate for what will actually happen at the time. Perhaps, in years to come, we'll look back at 2013 with our grandchildren as one of the worst springtimes we've had, "when grandpa cycled 750 miles in that!"
There's a good case for keeping prepared for a cycle trip but not deciding exactly when and where to go until the very last minute, especially if you camp and are not reliant on hotel availability. Only feasible when you've retired, I guess.
We left our hotel after the usual hearty breakfast of coffee/tea, bread, pastries, fruit, cereals, cold meats, cheese and yoghurts (I don't know where Rob puts it all) at around 8.15. Yesterday was quiet but today, La Roche sur Yon was like a ghost town. We were on the right side of town for our intended route so made reasonable progress.
If yesterday was tough, today was tougher. We started in a temperature of just 6C (and it only rose to 11C all day), had a constant headwind only slightly less strong than yesterday and rain all day except for a short period at the end of the morning. These were grim conditions indeed and, for the first time on our trip, neither of us really enjoyed it. We passed a vineyard which offered wine tasting and mused how we once thought that we'd stop at places like these. But we were cold, wet and aching and our priority was to reach our destination.
Being superfit, we reached Les lucs sur Boulogne by 10.45 and stopped for a rest at the open air market where the stallholders got excited at the prospect of some customers! It was such a dismal day, I just don't know why they even set up their stalls. As we were getting cold, we stopped a bit further on and had hot chocolates in a busy little village bar. That was most welcome.
We entered the Department of the Loire Atlantique by 11am, got a bit lost and kept entering and leaving it, as we tried to find the right road from Lege. I'd bought a new set of Michelin maps at the end of 2012 but already they're out of date because roads have been renumbered. It isn't just my navigation, honest!
In Machecoul, there was a visiting German contingent in the closed-off town centre playing 'oompah' music. You've never heard such a racket!
We couldn't find anywhere to eat so pushed on.
We stopped in a bus shelter a few miles further on to draw breath. It was really a slog despite the terrain being little more than undulating. Rob heard a thump and found that a great-tit had flown into the perspex side of the bus shelter, why I've no idea. (That's probably why they call them great tits!) Anyway, Rob came to the rescue and gently lifted it onto a wall, out of harm's way, where it started to regain its senses (then fell off the wall!..........no, it didn't, that's just my daft sense of humour).
We continued to Fresnay en Retz where, at 1.30, we found another bar that did Rob a croque monsieur and me a panini, washed down with coffees. Quite a few local lads were there, playing table football and generally getting plastered. Just before we finished our second coffee at 2pm, the bar owner drew the curtains to block anyone passing from being able to see inside, and then served another round of drinks. Clearly, this was the French version of a "lock-in"!
We finally reached our hotel at 3.45 having averaged 11mph for the 5 hours that we cycled. I can assure you that that is really good for the conditions today!
Our room is huge, the en-suite is massive with his and hers (Rob's) wash-hand basins......but no heated towel rail. So we've now got socks and pants hanging from all sorts of things and have to open the door carefully when we come and go so that no-one can see what we've done, for fear of being chucked out!
The bikes are secured to steel posts in the underground garage and they're safe and dry.
Tomorrow, we go over the infamous St Nazaire bridge. Rob's checked the weather forecast and the headwinds are meant to be lighter than they have been for the last 2 days. That'll be good. Our progress is a good 20 miles ahead of schedule so we're hoping to throttle back a bit now on the mileage. I've no idea where we'll be tomorrow evening. We'll sit and talk that through later tonight.
Photos:
Entering the Loire Atlantique
Great tit bus shelter
Another stop to draw breath

Day 13 - La Rochelle to La Roche sur Yon

Distance cycled today 51 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 504 miles

We had a bit of a mild panic last night in that we were relaxing in our room, have done our "chores" and were slowly repacking our panniers, chatting away, when we suddenly realised that we hadn't sorted out a hotel for tonight. (Forgotten about it completely! It was only an email from my Dad querying our route next that stirred something in my head).
We'd intended hugging the coast and staying at Jard sur Mer but by the time we checked, we found booking.com just kept coming up with expensive double rooms (not twin-bedded) or holiday studios and apartments. Damn, it's Saturday today and, of course, the French migrate to the coast for "le weekend" and so suitable accommodation might well be scarce. This is what happened last weekend when we spent Saturday freezing under canvas in Seignosse.

