Truth be told, we have enjoyed a fantastic start to our cycling tour. Having successfully navigated our way along Eurovelo Route 3 from Charles de Gaulle airport and through Paris while completely jet-lagged and brain dead we are now sitting on the banks of the Loire River resting tired muscles and enjoying a quiet evening.
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| Lunch stop on the Seine in Paris |
To say the last few days have gone smoothly and according to plan would be an outright lie. We have been lost more times than we care to admit, have found ourselves on deserted trails barely the width of our tires and already flatted. [yes Rob flatted because of his mashing!]
I have experienced four wee tumbles off my bike. [English translation - I have gone completely ass over tea kettle 4 times with the bruises, scrapes and scars to prove it.] Unfortunately, the screw in my stem, which attaches the handlebars to the bike frame appears to have been stripped, causing the handlebars to swing at a 90 degree angle spontaneously during travel. This technical difficulty accounted for 3 of my falls. The 4th spill however, was a doubler. Cycling single file along a narrow bike path, Rob in the lead at the time, noticed a service vehicle approaching. Calmly calling a warning out to me, Rob pulled over to get out of the way. Unfortunately I was in a zen state just merrily spinning away, not noticing the truck or hearing Rob. To my complete and utter surprise Rob appeared directly in front of me. BOOM! We both went down hard! As the truck driver looked on in disbelief and utter amusement I did what any good Canadian would do. I channeled my best Phil Esposito curtsy and gave the fellow a wave. (For those of you wondering who Espo is, simply google Canada vs. Russia hockey classic)
Glitches aside, our route through the south of France to date has been spectacular. We have managed to follow canals, skirting numerous natural areas allowing us to enjoy quiet, secluded pathways and discover quiet camping spots. Leapfrogging pleasure boats and barges as they navigated the canal lock system became the game of the day. These engineering masterpieces were built before Canadian Confederation was even a thought.
We were greeted warmly by countless fisherman, trying their luck on the banks of the canals. I wondered how they picked their special fishing holes, but sadly my French was as strong as their English and I never was able to quite communicate my question.
Navigating the cobblestone streets of the small country towns is always a thrill and we are looking forward to soaking up the history and ambience of upcoming villages. Tomorrow, we point east as we join Eurovelo route 6, our compass set on Budapest. Of course, we will take it one day at a time and for now hope we can get to the next campsite without taking another fall.
Giggle of the Day:
We should know better! Our cardinal rule of travel is to always have a full pantry. At least one day of food, and water to spare. Yet, here we were on the eve of our second day, striking camp without so much as a crumb in any of our panniers. Dumb yes, predictable, perhaps? Too exhausted to care we dove into our tent fighting a bad case of the hangries. Waking to the early morning sun, we broke camp and set off without even a sniff of coffee. Grumpy? You bet! As we approached the small town of Cepoy, we looked at each other with glee. Simultaneously, as if on cue, we had both detected the fragrant aroma of a pattisierre. We followed our noses to some of the best chocolate croissants this side of Paris. Bon appetite!
P.s. I would like to apologize in advance for all of the spelling errors and grammatical mistakes that you will notice should you decide to read on. In my defence Rob and I often write our blog posts, late at night after a long day on the road. Having said that, speling has always bean one of my wekneses.
