Less Car, More Life

Mayday on Les Boucles de la Seine

So this happens towards the end of any trip, no matter the length. Your mind starts to be drawn to your next adventure, or in this case, drawn back to our new home in Seattle. And on longer trips, travel and moving about can just wear you down, especially when moving about as we like to do cycle touring. Ok, our accommodation is generally pretty nice…but constantly packing, unpacking, and hand washing clothes is still tiring after 5 weeks.

Heading out of Honfleur with a new plan.

But first dodging the public market in old town, bone rattling cobbles, and a swing bridge. These folks were headed out for a leisurely e-bike jaunt. Trade bikes?

So as a travel planner, it’s important to keep this in mind, as maybe you can do things to diminish the “end of vacation” funk. Of course, we are now retired, so this is A LOT less of an issue than thinking about the projects, presentation, and meetings you had when you get back to the office. Or ramping up your work engagement remotely as you near home. Gotta answer 100s of emails; postpone, divert, and remind everyone you’ll be back next week. Uhg. Don’t miss any of that.

This impressive Pont de Normandie cable-stayed bridge was built in 1995 and spans the mouth to Le Havre on the North (River Droit) side of the river. Luckily, we did not need to cross it today.

Described in forums as the “Second scariest bridge crossing in France!” It’s steep and windy with no bike lane and full of trucks. Apparently there is a shuttle bus you can catch, so if you are heading to Le Harve and Normandy coastal points north, take it! BTW, it turns out we have done the scariest crossing at the mouth of the Loire in 2023, ha!

Starting into a moderate headwind. The Seine is huge here.

Cheryl soon decides this 8km exposed section is better in my slipstream as we have a long day ahead. We also hug the wall for added windbreak.

And we were able to load up at a large E. Leclerc grocery outside of Honfleur which had Cheryl’s favorite Normand yogurt. And Poire (pear) is a close second to Citron Vert.

And of course bike touring has its own challenges, including things you can’t control, like the wind, road closures, and mechanical issues. But sometimes you CAN adjust plans for the winds. I had looked at the forecast as we headed up the Normandy coast in cross/head winds and just as we turned up the Seine towards Paris, the winds would be strong and full onto us from the East. Hmmm.

This dramatic part of the lower Seine is mostly in a designated Nature Park which limits development and I imagine funds thatching for the roofs too.

And soon there were lots of thatched roofs.

So with the headwinds, there was no way we were going to make it the 350 kilometers to Paris on the designated Seine à Vélo route as we had a non refundable reservation there starting May 3rd. So our new goal was simply to get to the City of Rouen, where we could spend a couple of nights and then easily catch one of the frequent trains into Paris. Rouen to Paris on the Seine will have to wait.

Horse country just upslope from the historic floodplain of the Seine on an old bend (boucle) in the river

Then a bit of dull forest, but out of the wind!

This bird watching tower next to some extensive wetlands was the only publicly accessible break spot for about 30km…and mostly out of the wind.

A great way to get your veggies…and goes down easily while touring. Mostly.

My name is Rich, and I swear by Alvalle Gazpacho

And even more tidy thatch. Thatching and repairs must be a big business around here!

So it turns out the irises on top of almost every thatched roof here serve to anchor the clay cap with their dense root systems, absorb excess moisture and prevent rotting. And the iris is closely tied to French heritage, historically recognized as the royal flower of France (fleur-de-lis). Cool.

After some serious 30mph afternoon headwinds, we made to our first (and turns out only!) crossing of the Seine by small ferry boat.

We had 20 minutes to wait, so Cheryl relaxed a bit. 8 straight days without a rest day was wearing us down a bit.

Finally here comes the boat for a quick end ramp load and the 5 minute crossing. The boats run every 20 minutes all day, except for “designated breaks”, when the gap is double that.

**Bacs de Seine** are a “network of 8 free, flat-bottomed passenger and vehicle ferries in Normandy. They operate across the lower loops of the River Seine, offering a charming shortcut and a beloved tradition for locals, cyclists, and drivers”

With remote lodging, you always need to figure out dinner, and it appeared all that was (maybe) open in our little village of Jumièges on Wednesday nights was a take out pizza place, so we bought a few back up supplies

Our amazing Suite at the **Domaine le Clos des Fontaines** in Jumièges. They nicely upgraded us after seeing how tall I was as we were slated for a smaller upper floor room with slanted ceilings.

And yes, dinner was two delicious take out pizzas and some red wine on the patio. Cycle tourists dream.

Jumièges is a lovely little village, especially in the fragrant Spring.

The big attraction in Jumièges is the stunning and atmospheric Abbey ruins.

The Benedictine Monastery dates back to AD 654. After being burnt down and pillaged by the Vikings, it was rebuilt in the 10th and 11th century, expanded in the 16th century and was renowned for its charity to the poor.

It was partially deconstructed for quarry stone after the French Revolution before being a recognized as an important historic site.

But I imagine there have always been Abbey cats.

There is a 500 year old Yew tree in the Cloister and these Scots pines surround the area.

Nice chairs to soak in the gardens and history.

After the abbey, it was nice to have a room fridge and a patio to enjoy, protected from the East winds And then a brisk swim in the pool was a perfect afternoon refresher.