After a quick discussion we agreed to re-route further inland and we've now taken advantage of the fact that the Kyriad La Rochelle (our stay for the last 2 nights) is one of a chain and they kindly rang ahead to secure a twin room for us, with a room for our bikes, at the Kyriad in La Roche sur Yon. To confirm that inland is also cheaper, tonight's rate is 77 euros B and B for both of us (compared with Kyriad's 100 in La Rochelle).

Our route change also means that we are on a straighter line to the mouth of the Loire and are gaining some distance overall. This may be significant tomorrow (Sunday), as the day after (Monday - sorry, I'm sure you know what order the days of the week come in. It's for me, losing track of what day it is!) we have the St Nazaire bridge in our sights. We need to be fresh to cross that. Those that have used the bridge know that it's 2 or 3km long, curves in the centre and is exposed to cross winds. If we can avoid crossing that at the end of the day on Monday (when we thought that we might have to), or better still, cross at lunchtime when the French have other priorities, the traffic may be quieter and it will reduce what was planned as being a long day when we book into our other pre-booked hotel just north of Vannes on Tuesday (the day after Monday!).

Good breakfast again today as the Kyriad is frequented by lots of business people ........ err, but today's Saturday and there were none here - see what I mean about losing track?...... and we got away at 9 am.

We skirted La Rochelle city to avoid the jumble of one way streets (none going our way!) and headed north.

After a sunny rest day yesterday, the weather when we set off was bright and sunny but became overcast by mid morning. We managed to outrun the rain though which was forecast for the La Rochelle area. The main feature of the day however was a VERY strong headwind which turned today's 51 miles into the equivalent of 60 or more. It was very tough and a day for just getting our heads down and grinding away. If there had been any hills, I swear that we could have freewheeled down them and come to a stop halfway down, simply held up by the wind. At one point, I stopped for a call of nature and wee'd into the next village!
The terrain was largely flat with simply no cover or respite from the wind.

We made Lucon by 12 noon, circled the town around the cathedral so many times that they locked away the collection boxes, and eventually found our way out by 12.30ish.
After a lunch stop at Mareuil sur Lay at 1.30, we reached La Roche sur Yon by 3 and our hotel by 3.30. The hotel looks good and the bikes are safely locked away in a large conference room. The hotel has a restaurant ........ which is closed at weekends - can you believe it - but, wait for it, open on Mondays. Still, we have tea and coffee making facilities again and we're both looking forward to an early evening meal somewhere nearby and returning for some sleep.

Tomorrow's forecast is the same for winds with the added bonus of possible rain. Bliss!

Photos:
The village of Esnande just north of La Rochelle.
Entry to the Vendee.
Rob battling into the headwind.
A welcome drink at our destination.

Day 12 - Rest day in La Rochelle

Distance cycled today 0
Distance cycled since Modbury 453 miles

Steve (my brother) has reminded me that I didn't mention the terrain yesterday. Since we crossed the Gironde 2 days ago, it's become gently undulating which we're glad of. We were becoming very accustomed to the flat ground of the Landes and we needed to ease ourselves back into some gradients, as we know we still have Brittany ahead in less than a week's time. Less than a week! Where's the time gone?
I suspect that when we leave La Rochelle on Saturday, we'll be meeting increasingly "normal" terrain with moderate hills.

