Camping La Chevrette, Digoin

Before we begin, just wanted to tell you all this is our 550th blog. Whether you've been following us from the beginning or have just stumbled across us, thanks for reading. Here's to another 550!

We were first away this morning, up just as the sun rose. We had to beat the heat. It was starting to become a problem. As we trundled along a quiet country road the fresh morning air flowed over our bodies. A herd of Charolais turned to stare at us. Their calves unerved by the brightness of our high viz waistcoats hid behind their mothers. The trees that lined the roadside cast welcome shadows. But all was to change once we reached the canal. As always the sun was on us, the shade on the opposite bank. We pedalled at a steady pace keen to bank as many miles as possible before lunchtime. We cycled this path last year and are saddened that we have not been able to socialize with fellow riders night after night as we did then. There seems to be less cyclists on the road this year and many of them are on electric bikes so we're unlikely to catch up with them. Saying that the couple next to us on e-bikes were at last night's campsite. They seemed shocked we were already here when they arrived using just pedal power. No surprise, we didn't follow the official route up over the hills, but cut across by road. We're not letting on. Let them think we're super fit English. And we'd stopped for over two hours at lunchtime. Remember the hare and the tortoise?

The campsite at Digoin is next to a boating lake. Two boats, the blue team and red team jousted from them. We'd never seen the likes of it. Obviously it's a big thing here. Another balmy evening, but we are spoilt by a cooling breeze that blows off the river Loire behind our tent. The downside the mosquitoes are out in force. Yet another night of scratching ahead. Down in the town on the waterfront there is easy listening music being played by an orchestra. Hopefully it will lull us to sleep, or the tempo may be upped around ten and the all to common bassy music of a Saturday night in France will vibrate through our tent. Let's hope not. In the meantime we will enjoy our cold beers (0.0% alcohol Leffe lager on sale in the campsite shop a real treat for John), and listen to the music, at this moment in time a beautiful clarinet solo.

Camping Domaine du Bourg, Gannay sur Loire

What's Dutch for 'you park the bloody caravan'. The wife chose a pitch that the husband found impossible to site their caravan on. But she was determined he could and should. After nearly an hour of maneuvering the wife had to give in and they moved to another pitch. By now it was almost dark and as the air cooled slightly we prepared to retire to bed.

Some days just don't to plan. Today would be one of those days. The cycle path alongside the canal was awful. Stony and potholed with loose shingle on the ascents and descents at the bridges. Very dangerous. So we carefully climbed down an embankment and onto the road. We were keen to cover today's twenty-five miles before the mercury rose.

Then, a hissing noise. John's rear tyre had suffered not one but three punctures. Great! Fortunately we were near a semi shaded spot, but the heat prevented the patches from taking on the inner tube. Decisions had to be made. John walked three miles in the midday sun to the campsite in the next village and Angela cycled back to the supermarket in Decize to source an inner tube. The campsite delivered, they had a spare inner tube, just one. Some food  items purchased Angela began the cycle back in debilitating heat. By the time she was reunited with John she'd cycled twenty-four miles. Sometimes events in life happen for a reason.

The campsite John walked found is a real gem. Natural ( yes natural, not naturist), the charming and very French.

We have enjoyed spending time sat at the bar, eating Italian croque monsieur and chips, talking to a German couple from the nearby campervan and just chilling, as the youngsters say. The temperature on the site in the full sun at half past four this afternoon was, wait for it 50c. In the shade 38c. Perhaps having to abandon today's cycle had been a good thing. Tomorrow we have a longer cycle ahead of us and plan to leave by eight armed with six and a half litres of drinking water. Wish us luck.

Camping des Halles, Decize

The kindness of strangers. This morning the Dutch couple in the motorhome next to us made coffee for ourselves and a German lady who arrived after dark and asked to share our pitch. After a hastily eaten breakfast we were glad to be be on our way. Angela determined to leave a review on trip advisor about the awful female staff.

We needed an easier day. Decize was around twenty-five miles along the canal. It was already hot and we were tired from yesterday so stopped frequently to rest and take on water. Yesterday we calculated we'd consumed around nine litres of water at least between us. As we flagged a little we broke out the emergency croissant to boost energy levels. By lunchtime we were on the campsite at Decize, sat in a shady spot glad today's cycling was done. Last September we stayed here along with fellow cyclists we met along the way and all sat out in the evening eating and chatting. Where are they all now? We know that evening will not be recreated tonight and on a way we're glad. It was a special evening from which we have cherished memories. Arriving on site early meant we could rest, wash some clothing and shave our legs. Well Angela's legs. She'll do anything to make herself more aerodynamic!

Camping de Nevers - Aquadis Loisirs

Armed with a family sized baguette we made a dash for it early. We had forty plus miles to cycle and would need to stop for quite a while at lunchtime because of the heat. A welcome shaded path for the first few miles on route to the medieval town of La Charite-Sur-Loire where the temperature was already a whopping 37c.

It was going to be a hot one! Even the normally basking lizards sought out shade. Shopping done and restorative jaffa cakes eaten with a determined mindset we carried on soon finding ourselves up on the levee in full sun with very few pockets of shade.

