They certainly packed them in at the municipal campsite in La Rochelle. As predicted, it was a noisy evening, including fireworks at one point. Things did quieten down after midnightish but then at some point in the early hours the couple in the text next to mine decided to have a, errโฆ loud romantic interlude. Iโll leave that there.
There were times this morning when I thought this particular day – the whole trip perhaps – were being derailedโฆ It all started by me heading over the bridge back in the direction of La Rรฉole. Oops! Wrong direction. No big problem; Iโd only cycled perhaps 50 metres across the bridge and by doing so made a nice video clip (yep, you guessed it – watch the videoโฆ).
Iโโm glad to have finished the Canal du Midi section of the Canal des Deux Mers cycle route. Now in Pรฉzenas – Iโll explain in a moment – the highlight of yesterday was cycling along the excellent voies vertes that brought me inland from Sรจte yesterday evening. Cycling at the end of the day is something that doesnโt often happen (the way I tend to organise my days) but the advantages of cycling at that end of the day are similar to those of early morning cycling; quieter roads, cooler temperatures and the โgolden hourโ sunlight that washes a beautiful soft tint over the landscape. Itโs also worth noting (and remembering) that the winds tend to die down in the evening. Mmmโฆ Perhaps I should do night shifts on the bike.
It’s that time of the year when TheAdventureJunkies.com publish their list of the top cycle touring websites from around the world. And CyclingEurope.org has maintained its mid-league position. The Leeds United of the cycle touring world? It’s always good to review the ‘competition’ and there are some cracking sites on the list. I’ve just spent a happy couple of hours doing just that. Should you know of other sites that you believe should be on the list, you can submit them via this page of the Adventure Junkies site.
Friday 9th August 2013 Rest Day 8: Montย Ventoux (53km) This would clearly be a โrest dayโ with a difference, but as I would be making no progress whatsoever in my cycling odyssey along the edge of the Mediterranean, it would have been equally nonsensical to refer to it […]
I judge my WarmShowers hosts on how I provide for WarmShowers guests when I host back at home. Alas in recent years this has been less frequent. When I lived in that beautiful tourist hotspot that is, errโฆ Reading, I hosted quite regularly in the summer. Since moving back to rural Yorkshire Iโve hosted just three times. In Reading I was half-way between London and Oxford or en route to the West Country. In Yorkshire, despite it being far nicer, Iโm not really on anyoneโs cycle route (although not very far from the Pennine Cycleway – take note!). Anyway, aside from a warm shower, I provide food, drink, Wi-Fi, clothes washing, advice, deep-tissue massageโฆ Well, most of those.