We met a Brit guy yesterday who was cycling solo and bemoaning the fact that his pals didn't want to cycle with him because, he said, his idea of daily mileage was more than theirs. (I won't describe him or say where he was from or where he was going to save his embarrassment in case he reads this). Whenever Rob or I tried to speak, he just talked over us and he gabbled non-stop, sometimes answering his own questions. He just went on and on and on, complaining about the hills in Brittany, how much he was carrying, telling us that we were carrying too much, declaring that he couldn't make repairs if he needed to, commenting on our bikes. I was more worn out listening to him for 2 minutes than cycling for the previous 3 hours! After 5 minutes, I was scanning the countryside for a suitable tree to hang myself from!
I wonder if there was another reason why his pals didn't want to cycle with him....

Our hotel last night was clean and comfortable, with tea and coffee making facilities (a rarity and the first on this trip) but no radiator or heated towel rail. My decision to postpone doing some washing in the last hotel didn't pay off (we're here for 2 days of course) so I'm glad that I have a few "spares" in my panniers, although I'm going to wash some pants and hang them over the bath in the hope that I don't frighten the chambermaid.

There's no restaurant at the hotel so we ate at a little place opposite where the food was great but the waiter looked as though he'd been chewing a wasp........ and still hadn't swallowed it!
Baked camembert with bacon, followed by a delicious chicken fricassee with a mushroom sauce for both of us and then apple tart for me, with toasted brioche and honey for Rob.

This morning we wandered into town (15 min walk) to see the sights. Some of the public buildings in French cities are mind-blowing, but then France has always been a bit lavish in spending public money. In Rochefort yesterday, it was the Post Office. In La Rochelle, it's the railway station. Both buildings are impressive and were clearly built for purpose (i.e. not conversions), as the stonework is engraved with each building's function. The new buildings that have been constructed in the last few years are also impressive but I'm not sure that some of them will still retain their appeal in years to come.

As thunderstorms were forecast for this afternoon, we had a proper lunch for the first time (tuna rillettes, fresh sardines and strawberry tart - damn, this is a tough tour!), and returned to the hotel (with some cold food for the evening) to do a bit of maintenance on the bikes - nothing too serious, just cleaning and oiling the gearing, pumping up the tyres and checking that there was nothing amiss. The rest days are useful for this and we did the same in Seignosse. I am wary of having cycled over sand on EV1 and have it kick up onto the chain. Oil and sand combined will wear out moving parts unless it's cleaned off. We both ensured that we brought plenty of disposable gloves (many thanks to the manager of Sainsbury's filling station, in Redditch, who gave us a box of 100 each, when asked - they really weigh nothing and have many uses), cut rag roll, all-purpose TF2 oil and citrus degreaser. I'm sure some people don't bother to take things like these, but I'm getting very attached to my bike and feel that a bit of TLC's the least that I can give it!

Evenings in France are not very stimulating unless you can get out for a walk in warm weather or unless you like Cagney and Lacey (dubbed version) on TV. (I can't believe they're still watching this). Rob's brought some books to read and I'll probably irritate family back home by sending e-mails and messages asking what's happening.

Thanks for the Comments from Steve and Rob Wyatt (or is it Sarah?) and the encouragement from John and Kerry. Thanks also to my fellow tweeters on Twitter, Graham and Andi, and also my "friends" on Facebook. (I try to post a few words on all these each day). It's great to hear from you all.
Talking about great, anyone who wants to read a great cycling book by a young lady, who cycled solo through Switzerland and France, should look at Andi's book on http://t.co/1dl8MJo4sl. At £1.99, for the Kindle version, it's a steal ..... and no, I'm not on commission!

Photos:
Our hotel - warning, blue sky, wear protective glasses!
The railway station in La Rochelle.
Part of the harbour in the old port.

