Having had a much needed day of rest yesterday, this morning we departed just south of La Rochelle. Our little motel on the highway was too much to bear and we found an enchanted hideaway on the coast. La Rochelle is a stunning seaport with a hive of little cafes and restaurants but at the time of our visit was also hosting a yachting regatta and a TV awards show which meant it impossible to stay anywhere, other than in the middle of a highway.

One of the things we have been trying to do the last few days is lose kit from our paniers. We have shed our fleeces but I managed to pick up a chess set in Paimpont in a moment of madness. As much as we enjoy each others company, chess games are helping keep our minds sane and the chess set is now like a child's toy that never gets thrown away. Wearing the same clothes every day is becoming tedious but despite the disbelief of our wives, we have managed to wash our clothes on a regular basis on our own (I think both of our wives think that we do not know where the washing machine is - outrageous!).

PASSING THROUGH ANOTHER SLEEPY FRENCH VILLAGE:

Our day was a fairly short one today with only 90km (average speed = 22km) of flat marsh swamps to navigate through. The road from La Rochelle to Royan is a maze of canals and little villages and oyster beds. The only apparent souls in these villages are dogs that seem to bark at us and their owners never to be seen.

We have noticed the roads have been very kind to the men of the road. There are hundreds of clever little bike lanes that wind there way around all the villages. Our map reading so far has been spot on and we have hardly gone wrong which is quite a feat since we only have our little laminated maps to navigate our way.

Tomorrow is a big long day to Arcachon (130km) and the temperature is still rising. I think we will be roast boeuf by the time we arrive in Spain!

Justin

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