Our second night in Jumièges we were able to enjoy a lovely country dinner at Le Petite Auberge

Packed up and ready to head to Rouen. Very refreshed.

And surprisingly, the little épicerie in Jumièges was open Mayday morning, so we grabbed a few things for lunch.

So May Day is a HUGE holiday in France and we’ve been caught out by it a few times in the past. How huge is this workers holiday? Well the Bacs de la Seine run 364 days a year, so are are only closed on one day. And yup, you guessed it, it’s May Day. I had been thinking about food and restaurants on the holiday, but it did not occur to me that the ferries wouldn’t run at all. We needed two crossings to follow the river route from Jumièges to Rouen, so this way would not be possible.

Since the Bacs were not running on May Day, we had to take an alternate route only on the North bank instead of the planned 55km River route to Rouen. The planner was as a bit frustrated by this, but c’est la vie.

The alternate route did include some nice new rail-trail, and was only an easy 40km.

The Voie Verte Claude Lemesle eventually turned from paved into a dirt track with the rails still in place. Ok, but not ideal as too narrow to pass others without a small diversion.

Turn right before the old rail viaduct and head up the ridge.

After climbing over a big ridge, we descended into one of the older industrial valleys near Rouen. It felt a bit like an English or Welsh coal valley. But we did manage to find the one shady quiet bench for our lunch on this quiet May Day.
(Hint: always try near the Town Hall or Marie)

We opted for a new Hyatt Place up the hill from central Rouen. It was not your suburban USA Hyatt Place, and instead a 2024 green renovation of a 19th century women’s teaching school. Very nice.

And a fantastic secured bike room nicely located and with proper U racks! Nice -:)

The French cities take a while to wake up on the weekends, so still pretty quiet at 9 am as we crossed into the vast old city center of Rouen.

Cheryl actually impressed by Rouen’s famous and ornate cathedral. In her defense we have seen a lot of cathedrals, so it takes some doing to impress her now.

The Rouen Cathedral is magnificent and “famous for its asymmetrical Gothic facade, the 151-meter cast-iron spire (the tallest in France), and as the subject of Claude Monet’s iconic Impressionist paintings”

Rouen was scene to fierce fighting at the end of World War 2.

Franco-German artist Jan Vormann has “repaired” sections of the old courthouse by filling its war scars with colorful Lego bricks.

The legos are a playful but effective illustration of darker times in the heavily bombed industrial areas around Rouen.

The interior courtyard of Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen with the umbrellas of the city exhibition, which was featuring the role of rain in art.

“Horizontal” by Alexander Calder fronts the museum and peaceful adjacent park.

Painting of the Sons of Clovis in Rouen. We had just read about the 12th century legend of the vanquished brothers at the Jumièges Abbey. Tendons cut, they were cast adrift by Queen Mathilde to float down the Seine, yet taken in and looked after for the rest of their days by the Abbey. Cheryl thinks this story and art work are too creepy for words. If it’s true?

And 2 days in larger city like Rouen meant more diverse food, like these delicious momos at Bhumtso, a Tiebetan restaurant.

The Mussée Les Secq Tournelles houses pre-industrial cast iron works in an old cathedral.

Thousands of metal works here, but I was particularly impressed with the amazing lock mechanisms and bespoke keys.

And then tasty Malaysian food for dinner at **Kopitiam**.

Rouen is a lively city and has an extensive grid of old streets and half-timbered buildings, and we enjoyed our 2 nights there. The riverfront was a little disappointing as the city still dedicates it to cars. Hopefully someday they’ll take back some of the space and make some of the dramatic livability improvements that Paris and Lyon have embraced.

Easy ride between rain bursts to Gare de Rouen and a casual clothes day.

Loved the oversized elevators to the platforms.

And then the skies opened up after we were on the platform. Thank you!

No problem loading at the beginning of this TER train run as it started it Rouen, but it was packed by the time we got to its terminus in Paris. Luckily, they were holding the passengers waiting to board from accessing the full platform. This was the end of the two week spring school holidays!

So we made it to Paris, making sure to pick a local train TER that started in Rouen, not a longer distance Nomad train. We also splurged a tad for first class on this short trip as these fancy bi-level train sets have bike access for both 1st and 2nd class. We knew the trains would be very crowded as this was last Sunday heading into Paris at the end of the 2 week school holiday period for the region. And it WAS crowded, but first class less so and a very spacious and nice ride skirting the edges of the last bends of the Seine.

Clear of the busy Gare de Saint Lazare in Paris and ready to ride across one of our favorite cities -:)

Cheryl will finally take us home to Seattle in the next post. Keep riding!

Operation Big Mouth: Normandy Coast to the Seine

It’s morning, we’re packing up to get back on the bikes and I say to Rich, well that wasn’t really a rest day, was it? Rolling rest day, he says. Hmmm… I don’t think riding 50k, even without our panniers, counts as a rest day.

Riding out of Bayeux and back to the coast.

The remains of “Churchill’s floating harbor” built with mulberries constructed in England and towed across the Channel. Arromanches-les-Bains

Riding in Normandy in April is a bit of weather gamble. We really lucked out with sunshine and wind. It easily could have been rain and wind. Happy hikers going by.