Day 11 - Saujon to La Rochelle

Distance cycled today 53 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 453 miles

Another great hotel last night with the best shower that I've ever used - one with a big "drencher" head and a separate "wand", presumably for cleaning those parts that other showers just don't reach! Also a heated towel rail again.
The staff were so friendly and the food was good. As we were on demi-pension, food choice was limited but not disappointing - potato and mozzarella gallette (plus salad)entrees, pork chops on couscous for mains, and apple tart for me, yoghurty dish with raspberry coulis for Rob. A modicum of alcohol, including pineau, and a coffee got us in the mood for the Chelsea match.

Tonight, we've booked ahead at the Kyriad La Rochelle Centre for 100 euros B and B for us both (OK for La Rochelle which is expensive)and they've promised to garage the bikes somewhere. The hotel is not far from Quai Valin and Le Yachtman which will mean something to my Mum, Dad and brother, as it was somewhere we visited in the 1960s!

We got going at 8.45am and knew it was going to be mentally tougher than the previous 3 days as the area was much busier and there was a more complicated road arrangement to negotiate if we were to keep to quieter roads. We were also off my photocopied map pages and on a proper map, which is a pig to fold so that you see what you want to see in the map holder.

The temperature was just 9C and overnight rain had cleared to leave a bright sky.......for an hour. We found our intended route and ambled northwards, stopping twice to shelter from showers that we knew would pass. We got to Rochefort at 12, stopped for a bite to eat and get our bearings........and it rained, becoming steadily heavier. Bus shelters are a boon in this situation and after 45 minutes hogging one, it eased and we got underway again. 2 miles outside Rochefort was bone dry, without any hint of rain and as we headed for La Rochelle on the EuroVelo 1 (EV1) cycle track, we basked in sunshine, so much so that I was able to remove my Spartacus outfit and waterproof top!

I've sung the praises of EV1 as a terrific cycle track down in the Landes. That was there. This was different. The road signpost said La Rochelle 25km. EV1 said 40km. What?!!
Let me explain. This sodding cycle track followed every tourist attraction - we visited beachs, headlands, estuaries and inlets and we literally went round and round the houses. The surface was sometimes tarmac, other times sand or chippings or grit. It went up and down kerbs that you needed crampons to negotiate. Whoever designed EV1 in this part of the country must have been having a laugh. This is meant to be a long distance cycle route across Europe. Bikes loaded with luggage do not like loose surfaces, are not meant to negotiate kerbs, and if someone's planning to cycle 1200km (like us), we don't want to do 50 percent more !!

We reached La Rochelle at 4pm, after giving up on EV1 near the end. (We couldn't readily give up earlier as the main road is now a motorway, as we discovered when I led Rob up the slip road.........again)

Wow, has La Rochelle changed. OK it was 27 years ago that I was here last but it's really been developed and it still looks a beautiful city....and it was sunny, with blue skies and fluffy white clouds and warm(ish).

We cycled around the Port des Minimes, somewhere I took my own family in the 1980s and saw the apartment that we rented, but our favourite restaurant has sadly gone or been renamed. Not really that surprising.

A second rest day is scheduled for Day 12 and, having found the hotel to be of a decent standard, with the bikes locked away safely in a warm boiler room, we're staying in La Rochelle tomorrow as there's plenty to see and do.

Many thanks to Nigel, Kath and family for their kind donation. Thanks also for your Comment, Steve - it was short-grain rice, by the way.

Photos:
Donning wet weather gear in a bus shelter in Rochefort
A sunny Chatelaillon Plage
The turrets that guard the entrance to La Rochelle port

Day 10 - Hourtin to Saujon

Distance cycled today 39 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 400 miles (exactement!)

Day 10 takes us halfway through our trip in terms of time and, if my planning was right, mileage too. (We have planned 17 cycling days and 3 rest days). We've been exceeding planned theoretical daily mileages overall by about 15 percent (except today!) so I think we'll do nearer 800 miles than 700 on this trip, which doesn't come as a surprise. We do detour slightly each day to shops, viewpoints etc and we've got mildly lost a couple of times (but barely by more than a quarter of a mile). Cycle paths are affectionately known by some as "psychopaths" as they meander and are not as direct as the roads they shield us from, so this accounts for some of the extra miles. We won't have seen all the sights, for sure, but it's providing ideas for places for Rob to revisit in the future. Incredibly, the hotels that we're finding are invariably close to our intended route so we are spending only a few minutes each day getting back onto the right road or track.

