| Day # | 33 | State of Legs | :-) |
| Distance (miles) | Distance (km) | Ascent (feet) | Ascent (metres) | Punctures | |
| Today | 45.8 miles | km | 1266 feet | metres | 0 |
| Trip Totals | 1228.5 miles | km | 43134 feet | metres | 0 |
| Today's Route |
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| Route So Far |
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Travelogue
Today, we started our journey along the coast towards Calais. We'll be taking our time because we're still ahead of schedule, despite having expanded our route once already. We're cycling on Eurovelo route EV4 which has so far been excellent, providing low traffic and scenic cycling on dedicated cycle paths and a few sections of quiet roads. We've made a mental note to come back to EV4 as it's one of the easiest Eurovelo routes in continental Europe for us to get to from the UK.
We passed through the seaside town of Criel-sur-Mer which reminded us of some of the English seaside towns that we walked through when we walked the South West Coastal Path.
The coastal views were great and a welcome change from the farmland which has dominated the last couple of weeks. And it was a comfort to know we were only 190 km from home :-)
We also passed through the relatively large town of Le Tréport with its almost English but not quite back streets and its colourful beachfront houses.
Cycling in between these coastal towns was excellent. The path varied in its surface type but was always first class and we made really good time, whizzing along and occasionally, screeching to a halt for a photo. Sometimes M1 didn't bother with the screeching to a halt part though and just took the photo whilst cycling. This is not a practice which M2 condones and readers are encouraged to not try this at home.
For a while, the path became a gravel trail which weaved through a series of fishing lakes.
In Cayeux-sur-Mer, we paused by the pebbly beach for photos before continuing into the town and finding a place for coffee and cookies.
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| M2 AKA Cookie Monster |
The town has a long wooden boardwalk along the beach, with a multitude of colourful huts by it. We cycled the boardwalk to its end before rejoining EV4 and the road.
The path beyond Cayeux-sur-Mer continued to provide us with great scenery and eventually, a historic sight. There's a concrete world war II German bunker on the beach near to Le Hourdel, which is the top of a peninsular to the north of Cayeux-sur-Mer. It's both a sombre reminder of that period in European history and a rather photogenic sight.
We followed the coast around Le Hourdel in the direction of Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, but not quite that far east.
M1 popped into a branch of LIDL to get provisions that will last us through to Sunday morning. Our destination is an AirBnB booking and it's a little too far from shops to want to go shopping each day. Mission accomplished, we turned inland and cycled south to the village of Saint-Blimont where we'll be staying for two nights.
The ride here from Saint-Martin-en-Campagne was brilliant in all respects. We're hoping EV4 continues to deliver such enjoyable cycling.
Our accommodation in Saint-Blimont is a little different to the apartments we normally book on AirBnB. It's two rooms in the converted loft of a barn. It's really nice, with a large space containing the bed and a sofa, with a TV and coffee making equipment. The other room is a modern bathroom with an excellent shower. The WiFi is very fast too, on a par with the speeds we get at home in London.
Getting into the rooms is interesting and based on the AirBnB reviews, not to everyone's liking!
You can't please all the people all the time, of course. We think the place is great. It's quiet and in a lovely setting. The host, Philippe is very welcoming and made M1 a very nice coffee on arrival and they had a chat about all manner of things whilst M1 drank the tasty beverage.
A few photos will give you an idea of what the place is like.
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| The flat is in the roof space with the two attic windows |
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| Bikes are in the white vestibule |
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| The courtyard is full of flowers |
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| Access is through the barn..... |
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| ...... and up these stairs |
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| At the top of the stairs - entrance is the door on the other side |
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| It's worth the effort - very comfortable |
So, we're having a rest day tomorrow. There's no washing machine so that will be done at our next stop. And there's no Trip Admin to do either as we've booked somewhere to stay for every remaining night of this trip (go us - very efficient!). That means we can focus completely on rest and relaxation.
Time to hit the Kindle, I think :-)
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