The fearless leader. Enjoy this day, he is saying, the weather change is approaching.

I tell Rich his credibility with the road cyclists who zoom by is destroyed when they see my pink sweater and straw hat helmet cover.

The gorgeous stretch of beach at Arromanches-les-Bains.

A remnant of a Phoenix Caisson, still helping to shelter the harbor.

This was an incredibly strategic site. The floating harbor allowed resources to supply the Allies to come ashore and advance. The port became totally operational by the beginning of July 1944.

Above town at the memorial to the British Troops a statue of WW2 veteran and survivor 97 year-old Bill Pendell MD looking back at himself as a 22 year-old landing on the beaches 75 years earlier.

“I’ll never forget the majestic armada of ships.” Each plinth is engraved with a quote or memory of a veteran or civilian. Cue me crying about the British Troops. It’s an amazingly moving and humbling experience to witness the sites of such self sacrifice.

The sun is indeed shining, and the partial headwind is a-blowing.

The route took us inland a bit where we found a somewhat sheltered picnic table for a lunch stop.

We’re along the stretch of coast where the Canadian troops came ashore. Now I weep for the Canadians.

A tank which had been buried in the sand for 32 years, exhumed and on display.

The Canadian army in 1944 numbered about half a million men, five-sixths of whom had volunteered for overseas service. Apparently the German troops, many of whom at this point were very young and conscripted, especially feared the determination of the Canadian forces.

“This house was liberated at first light on D-Day on June 6, 1944, by the men of The Queens Own Rifles of Canada who were the first Canadians to land on this beach. lt may very well have been the first house on French soil liberated by seaborne Allied Forces. Within sight of this house over 100 men of The Queen’s Own Rifles were killed or wounded, in the first few minutes of the landings.”

Bassin Joinville. Not a particularly quaint place, so we pedal on.

Ouistreham, where big ferries arrive. We’ve ridden this stretch before when we took a ferry from the UK a few years ago.

Hey other countries, look at what France does for cyclists at a ferry terminal! Nice wide protected bike lane. Hint hint.

Getting closer to the end of our 64k windy day. Just need to detour around the Canal de Caen and the Orne River. Tailwind heading inland, headwind heading back to the coast.

Distraction in the form of a really cool driftwood fence. Love this.

Phew! Made it to Merville-Franceville-Plage. Across the river from the very busy Ouistreham.

Dinner at the delicious L’Atrium Cuisine locale.

My mindblowingly good starter. An egg somehow poached and fried in a crisp coating, nestled in hay cream, sautéed leeks, and bacon.

Sunset stroll to walk off our delicious dinner.

Gentle and cute signage: “You’ve got the look Hippo, Hippo, you’ve got the look.
In the center of Merville-Franceville, we dress [BARE TORSOS PROHIBITED].
Thank you!”

“On this beach, our children breathe in the fresh sea air, not smoke!
NO SMOKING BEACH.”

The weather has changed a bit the next morning, now it’s overcast, and a little chilly, but don’t worry – still windy! Even more windy. I know, why am I even a little surprised at a windy coast?

Our bikes at the ready on Plage de Cabourg. 65k to Honflour and the mouth of the Seine.

What do I do when it’s a headwind? Draft off the Wall of Rich. Yes, I am usually closer to his back wheel but it’s risky when taking photos. I don’t want to be the cause of our mini peloton crash.

Houlgate. A path for walkers and runners, train tracks, bike lane, and car lanes.

I’d call this style of architecture Industrial Gothic. Striking.

It took a bit of a search to find this lunch bench. River on one side.

Not every kilometer is super happy fun bike infrastructure, although a climb with decent pavement, a shoulder, and a steady incline isn’t the worst. We headed inland on the main cycle route but then deviated a bit to shorten the route and head into a more protected valley to Homfleur.

On the outskirts of Honfluer. Grey Gardens mansion with sheep. I couldn’t help but think that in Ireland or the UK the sheep would have found a way into the house and be peering at us from the windows.

A stop for a map check. Rich is trying to get us to our hotel with as little climbing as possible.

Oh yes, there will be cobblestones at the end of the ride.

A beautiful harbor, Vieux Bassin, and so many happy tourists, including us. It’s ringed by narrow tile fronted buildings and is very picturesque.

Some of the small streets felt like a movie set with well preserved old buildings.

Old buildings come with challenges. Our harbor front stroll was cut short by plywood walls, blocking access from both sides.

And blocking direct access to our hotel. The building with construction wrap is trying to fall down. The city is trying to stop the fall.

Floors separating from walls, support beams no longer doing the load bearing work – it was a mess. And threatening to fall and take down other buildings.

An abundance of caution meant an entire plaza and multiple shops and flats were closed to all foot and car traffic.And had been for almost a year! The engineer guessed that the big construction machine is doing some sort of pile driving or grout injection. Let’s hope it works.

We will enjoy our evening wine far from the potential collapse zone.

Packed in the morning and ready to load up and ride.

The fenced off safety zone made for a nice car free street. Historical romance film ready.

Let’s do this. Heading off to ride the Seine towards Paris.