Last night's hotel, which is slap-bang on our route, was another good 'un. We had a good evening meal of black pudding with baked apple, followed by bream on a bed of rice with a caramel sauce (sounds odd but it's really tasty) and a choice of desserts. Andi, sorry, I know you're a veggie but I'm 100 percent confident that you'd be well catered for as we've met nothing but kindness and consideration by the French (and Spanish) so far.

The hotel had an important facility which I've neglected to discuss - a multi-bar electrically-heated towel rail. This means that we could do our laundry and dry it! After a first unsuccessful attempt by Rob at drying his washed jersey in Spain, we resorted to a system that I'd read about on other tour blogs i.e. wringing out the clothes first, then wrapping them in a towel and wringing the towel (which squeezes the water from the washed clothes into the towel). It works a treat! The final phase is to hang the clothing in sunlight (fat chance!) or near/on an artificial heat source. Thus, a heated towel rail ranks as the no. 3 most important facility in overnight accommodation after bike security and free "wee-fee". Marvellous!

There is another more delicate subject that I'd meant to bring up too, that many cyclists debate - should you wear underwear beneath cycling shorts or not? Well, I do and Rob doesn't and, frankly, it doesn't seem to matter either way - neither of us is uncomfortable nor have we suffered any particular chafing. The purists would take me to task, but I wear 1 of 4 clean pants, that I have with me, each evening and then use the same one to cycle in next day. It means I'm mainly washing pants, with the shorts being washed less frequently, and with 4 pants, I'm not under pressure to wash clothes each night - it works for me.
One (related) thing that I do recommend is that, in the evenings, if you use a deodorant spray under your arms, make sure that it's NOT an anti-perspirant. If you can't perspire under your arms next day when you cycle, it's going to come out somewhere else. I trust that I don't have to spell out where!!

Re my cheap cycle gear, Gareth, the stuff that's not up to long continual usage is, with exceptions, from Lidl/Aldi/Sports Direct. Some of it is fine for day rides, but the cut/fit is not there and the materials are too thin or are of a "basic" quality.
I have other budget clothing bought in France from Decathlon over the years and that is a better quality and more durable - in particular arm warmers, leg warmers, ear muffs, shorts (and a couple of jerseys which I left at home as they no longer fit, which was a shame - remember I'd lost over 3 stone in weight to prepare).
However, I fancy that it's still not as good as some of Rob's Altura stuff and the other "quality" brands on the market.
The Cycle Show at the NEC in September is usually a good place to see the quality stuff all in one place.

Moving on, over 6 hours sleep for me last night and we had another good breakfast. We left the hotel at 8.30 aiming to catch the 1.25pm ferry across the River Gironde, 30 miles or so away. We are becoming faster by the day, it seems, and we reached the ferry after just a smidge over 30 miles cycling, at 11.10am so we caught the 11.55 sailing (4.90 euros per person incl bike, one way. Anyone planning a similar trip to ours can find sailing schedules and tariffs for this ferry and the little Santander/Pedrena one that we used on Day 1, on the internet - the Pedrena ferry was about 2.60 euros each if I recall).
Our average speed today was our fastest at 12.76mph including slow cruising around the ferry port and is a continuing reflection on the flatness of the roads and our increasing fitness.

After a 20 minute crossing, during which we escaped a very heavy shower, we disembarked in sunny Royan, cruised until we found a boulangerie and ate our lunch on a grassy area in relative warmth. The Charente Maritime is one of my favourite parts of France and it was very welcoming today!

