27.05
We left the scenic Crozen Peninsula
and headed South via Quimper, Lorient and Languidic to the pretty village of
Josselin which lies on the Banks of the River Oust and is part of the Nantes Brest
Canal. We found our camp ‘La Bas de la
Lande’ (18 euros, is not an ASCI Camp) on the side of the River Oust. A great spot!
We walked along the Canal 3kms into the village – amazing as the village
came into sight with its magnificent 14th Century castle, with
‘witch-hat’ turrets overshadowing the village!!
We strolled the streets and the square of 16th Century half-timbered
houses and Creperies, cafes and ‘curious’ shops.
28.05
The camp owners had told us ‘La Rage’
(storm) was hitting today so we should ‘batten the hatches’, however although
it rained all night, it dawned clear – good!
We cycled north along the canal heading to Les Forges. We took a wrong turn which took us off the
canal path and into pretty farmlands, passed woods and through little country
towns. We were surprised to see that Les Forges consisted of no more than a
church and a couple of bars. A quick
picnic before a downpour and we headed back.
We found the canal path and decided to return to Les Forges, not only to
enjoy a glorious ride, but to see if we had missed anything, we hadn’t!! On our return we spotted ‘Mr Otter’ carrying a
branch across the Canal! Into Josselin
for another look at the Castle and a crepe, which this region is famous for, unfortunately
all ‘Creperies’ were shut, next time!! 45kms
and back to Camp where our Remoska is cooking us roast Turkey and veges –yum!
29.05
We took advantage of the camp internet
access today (1 euro for the day), it’s wet and windy outside! Late afternoon the weather improved so we
strolled the canal, befriended by a
little
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terrier, the ‘three of us’ sat on the bank and watched two otters busy at
work! We continued our walk into Josselin where we found the Medical Centre and
Pamo had her stitches removed – all good!
We sat in the little Creperie in the Square, a great meeting place with
lots of ambience, ordered crepes however the kitchen was closed, so we settled
for two ‘cafes cremes’! These ‘famous
crepes’ are hard to come by!!
30.05
A pretty ride along the canal heading
South, passing farmlands, woods and little villages, to the country town of
Guillac with it’s Church and Boulangerie, stopped in the Park for a picnic then
onwards to Le Roc St. Andrea. Back to
Josselin, and finally we got our crepes!!
Pamo had honey and nuts and Col, lemon crepes – delicieux! (7 euros 80 for two). 43kms and back to Camp.
31.05
After a stock up at ‘Super U’ we hit
the road! We travelled 300kms through
Ploermel via Rennes and Segre leaving Brittany behind and into the beautiful
Loire Valley!! We headed via Angers
towards Tours, however as it was late we decided to stop over in an ‘Aires’
in Gizeux. A fabulous ‘Aires’ with designated ‘camper’
parks and close to Chateau de Gizeux.
‘Aires’ are for motorhomes only and they are
free of charge. Facilities differ but
normally include a Service Point for water collection and fluid disposal and
ideal for an overnight stop. Often
tokens are required to operate the Service Point, these can be bought from
local shops including 
the boulangerie and tabac.
We stretched our legs with a
walk to the 11th Century Chateau and through the pretty little village.
01.06
Woke to blue skies and warm
temperatures. Only 25kms to go to our
destination at Langeais on the Loire River.
Touraine (as this region is called) will be our base for the next week
as it’s close to Tours, Chateau Villandry, Azay-le-Rideau and Chinon and offers
fantastic biking. The region is known for it’s rich food and tasty cheeses.
Found the ‘Municipal Camping du Lac’
which opened for the season today. 300
sites of which none are occupied, we are the only ones here. The campsite is very boggy with the
unseasonal rains so we are parking on the hard. A recce of the camp lake, Langeais and it’s Medieval Chateau and home late afternoon.
02.06
As we mentioned, the camp is next to a
lake although it’s really more a pond!
The fishermen here though take fishing very seriously and there are
about four groups camped for the weekend.
They have more stuff with them for the weekend than we have for the
whole six months. They have very expensive
rods and rod holders, BBQ’s, tents, reclining chairs and keep nets to hold the
fish. They are dressed in combat gear, gum boots and woolly hats!! All this to catch .... carp!
Market day today as it’s Sunday so a
couple of hours spent wandering through stalls of bread, fish, cheese, garden produce, wines, clothes,
shoes, jewellery... you name it!
Really good fun seeing all the
different produce we’re not accustomed to and being able to sample it all for
free!
03.06
Big day planned today and the weather
obliged by being beautiful! Onto the
‘Voie Verte’ bike path following the Loire for 8kms to Chateau Villandry. One of the last major Renaissance Chateaux to
be built in the Loire Valley, completed in 1756.
This Chateau is known for it’s
glorious landscaped gardens which are some of the finest in France. It didn’t disappoint and we spent a wonderful
few hours walking through the grounds, gardens and the Chateau interior (19
euros for both).
The gardeners were all
hard at work planting the ‘colour’ flowers between the small box hedges. Spring is a little late!
We climbed to the top of the ‘keep’
for a birds eye view of the gardens and surrounding town.
After a quick banana baquette, back on
the bikes to Azay-le-Rideau to look at another Renaissance Chateau described as
one of the Loire’s loveliest. It was
built in the 1500’s on a natural island in the middle of the River Indre. We got there an hour before closing and for 6
euros (for both) we were allowed to stroll it’s grounds.
