Onwards
We continued our journey eastwards from Cognac to our new destination of Chasseneuil-sur-Bonnieure. We elected for an early start to beat the heat, however, such a thing does not exist when camping because it takes an hour and half to take the tent down and get all the clobber loaded, so it was 9.15 by the time we left, though I did note that a couple who had arrived on a tandem the previous evening (clocked them as Brits, you can always tell) had long gone - clearly professionals. On reflection, perhaps the extra two beers on top of the bottle of Cotes du Rhone had contributed to the not-so-early start c'est la vie.
Today was bloody hot (high 30s); not if you were sitting on your a*** in a all inclusive enclosure in the Caribbean perhaps, but it is when cycling 45 miles along the sun-scorched tarmac of southern France with a ton of gear on your bike, made heavier by the necessity to take litres of extra water. Despite this, and as usual ignoring any 'Route Baree' signs, we managed to stop for our usual dejeuner at Vars. It did get much tougher after this, exacerbated by the lack of shade, such that I measured my progress from one shady tree to the next where I would stop to let S catch up and then instantly spur her on before she could catch her breath. Eventually I had to feed her 'Dragibus' at every stop (footnote: for un-initiated they are a form of Haribo sweets which your can only buy in France).
Eventually we arrived at Les Charmilles municipal campsite, and very nice it is. Somewhat irritatingly, however, as I was battling to erect the tent in scorching heat, still fermenting in my cycling shorts with the sweat running in rivulets down into them, a German couple pulled up in their car, the bloke got out, pulled an enormous pop-up tent out of the boot and had it up in two seconds flat - maybe we will have a storm and then we will see if my 'DoE recommended' shelter is the dogs after all? (Footnote: to rub it in he has now inflated an enormous airbed with an electric pump).
On the menu tonight is lentil bolognaise with penne - we have become vegetarian for the duration because it doesn't go off. I include a POV of me writing this blog for that edgy 'I can almost believe I'm there' feeling.
Bon soir
Posted with Blogsy
Well I must admit, its better than being at work :-)
ReplyDeleteS says that she would rather be at work than cycling in a furnace :-) I bought genuine tetley tea bags to bolster her resolve.
Delete