We arrived at tonight's hotel, Hotel le Commerce in Saujon (105 euros for dinner, B and B, plus tourist taxes, for us both) at the earliest time that we have anywhere - 1.30pm. If we arrive any earlier, we're going to have to pay for the previous night too!
The bikes are cabled together in an open garage and we've been assured that the access will be secured overnight.

The weather starting today was cloudy again, with temperatures of just 9C at 8.30 and 11.5C an hour later and it really only started to improve when we reached Royan and headed inland, with our first TAILWIND of our trip which lasted about a mile. I know it was a tailwind because we were going past Royan aerodrome and the wind socks were blowing our way. It was bliss!

Sorry to hear from the Comments that the weather's so bad in the UK but, for May, it's rotten over here too and the resulting lateness of crops is making the French newspapers. I'd hoped to get a bit of a tan whilst cycling but it hasn't happened yet (is that tempting fate?). I'm just thankful for having had one decent session of sunshine last week! Let's see what the Charente brings.

Thank you, Ellie, for your kind donation and also to Steve. Thanks also for the continuing Comments and, Rob H, my legs are indeed like steel pistons but hardly bronzed. I was wearing arm warmers, leg warmers, ear muffs and a buff along with my wind-proof-ish jacket today and I still stopped to put disposable gloves on under my fingerless gloves!
The one thing that makes me chuckle is when I start to dress in the morning. I'm standing there in my underpants, with just arm warmers and leg warmers on and I feel like an extra from "Gladiator" ("We who are about to cycle salute you!!). Try it and you'll know what I mean.

Best wishes for a safe journey to Seitse whom we met on the road and who had cycled down from Paris and was going on to Nice. Seitse said that he was Australian ...... but you don't fool anyone with your Dutch accent, Seitse! I hope the disposable gloves that I gave you helped to warm your fingers up a little and I know you'll be warmer where you're headed than we will be.

Photos:
Rob on the long but not so winding road this morning.
Our ship comes in - the ferry to take us across the Gironde
Rob catches up with work in sunny Royan - no, he's not having a wee!

Day 9 - Biganos to Hourtin

Distance cycled today 46 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 361 miles

Last night's meal was not very auspicious - basic but perfectly OK - as it was Monday .... and France closes on Mondays. Nevertheless, we found a pizza place, where Rob continued his quest to make duck extinct and I had a large pizza. This cycling certainly restores any lost appetites. We've had a Comment that our diet may be carb and fat rich at the possible expense of fruit (and veg?). I think we're both conscious of that and we do seek salads (remember the hard boiled oeufs?) and vegetables as accompaniments although we don't always mention them e.g. I asked for a side salad with my pizza last night and got a pallet-load of lettuce! I forgot that salad means just lettuce in France so I'll ask for a salade mixte next time. There's often fruit on offer at breakfast time too, which satisfies my addiction to bananas.

The bikes were safely locked in the hotel restaurant overnight - we've so far found all hotels to be very accommodating, perhaps helped by our inflating the value of them when discussing security.

I've already mentioned the wi-fi which is widely available but every time a hotel receptionist refers to it when we check-in, they pronounce it as "wee-fee" and I guiltily keep thinking they are referring to the state of my cycling socks!

Our blog post yesterday had to be written from scratch when we arrived at our hotel and the "wee-fee" was so weak that it took about 20 minutes to get it to upload. You may be noticing that the photos are becoming smaller, which is the only way that I can get them accepted. Apologies to all and sorry, Gareth, I must have just missed Freya's bathtime yesterday.

Last night, I reverted to type and had just 5 or 6 hours of what I call fitful sleep, but so long as I have 5 or more I seem to be OK. I'm one of those who dream, can remember them vividly and are easily woken, whereas Rob says he doesn't dream, could fall asleep on the back of a motor-bike and can get back to sleep quickly if he's disturbed.