So here we are. The mouth of the Seine. Ride the river to Paris. That sounds easy. River, flat, pretty. Where’s the challenge there?

To Bayeux and Omaha Beach by bike.

A few years ago in Caen we visited the memorial museum which has a fantastic display on D-Day. Timing, tide considerations, logistics, artifacts, and all really well done. But to see the actual sites where the Allies landed was something we knew we had to do.

Leaving Caen on yet another well marked bike lane.

Fresh bike path. Rich was worried that we would be riding on the street. We were not.

Really Komoot? This is a route you recommend?

Leave the gates as you find them. Closed. We think, uh, know, that we were on the wrong road. There was a dirt path a bit off to the side.

What a gorgeous day. The fields of oilseed rape are so bright.

It didn’t take long for us to find some history. The smallest war cemetery in Normandy?

From the info sign: Isolated in the countryside, it is one of the smallest cemeteries in Normandy; the Cross of Sacrifice emerges from wheat fields in summer. 117 soldiers are buried there, 98 British and 1 unidentified, as well as 18 Germans. The men buried here were killed during the first two weeks of combat after the landing west of Caen, among them many soldiers from the 43rd Wessex Infantry Division. Originally, Canadians were also resting in this place, they were then transferred to the cemetery Bény-sur-Mer Reviers. The youngest fighter named in the Register of the Dead was only 17 years old.

Fields on three sides. A very peaceful place when we stopped by.

These unknown soldier grave markers really make me sad.

Me starting to realize how emotional this part of the trip will be.

A lunch stop at the church in Moulins-en-Bessin.

A new favorite treat, *Diplomate au Bavarois.* Brioche bread, egg custard, and dried fruit. Delicious!

The fields of flax were blooming and buzzing with bees.

I wish I could add the noise of the bees!

And made it to Bayeux. A bit of a tourist shock after all our time in Finistère. Bayeux was the first city to be liberated on the 7th of June, by British troops with minimal resistance.

Beautiful half timbered buildings.
“The buildings in Bayeux were virtually untouched during the Battle of Normandy, the German forces being fully involved in defending Caen from the Allies.”

Bayeux wins the round-about plantings contest as far as I’m concerned. Knights on hedge and grass horses.

I will always stop to photograph a waterwheel. Always.

Our hotel, Domaine de Bayeux. We were in a lovely modern addition, this photo is taken from our front door.

We spent two nights in Bayeux so we could ride out to Omaha without our bags as leaving all our gear in a parking area often stops us from heading into sights.

I’m immediately picturing the Allied troops on the narrow lanes.

Château de Maisons. During the Second World War, the château housed German General Staff of the Coastal Sector. On 8 June 1944, the commune was liberated by English troops.

And I’m seeing landscapes through the eyes of young American troops. It must have been so frightening and looked so unlike where most came from.

I don’t have a lot of photos of the American Cemetery. The visitor center is so very well done, films of events of the day, stories of individual people both military and civilian, details of what they carried and how they survived or did not. Quotes from family who chose to bury their dead in France instead of back in the US. I started crying quite quickly.

It was nice to see so many people of so many nationalities visiting.

And yes, there is good bike parking at the cemetery. Quite a few bikes too.

Another Komoot short cut down to the stretch of Omaha Beach.

A very muddy trail/creek to make you focus on the here and now.

Happy to be on dry trail and in the sunshine.

Photos and information signs at Omaha Beach.These anti-landing craft installations were called Czech hedgehogs.

Where the different countries landed their troops.

We stopped to read every sign. The beaches were so heavily fortified with anti-tank and anti-landing devices.

We were visiting on a Sunday with beautiful weather, so there were loads of folks out and about, and camper vans parked up along the beach. It’s all a bit incongruous to the very powerful history, but it’s a lovely stretch of coast and deserves to be enjoyed.

In memory of the ‘sons, husbands and fathers, who endangered and often sacrificed their lives in the hope of freeing the French people’. By Anilore Banon.

Since we are having what Rich calls a “rolling rest day”, we also have a cafe lunch.

The first landing strip. Constructed on the 8th and 9th of June directly behind Omaha Beach the airstrip was one of the first to become operational with the first sanitary Dakota landing at 6pm on D+3.

The village where the cemetery and Omaha Beach are located.

Large scale photos on the walls of the village.

It’s hard to imagine what the locals felt when the American GIs showed up. After four years of occupation and hearing rumors of a landing, to have the men who made it off the beach arrive in town – they must have seemed otherworldly. A bunch of healthy well fed soldiers.

More examples of anti-landing craft and anti-tank installations.

It’s helpful to be able to stand next to a tank to get the scale of it.

The bike and hiking path has stunning views.

Down the hill into Port-en-Bessin-Huppain.

The clouds are coming in as we head back to Bayeux.

As heavy as the history of the day was, we were happy to be riding and felt so light without our panniers.

And the new bike way back to Bayeux was so impressive.

It had obviously been recently created by acquiring strips of land from farms along the way.

We couldn’t help but marvel at what a big lift it must have been to stitch together an off the road bike path for so many miles. The coordination between municipalities and land owners had to have taken years. The bureaucrat in me wants to know, but my googling has not paid off with any details. Yet.