Oh no, this was a repeat of yesterday afternoon when after miles and miles of liquorice tarmac softening in the heat we finally found shelter with a man who was worried where his wife might be. Under a tree a few miles back with no intention of moving was the answer. We'd passed her a while ago. Sometime later when we felt ready to set  off again she appeared. Who wears platform clogs to cycle in? Inappropriate footwear at the highest level, and she wasn't even Dutch! Our afternoon went from bad to worse. Angela made a bad call, suggesting we follow a marker sign rather than the map which resulted in us cycling on undulating roads in full sun with the temperature nudging 40c. At last back on course by the canal we both felt very unwell. Drink. Drink. Drink. By six o'clock we had somehow reached Nevers. This was our third time of staying at the campsite and it would be our last. The two female members of staff were rude and uncaring. John asked for us to be squeezed onto a pitch in the shade. No chance. We should have arrived earlier! Believe us, we'd have loved to. If we waited two hours our pitch would be on the shade as the sun would be down. We waited and a French couple decided it suited them. Tempers frayed, the French staff obviously anti English became confrontational. We'd had enough. Could we carry on with this trip what with the heat and the animosity?

Camping Les Portes Sancerre, Saint - Satur

Just after nine we were away leaving our new friend Pierre sleeping off the bottle of wine he was well into when we went to bed last night. We hoped today he might address his personal hygiene. He'd been paddling for three weeks and his T-shirt we didn't think had left his  body in all that time. As we cycled passed the marina we spotted a small Dutch barge from Brighouse, Scotland named Grace. What a coincidence.

Today would have been John's mum's  99th birthday. Her name, Grace, born in Scotland. Passing the magnificent engineered aquaduct we found a shady path, but the heat was building and by midday we were suffering. 36c is not a great temperature to cycle in. What were we doing. Were we mad? Most definitely. We drank litres of tepid water to stay hydrated and ate crisps to take on salt. Determined not to be beaten we battled on like zombies.

Was this a holiday or test of endurance? As tonight's campsite neared we stopped in one of the riverside towns for shopping. Ate two chocolate and double caramel ice creams each and full of hype from the excess sugar intake set off once again. Just seven more miles, we could do this.

So here we are. Showered, full of barbecued burgers and yet more fluid.

Tomorrow we will do it all again. We hope to be able to reach Nevers. It will be a week since we left home and our beautiful garden which we now fear may be suffering from the heat. Anyone fancy a watering holiday at the coast?

Camping Municipal Le Martinet, Briare

Is it just us? Are we a magnet to these people? At ten o'clock last night a large French hire van arrived on the site. Bearing in mind, the campsite was fairly quiet, why did the couple decided to park about a metre from our tent? Angela gestured they move further over, which they did. They were now two metres away. We had hoped for an early quiet night. It was not to be. The couple crashed, banged, put on the television and set and reset the van alarm until just before one this morning. Thanks! This morning just after seven John shouted 'good morning' loudly towards the bedroom window of the van. The occupant soon emerged and was told in no uncertain terms he was a noisy b.....! We had to avoid the sweltering heat so by nine-thirty we were pedalling alongside the canal Briare. Just us and alone heron to enjoy this special time in the morning.

Our cycle today should have been around twenty miles, but bad signage meant we rode around in a large loop adding a few extra miles.

Briare on the Loire was our destination. The cycle from Paris to thee was something we'd been looking forward too but to be honest we found it quite underwhelming. We are happy now. In our comfort zone the familiarity of the Loire river and it's towns. The heat today has been sweltering and despite drink copious amounts of fluid we cannot quench our thirst. Tonight's campsite, popular with the Dutch, we have stayed at before. We met a young French maths teacher called Pierre who is paddling the river Loire in his inflatable kayak. John and he gave plenty to discuss, whilst Angela is happy to sit on the side lines and listen whilst drinking her allowance of a quarter bottle of wine. At the washing up area the Dutch men dressed in just speedos put the world to rights. Perhaps the next size trunks next year lads! 

Camping de la Lanciere, Chatillon-Coligny

Despite retiring to bed around nine last night, we were kept awake until one in the morning by loud bassy music and shouting from the nearby sports hall where a party was obviously being held. So we struggled to be up and away this morning at a reasonable time. Today being Sunday, and us being beside a canal where shops to buy food from are limited and expensive we resorted to purchasing two containers of vegetable cous cous, some tuna, a melon and two litres of fruit squash to replace that we had already drunk. The official holiday season has come to an end now, and there are very few people about. A few walkers and parents teaching children to ride bikes. Not sure alongside the canal is the right place for this activity. A few days ago we stopped at a community run bike place where the car park had been painted to resemble a minute road layout. We were told the lessons given there were not just for children, but adults as well. So dust off your passport Chris Webb we've booked you in! Despite the debilitating heat we pressed on, stopping regularly to rest, take in fluid and snack.

With each mile that passed we neared the end of the canal Briare. Our bicycle tyres disintegrated the crisp brown leaves that carpeted the towpath, a sign of an approaching change of season. Tonight's campsite, right on the euro velo 3 route is run by the town and despite the sanitaires being a little dated it is clean and serviceable.

We are the only tent here, but everyone is friendly and it feels safe and quiet. Today we have pedalled our way over forty miles of gravel and tarmac. Almost given upon the heat and wished we had electric bikes. On the plus side we are ahead of our schedule and will be in the Loire tomorrow.