We got away after a good breakfast (including orange juice and an apple, Sarah - no bananas though) at 8.40am and found a terrific cycle path, yet again, which took us along the edges of the small towns on the east side of the Bassin d'Arcachon. The weather was overcast and cool again and our windproof jackets now seem to be our default apparel. I've also been wearing arm warmers and ear muffs.
A word about cycle clothing - Rob bought quality and I bought cheap. I've resolved to replace my cheap with quality when we get home. All cycle clothing has now been subject to cool, cold, windy, wet and saturated conditions .......... and Rob's has performed better than mine (Rob rightly sings the praises of The Bike Cellar in Plymstock). There is the odd thing that's been good with me and I suspect that if the weather had been kinder I might have got away with some more of my stuff performing better. It's not spoiling the tour and it's part of the learning curve.

We stopped to look at the Bassin d'Arcachon at Lanton then had a pastry break at 11.30 at Le Porge. The cycle path continued as a very smooth, very flat 2.5-3m wide tarmac strip, through woodland, where Rob identified a cuckoo flying closely overhead and we cycled to within about 3m of a red squirrel who hadn't spotted us until the very last second. Cycling with Rob is like having David Attenborough beside you!
With the total lack of traffic we were able to make fast progress (the startled squirrel will confirm that). The path finished at Lacanau and we continued along dead straight flat roads to Carcans where we had a baguette and coffee for lunch at 1pm. Mine had mixed salad in it, Sarah - honestly!

We checked in at the Hotel-Bar-Restaurant d'Hourtin (88 euros, dinner, B and B for both of us plus a couple of euros tourist tax) right in the middle of Hourtin, at the embarrasingly early time of 2pm, where the bikes are now in a back room tonight, cabled together like inseparable friends (God, I'm coming over all emotional!).
It's now the 3rd time that I've chosen via booking.com and rung to make the reservation and check facilities and it seems to be the best way, although it adds to what I have to do on "wee-fee" each night.

Our early arrival was due to the fact that we've now hit our highest average speed (12.49 mph).............. brought about no doubt by the fact that we must be fine athletes!
As happened yesterday, the cloudy conditions gave way to sunshine after our arrival but at least we've been spared rain now for a few days. Temperatures are in the mid to high teens and there have only been light NW winds.

We are well into the Medoc region of Bordeaux and may sample some of its produce! Tomorrow, we hope to cross the Gironde by local ferry from Pointe de Grave (Verdon) to Royan in the Charente Maritime.

Photos:
Our hotel last night, the Logis Hotel du Delta.
The traffic-free cycle track near the east of the Bassin d'Arcachon.
For my home-town followers, the Welsh pennant, (which has been recognised) and led to the hotel receptionist this morning referring to the French rugby team as "un catastrophe!" The plastic bag contains my morning pastry.

Day 8 - Mimizan Plage to Biganos

Distance cycled today 47 miles
Distance cycled since Modbury 315 miles

Last night was one of the best stops we've had. The hotel was small, friendly and comfortable. We had a good meal in a local restaurant - rillette de confit de canard, with a tender steak and a cheese sauce for Rob, and smoked herrings and sliced potatoes in an olive oil dressing followed by a similar steak for me. We usually have a beer as an aperitif, half a litre of house wine, desserts and coffees and we are tending to pay around 60 euros including a 10 per cent tip between us. Those who tour on a budget may wince at this but we are always looking at quality without breaking the bank and try to choose the 3 course "menus" to limit expenditure. On a typical day, we have breakfast, a pastry during the morning, a light lunch (more about that later) but concentrate on a good meal in the evening.

This morning, we wound up the shutters on the windows to be greeted by sunshine and unbroken clear blue sky - perfect.
The breakfast was buffet type with cereals, breads, croissants, other pastries, fruit juices, ham and cheese as well as coffee and tea. At 7.5 euros it was good value.