Back to Bayeux and the knights on the traffic circle.

Time to calm down with a stroll around town.

The Bayeux cathedral spire peeking out from behind a row of buildings.

A most gorgeous plane tree. Also called a London Plane tree, a close cousin to the American Sycamore tree. Cathedral added for scale. Arbre de la Liberté.

Look at that tree trunk. Planted in 1797, as were many Liberty trees in the aftermath of the French Revolution this one is 30 meters or 98 feet tall.

Ready for a good night’s sleep and then back on the bikes to continue east along the beaches of Normandy.

Tomorrow as we head off I will realize that my “rest day” in Bayeux actually involved cycling over 50 somewhat hilly kilometers and was quite emotionally draining. But we have more history to cycle through, so off we’ll go!

Rennes to Caen on La Vélo Francette

So Rennes wasn’t really a city on our must-see short list and probably isn’t on yours either. It’s the largest city in Normandy with 230,000 inhabitants and sits at the confluence of the Vilaine River and the Ille et Rance Canal. It’s the only major city in the region not on an estuary and also a major train hub for eastern Brittany.

Despite a major fire in 1720, much of Rennes core survives with half-timbered buildings and “newer” buildings of granite and tufts stone

Since it is a key train hub, we had to transfer in Rennes to head further east, so we decided to take a rest day to explore it. We enjoyed it’s vast commercial core, which is buzzing with people, very walkable, and has a wide variety of restaurants and shops. Nice trams too of course. The city is a little short on sights, but we managed to easily amuse ourselves for the day.

Typical sloping half-timbered building with signature Bretagne slate tiles.

I liked this impressive stone sculpture at the Palais Saint George.

The free entry Musée des Beaux arts has a nice collection of art spanning from medieval to modern, including a few Cailbottes.

One perk of bigger cities with lots of young folks is of course the variety of restaurants. This friendly Lebanese Cafe, Jeddo, served delicious small
plates and Man’Ouché, a thin crepe like wrap with a variety of fillings.

Rennes core has an intriguing and organic mix of buildings from all eras.

We found a friendly pub near our hotel that had a British amber on hand pulled draft! It was so good and so rare to find in France. We went back the second evening too. Of course the wine was good.

So from Rennes our next goal was to get northeast to the Normandy coast to explore the countryside and see some of the extensive World War II history. But the winds were blowing strongly from the east for 3 days, so we decided to take a train hop east from Rennes to Laval and take the Velo Francette route due North. Inland areas can be protected from the wind (sometimes!) and we’d mostly have cross winds as we cycled. With the unfavorable winds, we had to be clever and I was glad for our flexibility without advanced bookings. Sure we could press into the east wind, but the stretch from Rennes to Laval was not particularly interesting, and we’d burn a few days that we could spend elsewhere.

Heading a few blocks back to the Rennes Train Station on a direct and separated bike route. The Dutch would even approve.

The very cool Architecture of the Rennes Train Station, It was a expanded with the new design by AREP (not Arup!) in 2019 and the clever plaza in 2024. It had form and functîon as you could access all the platforms below by large ramps or the upper station area by clever switchback ramps. Fantastic for bikes and all mobility.

We were early for our train so lots of time to explore and take photos.

And see public art like this intriguing sculpture of a mythical horse Morvach and its reflection in water, by Jean-Marie Appriou.

Our short train ride to Laval, was uncrowded and had nicely designed bike hooks; just 3 in each car unlike the opposing 6 (3×3) hook design on other trains in Brittany that can make getting your bike out really challenging.

Cycling along the Mayenne River from Laval nicely protected from the winds howling from the East.

La Vélo Francette runs 640km from the Atlantic at La Rochelle to the English Channel at Ouistreham. It’s supposed to be “gentle France”, and was mostly.

Not too busy on this remote section of La Vélo Francette from Laval to Mayenne.

Some beautiful private residences (Mini Chateau?) along the river.

Remnants of past industry at weirs as the Mayenne river is navigable by locks.

Are we there yet? This short 40k afternoon ride post train ride was mostly flat but more challenging than expected as about half was on rough track with rocks and sand in places. This was a smooth part…

Mayenne is definitely off the tourist track but does have a cool Medieval Chateau and museum above the river. We missed the museum’s short hours on our overnight stay.

We liked its authentic warren of medieval streets and buildings built into the hill around the Chateau.

The Grand Hotel De Mayenne is highly recommended as the owner is super bike friendly and even offers bike washing provisions! And the restaurant had delicious food and is a local draw.

The great experience you get on a long distance cycle route is the variety of local segments. Sometimes you’re on very popular (and likely more scenic) stretch with lots of people and other times (such as Mayenne to Flers, and Flers to the La Suisse Normande) you are basically on your own. But some of the most scenic areas were in little valley and roads in between and we really enjoyed the whole 3 days on the route to Caen. And of course you get to stay in little off the beaten track towns like Mayenne.

Mayenne did not escape bombing in the summer of 1944, but was finally liberated by the Allies of August 5th.

This section of rail trail near Mayenne was nice.

A rail bridge with a story. That man riding away explained to us (in French) that his mother was here when this bridge was bombed and the Nazis were retreating in 1944. The legacy of the war is certainly still current in the local lore.