Once again we were blown away by it’s
beauty. Back to camp by back roads via
Brehemont following the Loire for a day total of 50kms. Surprised to find we now have about 10 new
neighbours! The sun has brought them
out!!
A magic day and a well earned G
& T.
04.06
A day spent wandering around our
lovely local town Langeais and a trip to it’s fantastically preserved medieval
castle Chateau de Langeais. Originally a
fortress built in the 1460’s and with a ruined keep built in 944. It’s also famous for the secret wedding of
Charles V111 and Anne of Brittany in 1491 which united France and
Brittany. It even has a working
drawbridge that is lowered in the mornings and is raised again in the evenings.
05.06
Back on the bikes again today, along
the Loire to yet another beautiful 15th Century Chateau! Chateau d’Usse is believed to be the
inspiration for the fairy tale “Sleeping Beauty” and also for Walt Disneys
“Magic Kingdom”. It’s easy to see why
with it’s white towers and slates roofs jutting out from the Chinon Forest. A picnic along the banks of the River Indre
and sighted a large snake swimming across the river.
35 kms for the day and a little bum
sore and leg tired after all the recent biking! George from Perth joined us for a
coffee in the evening, he has a Euro lease car and a tent.
Starting to get a few cyclists in the
camp now with their tents.
06.06
07.06
A day in the sun, relaxing and reading! Had a fabulous, fun evening with our friends,
Paul and Cynthia, who live in the Loire.
Drinks in the town centre and dinner at a little restaurant with
alfresco eating in a courtyard backing onto the old church. Lots of ambience! We had a great three course meal, ‘Plat du
jour’ for 15 euros – prawns and avocado, steak, frites and salad, coconut
mousse with coffees!
A mental note Pamo: Don’t ask the waiter if the wine has
‘preservatives’ in it. ‘ Preservative’ is French for condom!!
08.06
We gave Lefty a clean and polish on
the outside – he looks very smart!
09.06
We waited for the rain to clear and
started our trip south after lunch. Got
50kms and it started to bucket down so we took shelter in an 'Aires' at
Ste-Maure-de-Touraine, a small town with it’s own small Chateau. Had a walk around and decided to stay for the
night.
10.06
Onward via Chatellerault and into the
Limousin Region, famous for its Medieval Bastides (fortified towns) and pretty
villages.
We followed the ‘La Vienne’ river and
stopped at the village of Bonneuil-Matours for a stroll.
La Vienne looks a great river to
follow a velo!
Onward past Chateau de Toffou and the
fortified town of Chauvigny to an 'Aires'
at our destination of Oradour sur Glane, 21kms NW of Limoges
On the afternoon of the 10th June 1944
(69 years ago today) this town witnessed one of the worst Nazi war crimes
committed on French soil. German lorries belonging to the SS surrounded the town
and forced the population onto the market square. The men were divided into groups and forced
into barns where they were machine-gunned and the barns set alight. Several hundred women and children were
herded into the church and the building was set on fire, along with the rest of
the town. Only one woman and five men
survived the massacre; 642 people,
including 193 children were killed. Since these events the entire village
has been left untouched, complete with tram tracks, pre war electricity lines,
the blackened shells of buildings and the rusting hulks of 1930 cars and
bikes. It was eerie and sombre walking through
what was once a living town and seeing the empty shells of buildings still with
personnel items inside. The church where the women and
children were killed was especially emotional.
Services were being held throughout
the town attended by French Politicians, troops, Gendarmes and family members. We also attended an informative
exposition, which contextualised the massacre using historical exhibitions,
video displays and survivors testimonies. Various theories exist to explain the
event but there may not be any rational explanation. After the war Oradour was rebuilt a few
hundred metres up the road from the ‘Martyrs Village’ but with only one street
name “Rue de 10 Juin”.
11.06
Onward towards our next destination on the Dordogne River.
We
followed the ‘Richard the Lion Heart route’ via Chalus and the Chateau de
Chalus Chabrol, where he met his maker by way of a crossbow in 1199. Next stop for lunch at beautiful
Brantome, ‘The Venice of the Perigord’ with it’s five medieval bridges over the
River Dronne.
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We spent a fun afternoon strolling around the town before continuing on to the Vezere Valley and it’s heart at Les Eyzies de Tayac Sireuil. This Valley is the home of Cro-Magnon man and has the highest concentration of stone age art and underground cave dwellings in Europe. We found a great ‘Aires’ here and decided to stay the night. (5 euros).
12.06
Woke to a sunny day and hiked a 10kms
route through the Valley and along the Dordogne River. A great walk through beautiful countryside,
woodlands, farms and small hamlets. Constant
reminders of early man with the numerous holes carved into the cliffs. We then had only a short hop to our
planned camp at Vitrac Port, 5kms from the village of Domme. As we plan to spend a week or so in this area,
we had high expectations of the camp.
These were fulfilled, a quiet rural camp right on the banks of the
Dordogne with a pool and free wifi.
Our
site overlooks the river 
and we can see the many kayaks making their way down
the river (we actually paddled right passed this camp last year on our day trip
down the Dordogne). Made camp and then
threw ourselves into the river!! Bracing!!
Had a wonderful dinner
on the riverbank.
13.06
Up early for a change and a walk/run
through the pretty back roads close to camp before brekki. Big wash day and internet catch up.