We got away late today at 9.45 owing to my over-sleeping - yahoo! The Nytol tablets never fail to work and I felt totally refreshed after 9 hours of sleep.
The temperature was a welcome 19C as we loaded our bikes, set off and quickly found the Velodysee again. Once more it tracked through pine forests and was entirely traffic-free. It skirted a huge military firing range, fenced off to everyone, and we'd been warned that if we strayed into the site we'd be led away in handcuffs. No problem really as we've only got bicycle cable cutters and they wouldn't have been enough for that fence!

We've encountered plenty of wild-life whilst cycling as you can sneak up on the little blighters without them hearing you! We've seen a few red squirrels in the last few days but today, Rob pointed out a grebe, heard a cuckoo and saw something in a lake which he thought may have been an otter.

After a while, we left the forested area, the signposting became a bit vague and the sun disappeared. The cycle track seemed to go off our intended route so we took to the roads again. We had been cycling for a mile or two, until one kindly gentleman driving towards us flashed his lights, leant on his horn and started waving. I waved back thinking what a friendly chap he was but then realised that he was pointing to the cycle track on the opposite side of the road which was hidden by shrubbery. Neither Rob nor I had noticed this!

We followed the track for a few miles and stopped to chat to a couple of British guys on Boardman, flat-barred bikes, who'd cycled from St Malo in the last week en-route to Santander. They'd covered a good distance already, had pre-booked all their overnight stops but they just didn't look relaxed, certainly not as relaxed as us. They felt that they'd set their daily target of 80 miles too high and had since revised it downwards to 50. They were very apprehensive about the Spanish mountains (I hope they weren't as bad as you feared, guys). They were also not happy with their sat-nav so I gave them our Spanish photocopy maps. I'd previously considered sat-nav but you simply don't get an overview as you do with maps.

We reached Parentis en Born around 11.30 and stocked up on coffee eclairs (to eat then) and raspberry jam doughnuts for later. French eclairs are delicious!
Then, the scenery changed. The cycle path had taken a loop before we stopped and heaven knows where it went ........but it wasn't going our way! So we headed up the main road to Sanguinet and on to Biganos, stopping just once for a doughnut break. The roads were very long and very straight and the open countryside offered little cover against what is becoming an irritating headwind. (We chose Santander to Roscoff to be HELPED by the prevailing winds - would whoever's in charge please note!) Rob and I draughted along these roads, with more benefit felt by me than Rob, it seems. Rob must be more streamlined than me!

We met another long-distance cyclist, a young Dutch guy on a Santos tourer. He had his laundry drying on his rear rack. He and a friend, who was a mile or two ahead, had cycled from Amsterdam to Paris and were going on to Gibraltar, taking a break away from the bikes in Morocco, and then returning by air from Madrid. Respect!!!

We reached Biganos, where I'd booked a room at the Logis Hotel du Delta tonight (80 euros B and B for both of us......and the small taxes again!) at about 3. Just before reaching the hotel, I diverted into a nearby McDonalds to fuel up. It's becoming apparent that Rob and I have different metabolisms and needs - Rob doesn't feel the cold as much as I do and he can cycle all day long after breakfast with just a couple of cakes inside him but I need something more substantial. Rob drinks more water during the day and he can happily drink more alcohol in the evening without becoming dehydrated so we are now accommodating these differences.

The helpful manager in McD's pointed out an InterSport shop where I was able to buy a replacement bottle cage which was kindly fitted by the shop staff. When removing the old cage (which you may recall I'd fixed with a cable tie) I found that I'd clamped the tie around my rear brake cable...............and I'd had to adjust my rear brake coincidentally after I'd cable-tied the broken cage. Dohhhh! It's not the first time I've done that. My dear Dad often says "Son, you're intelligent but you've got no common-sense!"

We finally got to our hotel at 3.45 and it looks just the ticket again although we'd not been told that we needed to book an evening meal, so we'll be going walkies later.

Photos:
Rob back on the Velodysee (EV1) cycle trail.
Not much doubt that we can't take a short cut through the military area!