Never say no to a bench break if in doubt as the next one might be 10 or 20km away.

And there are always local branch routes and loops to explore if you are not on the long distance plan.

Very calm and bucolic along La Vélo Francette.

Not sure what exactly this sign was referencing (sub commune/farmlette?) but I like it.

Our route (43) crossed another major long distance path to Paris at Domfort, The Scenie (40) was 340km SE to Paris. Hmmm, next time.

Spring flowers and scents filled the gentle air.

Long stretch without a bench and this one is in the sun and has no back….onwards to Flers

Flers offered the best lodging option between Mayenne and Caen, but wasn’t our favorite town. No nice plaza and cars even ruled the core. Even the main access to this nice Chateau and park (the one sight) was a street with single file sidewalks and speeding traffic. They could do more and generally do elsewhere in France.

But a tasty Indian Restaurant in Flers did stimulate our taste buds.

After Mayenne, we headed about 70km north to Flers and a small Best Western hotel. (Yup, reliable and usually bike friendly in Europe) We were off the designated Francette route for 30km or so heading out of Flers but following other small bike routes on quiet and hilly back roads and valleys. And as soon as we turned off the main road out of Flers, we were again struck by the ubiquitous memorials and stories of WWII. Flers was liberated by the British and Canadians in 1944 who had landed at Juno Beach. As you ride, you work back through time of the Allies liberation trek from the beaches.

This was a beautiful tree commemorating British troops.

And this very appropriate wooden memorial to the Canadian liberators.

Cheryl loves paths and old gates. We did not go this way.

Still off the Francette, we dropped into the lovely Vére River valley a truly middle of nowhere feeling.

Well, nice except for a bunch of gravel trucks. But they were respectful and all heading to a massive sand and gravel quarry off the road.

And of course the prospect of otters always excites Cheryl. We did not see any otters crossing as probably too late in the morning. “Do not run over me!”

This old bridge wall was the only place to sit for our coffee and tea break in this remote valley.

And this abandoned rail viaduct is an undeveloped part of the Suisse Normande greenway we were headed to. But first over a very steep hill. Perhaps they’ll open the tunnel soon as they keep expanding Voie Verts all over France.

And then briefly onto a part of another Calvados route, Le Verdoyante.

As we descend the steep road down the other side of the climb, we see an open Cidererie and stop to taste and buy a few small bottles for the road. Delicious and tart.

And alas, onto the Suisse Normande voie verte for the last 41km to Caen.

The beginning of the Suisse Normande route is beautiful with viaducts frequently crossing the River Orne.

One of the rail tracks is still in place next to the trail as this section was historically a dual track system.

The trail is festooned with whimsical cartoons by Heula, a collaboration of the Normande designer Sylvain Guichard-Bichicchi with information and humor.

Our picnic with local Normand goodies, including the cider from Cave de la Loterie.

And these Calvados filled chocolates will probably put you over the legal limit as they are strong!

Oh, in case you wondered what department of France we were in.

Getting closer…but it’s getting flatter and a little less interesting.

Oh, another lovely bridge over the Orne.

A very informative sign about the historic iron ore mining in the area.

Lots of recreation on the river, including kayaking and even rail bikes!

We finally rolled into Caen on a warm Saturday afternoon, and the old city and core was packed with people. Even though it was legal to bike on the streets in old town, we often had to walk our bike through the throngs of people. Caen is a nice little city with a castle and the unmissable Memorial de Caen museum we visited on a past trip. So this visit was just a quick overnight on the way to our next destination and the Normandy coast.

It was time for snails. Starting my initial fight with the escargot, but these guys were tough as pretty deep in their shells.

So forget the tongs, just hold the shell in your hand and use the fork. And then the sanitizing wipe when done. But delicious with plenty of garlic and basil.

Leaving the glamorous back parking area of our hotel in Caen and headed west.

We like to see big sights sometimes and the famous cities and villages are popular for a reason, but to us the deep memories of our bike touring adventures are in the small places in between. It’s a travel cliché, but so much more true for bike tourists. And we get so used to being away from other tourists that it is a bit of a shock when we re-enter the more trodden tourist-sphere. And so our next destination after Caen is on the heavy tourist map, as it is a perfect gateway to the miles of history along the DDay coast. But I’ll leave this for Cheryl and another day.

There will be wind. Morlaix, Locquirec, and a train hop to Rennes.

As we ride into Morlaix we are on day 21 of our cycling trip and I have one of those “where are we now?” moments. We’ve had some rest days when we weren’t cycling but at this point I do forgive myself for losing track of where we are and how many days in. Although every day brings new sights and ideas to ponder, the mechanics become routine. The unpacking and packing, the visits to grocery stores to get lunch food. Washing out the days’ cycling gear and hoping it will dry by morning. We each have two pairs of bike shorts and two jerseys but it’s nice not to have pack damp shorts and try to remember to dry them during lunch breaks.

Morlaix is a tidal river that becomes almost completely dry at low tide, but a lock keeps the marina full of water.

Riding into Morlaix. The viaduct above was built in 1865 and carries trains. It was only mildly damaged in 1943 bombing and repaired.

