OOh La La France

We chose a ferry crossing to France so we could photograph the white cliffs as we left Dover. We were not disappointed and who could complain about an 18 quid fare for the 2 of us plus the bike. Our crossings in 2010 were taken under the water where views were not an option.

The run south to Rouen was fast and smooth with a brief rain burst the only interruption. We knew very little of this city and were pleasantly surprised by its beautiful setting on the river Seine, magnificent Cathedral and historic city center. It is also the site where Joan of Arc was martyred at the stake.

We left Normandy for a pre-booked Bikers B&B in the tiny village of St Domineuc in Brittany. Our route took us along the Normandy beaches made famous by the Allied Forces D Day landings on 6 June 1944. Sites at Pegasus Bridge, Sword and Omaha Beaches had been featured in stories and motion pictures over past decades and now we were here. A little bit surreal really. We took a bit longer than planned so had a late arrival at our B&B. Our hosts, Les & Kim, welcomed us as close friends even down to the Australian Flag hanging in the garage for the Gray Ghost. We could not have felt more welcomed.

Beers, wines and a sumptuous 3 course dinner followed - we had really landed in a beautiful place. Our intention was to visit Le Mont St Michel on the Brittany Coast so a 2nd day with Les and Kim would have been ideal but unfortunately they were fully booked. They kindly  arranged an alternative B&B in St Carreuc, Brittany run by Ian, an expat Kiwi, and his French wife Sophie. They were also extremely friendly and happily pointed us in the direction of the best biking roads in the region. We had visited Le Mont St Michel en route and must admit that we were a little disappointed. This magnificent Monastery and walled village sits just off the Brittany Coast and is often featured in Tour de France coverage as the peleton passes.
The enterprising French however have been reclaiming the land to the Monastery so that tourist buses can drive up close to the walls. The buses run a constant shuttle disgorging tourists by the bucket load. It now has very much a 'Disneyland feel' to it which does not become the ancient and beautiful architecture. It has lost its island isolation and this has compromised the site.

We decided to explore some more of Brittany but failed to check the forecasts and ran into foul weather on the way to Brest. What should have been a scenic ride over the highest land in the region became a battle against heavy rain and low cloud that cut visibility to about 50 meters.We dripped into Brest and grabbed a room in the first available chain hotel. Several hours on the internet with rain continuing outside convinced us to fore-go our planned trip to the Loire Valley and instead head south to the promise of warm weather and sunshine. Brest may be a beautiful city but we may never know. An 800km ride ensued mostly on motorway with the first 300km in rain and the rest in high winds.

The result was worth the effort however as we arrived in warm sunny weather in the village of Lauzun south east of Bordeaux. We have scored another excellent Bike friendly B&B and will be spending the next couple of days with ride outs from here.