Breakfast on the beach! A beautiful way to enjoy the place while it was quiet and cold (I mean, not scorching). Today is looking like the last of the mega heatwave, so an early start was needed to make sure that we could have an enjoyable days ride as well as covering the required 62km distance back inland to rejoin the Nantes-Brest Canal.
Having got the kit packed away and quietly rolled out of the Canpsite, we sat on the wall watching the sun rise while we at our standard tour breakfast of yogurt, banana and granola.
There are loads of boats moored up, so it wasn’t really a swim place. We were also both keen to get moving while it was still only a cool 23°C.
We chased our shadows along the promenade, then turned in land and headed north.
The navigation was pretty tricky as we were not on a cycle route. Clare managed to link together lots of traffic free and quiet back roads. We were almost thwarted when we came across a duel carriage way, but luckily a nice cycle path had been added nearby.
Even when we thought we’d need a short section in a main road, we managed to find a quiet option with very little detouring needed. In a small village called Berric, we pulled over for a croissant and a few minutes at a shady table outside the village bakers.
In Questembert, we made the detour into the town centre and were really glad that we had. It’s a really old place, with an incredible wooden market hall that was built in 1675. It looked totally solid still.
One of the main ‘Green Ways’ (cycle routes) starts here and is even marked on the main road signs!
It’s called the V3 and follows an old railway line. It’s been surfaced with beautifully smooth tarmac, so we were able to get into top gear and cruise effortlessly along eating up the miles.
We thought that Questembert was nice, but our next stop (where we also camped for the night), was even better! Malestroit is now our home for the night. There is a medieval quarter that is incredibly well preserved.
We explored through narrow lanes and shady cobbles streets after an extended lunch and snooze under a tree on the village green.
Outside the church, in the main square, we enjoyed a drink after the lunchtime rush had passed. We only had 500m to go to reach the campsite, so it was lovely to know that all the hard work for the day was done.
We were both suitably tired and the heat and humidity kept rising through the afternoon. It was great just kicking back and watching the world go by.
The campsite is right on the banks on the Nantes-Brest Canal. If all goes to plan, we’ll be following this for the next week or so towards the northern coast of France. The forecast is predicting heavy rain tomorrow. It’s hard to believe, given the current wall to wall sunshine, but we’ve planned ahead accordingly and have booked a hotel for tomorrow near Josselin. We’re due a proper freshen up anyway, so we might as well make the most of the conditions and not be out in the rain.
Total Ride: 63km (500m ascent).
No comments:
Post a Comment