Our view back down to town from our little apartment for the night. It was in a retirement community above the downtown and was a nice opportunity to cook our own dinner.

It’s funny how we can get a quick sense of a place, either good or bad, just from the ride in in the evening. Both of us were not thrilled with the one way traffic flow and the aggressive drivers in Morlaix, and as we rode out the next morning we both said “Buh bye!”. It hadn’t felt very friendly. But then, as we were about to follow the Koomot route out of town up a hill off the flat river route, a roadie cyclist called out to us and circled back to explain that we should stay on the flat route since it was Sunday and so there was not much car traffic. Oh, and it was prettier too. That one interaction made us both feel better about the town. Yay nice cyclists.

A very calm and still morning. The wind is waiting around the corner at the coast.

In our travel relationship Rich is the planner. We hear from other travel couples that having one planner and one not planner, one follower, or, as we recently heard it described, one passenger princess, works out well for most couples. Passenger princess. I guess that’s me. I’m not a princess type, more a low maintenance sensible shoes kinda gal, but I do get some pretty good travel treatment from Rich. Which I acknowledge and appreciate.

First coffee break at the mouth of the river.

We’re sharing a route with GR34, a long distance hiking route.

And with lots of sheep. Lambing season means lots of vocalizing between moms and lambs.

A pause near Plougasnou to enjoy the view.

Remind all of our Yankee friends of New England?

Who’s still in love with the stone buildings? Me.

What do you do with an old boat? Beach it near town and let it become picturesque.

A new favorite yogurt flavor contender. Mandarin lime. Yum.

This is why it can take us so long to get anywhere- stopping to take pictures of a sweet gate.

I call this pose: ¿Quién es más macho? Me, who rode up this steep hill under my own power loaded with bags, or the folks who drove up? Me! The answer is me! Ha! Could a princess do this?

Amused and tolerant husband. Whatever gets her through the day, right?

Shall we try the newly updated route that takes us up a dead end road? Yes!

Orchis mascula, the early-purple orchid.

Primroses. Loads of them blooming all over the place.

Bluebells. Yes, Rich is waiting for me up ahead somewhere. Total princess behavior to keep him waiting.

Churches are always a good bet for a shady stop.

Almost to Locquirec. It’s sunny but a good wind blowing. Headwind.

Our lovely room with a view of the low tide and so water free harbor. We’re excited to get to watch the tide come in.

It was a sunny Sunday so folks were out on the beach. Waiting for the tide to bring the sea closer to them.

The tide moves in so quickly! We forgot to check while we unpacked, showered, washed cycling gear, and when we turned back not long after this photo the water was all the way in!

Dinner at our Hôtel restaurant du port locquirec. I’m always happy to have a little pichet of white wine. Definitely a princess demand.

After dinner walk and a high tide harbor.

Fishing off the pier now that there’s water out there.

The hotel we didn’t stay at. Cute but overpriced.

Lace-cap hydrangeas in front of the church.

Sunrise. We got up to open the window at about midnight and were so pleased to see that the town takes the dark skies initiative very seriously. Those few red lights you can see were literally the only lights on overnight.

White sand and blue water. And headwind.

Riding a short stretch of rail trail that helpfully keeps you off a hill.

My view when it’s windy. Rich slows down a bit and I tuck in behind. Only the best drafting for the PP (passenger princess).

I always feel sorry for cyclists who haven’t gotten to ride behind The Wall of Rich into a headwind. Between his tall body and big bike frame and four wind blocking panniers it’s a pretty darn sweet slipstream. It’s not easy being the one pulling up front.

Église Saint-Théodore in Tréduder. I had to change my helmet cover due to the wind.

In someone’s garden in Lanvellec. Cute cute cute.

Another church, in Lenvellec still. We’re actually headed to a train to hop into Rennes. I wasn’t up for two days of riding into the strong headwind.

Arrived in Plouaret where we will catch a train. Another cycle touring special lunch: chicken slice, laughing cow cheese, and Breton butter chips. Roll it up. Cycle touring burrito.

It can be a bit stressful trying to make it to a specific train mid day, but we arrived with plenty of time.

Our Ter, or local train. Usually two bike cars per train are helpfully marked.

We both absolutely loved the train station in Rennes. The station was redesigned in 2019 with the new cloud like structure.

Our stays across Britanny. The upper right heart is Rennes.

Rich will pick up the next post with our rest day in Rennes and on to Caen. Happy pedaling!

Quimper, Brest, Roscoff. Following the wind to the English Channel.

Where were we? Quimper. Another one of those amazing French cities where we get to be the only American tourists. As far as we can tell, anyway. One of the best things about visiting non A list sights is how friendly and nice and patient the locals are with tourists. A nice city for a rest day after a cranky ride from our last stop. You never know when the moodiness will hit. Sometimes it’s obvious, long ride in the rain or wind, sometimes it’s just bad luck of the day. Quimper was definitely an antidote to travel moodiness.

Le Steir, a canal off the Odet River in Quimper. That turret is part of the old wall of the city.

So many half timbered buildings in Quimper.

Beautiful old wooden carved figures still adorn some of the buildings.

