Covered some ground, approx 200km, so plenty of variety along the way.
Starting reasonably flat, on Sunday I stumbled into a line of american tanks (at a parade) and a motor bikers meet in the centre of Bethune, which I had popped into to see the historic clock tower. They do like cobbles in these old town centres...
Continuing to Lens, the landscape dotted with massive slag heaps from mining, one of which had been turned into a ski slope. Lens itself didn't seem too interesting, but maybe I circumvented the good bits. Toddled on, pausing only to eat some baguette and cheese in a bus shelter during a passing but heavy shower, and ended up in an area of lakes and canals, "les marais" at a municipal campsite which was basically empty. Don't know why I am so surprised, school holidays don't start for another month.
Lundi. Few more hills today, I'm sure I saw a contour for 150m Not many local shops and businesses open. And they haven't even official instated the 4 day week yet, its just "a French thing". However -
Great inventions of the 21st century - they have vending machines for everything! Bread, refrigerated meat, vegetables, in the absence maybe of an open village shop. Most ingenious.
Went through a few nice leafy forests, and an impressive fortified town, Le Quesnoy, one of those places with massive 8 pointed star walls and a big most. Liberated by new Zealanders.
Ended up at another municipal campsite since the last one was OK. This one turns out to have some other occupants, all seem to be dutch campervans towing trailers with motorbikes on the back. Noisy church clock that seems to do random numbers of chimes so have no idea what time it is. But its definitely too early!
Train to London, no drama
Rock band at Alexandra Palace, (Mogwai), ear punishing volumes, good stuff.
Train to Dover, check. No bike reservations, so
turned up early to avoid disappointment!
Good job too, as am soon joined by a combination of 3 bikes, 2 pushchairs and a mobility scooter. Never mind the hundreds of partying youths heading to a dance festival.
So, speeding towards the channel, pondering the other side, and then -
At Ashford the tannoy announces: "Everyone off! Signal failure in the Dover area!"
An hour later its "this train calls at Folkestone.... And hopefully Dover. Maybe". But it isn't.
Only 10 miles from Folkestone though so I saddle up and actually ride the bike for once, and after a gruelling climb out of town, its a lovely run along the cliff tops, with what looks suspiciously like a spitfire buzzing overhead.
Arriving at the ferry terminal I met two lively French lasses on a tandem, each precariously balancing a suitcase on the handlebars - I definitely read about this somewhere - the ferries aren't taking foot passengers, so people are turning up with any excuse for a bicycle to get on board! I thought this was generally put into practice coming the other way but whatever. You could make a killing with a second hand bike shop at each end of the crossing
Just now a 30km cruise through the flat, tranquil french countryside, with the champions league final kick off being delayed long enough for me to extricate myself from the various fields that the villainous sat nav directed me to, and find an airbnb for a "soft landing" first night. Shame about the result, but the game panned out on entirely predictable fashion.
Anyway, tomorrow is another day, and I have only the vaguest idea where I'm heading. Hooray!
Rock band at Alexandra Palace, (Mogwai), ear punishing volumes, good stuff.
Train to Dover, check. No bike reservations, so
turned up early to avoid disappointment!
Good job too, as am soon joined by a combination of 3 bikes, 2 pushchairs and a mobility scooter. Never mind the hundreds of partying youths heading to a dance festival.
So, speeding towards the channel, pondering the other side, and then -
At Ashford the tannoy announces: "Everyone off! Signal failure in the Dover area!"
An hour later its "this train calls at Folkestone.... And hopefully Dover. Maybe". But it isn't.
Only 10 miles from Folkestone though so I saddle up and actually ride the bike for once, and after a gruelling climb out of town, its a lovely run along the cliff tops, with what looks suspiciously like a spitfire buzzing overhead.
Arriving at the ferry terminal I met two lively French lasses on a tandem, each precariously balancing a suitcase on the handlebars - I definitely read about this somewhere - the ferries aren't taking foot passengers, so people are turning up with any excuse for a bicycle to get on board! I thought this was generally put into practice coming the other way but whatever. You could make a killing with a second hand bike shop at each end of the crossing
Just now a 30km cruise through the flat, tranquil french countryside, with the champions league final kick off being delayed long enough for me to extricate myself from the various fields that the villainous sat nav directed me to, and find an airbnb for a "soft landing" first night. Shame about the result, but the game panned out on entirely predictable fashion.
Anyway, tomorrow is another day, and I have only the vaguest idea where I'm heading. Hooray!