Examples of different Breton regional wear in the Breton County Museum .

We saw depictions of this ceremonial hat in carvings, paintings, and even stone as we rode the countryside of Finistère. Apparently it is a fairly recent adaptation from the early 1900s.

It’s easy as a tourist to focus only on the quaint history of a place and forget to look at the modern life. Yes, this is our fun vacation, but people live their modern complicated lives here as everywhere.

Smurf beating up Mickey while Mario … watches? Tries to stop them?

Cubist cool French woman with ubiquitous vape?

As usual a rest day involves taking care of business. This stop in Quimper allowed us to have our front hydraulic brakes looked after. The kind man in this shop installed new pads and rotors on both of our front wheels. Good timing as Rich’s really needed replacing. A big Rich plus a loaded bike means serious wear and tear on the brakes.

We rode the bikes over in the morning and got them back that evening. Phew!

Rich searched on line and picked a shop fairly close to our hotel that specialized in pretty high end mountain and gravel bikes. And of course e-bikes.

And I did some laundry! Fun fact, both laundromats I’ve been to include the laundry detergent. Lessive Incluse. I was worried it might be scented but didn’t notice any strong smell so all was good.

It was a bit rainy/misty/mizzly during our time in Quimper, which was fine since I’d rather walk around and have a rest day in the rain than ride in it.

Tucked up in a cozy crêperie drinking
La bolée de cidre.

Still catching the spring blooms in parks.

Then where did we go? We headed out to Brest after two nights in Quimper. It was still raining lightly but since the route from Quimper to Brest isn’t completely bike friendly, as we were warned by on line resources and a fellow cyclist we met waiting for the train, we rode a fairly short ride to Châteaulin, 26k/16 miles but with 480m/1600ft of climbing. There we would catch a quick train to Brest, as the V45 route that traverses most of the Finistère coast had a gap here. It’s one of the few places we’ve encountered in France that has no bike routes marked and online forums confirmed parts of the route were on steep and often busy roads. No thanks.

Quéménéven chapel. The color of the granite stones continues to fascinate me. Worn from sea wind and rain, speckled with lichen and moss, but not blackened by city pollution, they have a unique look.

Climbing the final ridge to Châteaulin. Two things cheer me up on this damp climb: 1) I know wind turbines are always at the crest of a mountain or hill, and 2) The way the turbines are facing means we have a tailwind.

Some curious horses and the storm being pushed our way by that lovely tailwind.

Top of the climb! And still a tailwind. The rain is chasing us.

Châteaulin. L’ Aulne River and some more pretty flowers. Yes! We’re getting on a train now! Not so fast, says Rich, the train station is up a decent sized climb above the river.

And relaxing on our well timed train ride as the storm caught us and started pouring down rain.

By the time we got to Brest, about an hour and a half later, the sun was out and who cares about the wind when your hotel is only about 500 meters from the train station? Brest has been a ship building and important military port and harbor since the 1600s. It served as a crucial embarkation point in WW1. Thousands of US troops came through Brest heading to the front lines. And WW2 saw Germans use it for submarine and ship docking and repair. Which made it an important target for Allied forces to destroy. Only a tiny number of buildings were left standing after 1944’s Battle for Brest.

On arrival we pedal out of the Brest train station on a lovely bike lane. Look at that beautiful tram.

I lobbied for a rest day in Brest to visit the Musée National de la Marine. 400 years of navel history in a castle! It was supposed to be open the Thursday we were there. It was not. Extraordinary closure. That face says, I plan and I plan, and still.

Denied the Military Museum we had to take a deeper dive into Brest attractions.

Off we went to Tour Tanguy museum. Which turned out to be a charming museum.

It’s full of dioramas of old Brest, pre 1939. all created by a local artist
Jim-E. Sévellec.
(1897 – 1971)

Each has detailed information on what you are seeing, in French and English.

The dioramas show and tell the story of Brest and helps you realize what got destroyed .

But as we explore the city more, we are reminded what hardy and innovative people the Bretons are. Here is the Téléphérique De Brest, which crosses the Penfeld River harbor area.

Riding the Téléphérique back across the harbor.

This mural does not lie about the blue water and white sands of Finistère. And yes, there have been cats too!

What a great storefront celebrating the sights of Brest.

Even though the Maritime Museum was closed, we still had a good rest day in Brest. The city is different than the rest of Finistère. Wider streets and more car traffic due to post war rebuilding. No half timbered buildings as we’ve admired in other Breton Cities. But nice tram lines and good bikeways, as we’ve come to expect from French cities. In fact, our ride out of Brest was one of the more pleasant rides leaving a city.

Bike path, tram tracks, sidewalks. I think there is a car lane far left.

Now that’s a protected bike lane. The bikes get to do what cars do, cross a valley on a road. When I see something like this I say with envy “Oh France.”

And another bike ped bridge saving us from a down and up.

Reading some WW2 history and the resistance in Gouesnou, not far out of Brest.

Well designed and comfortable bike paths are very welcome on this day since we have 85k to ride to Roscoff, and the English Channel to greet. We’ll finally be leaving the Bay of Biscay.

On days of long rides it’s best to eat early and often. Our favorite Gazpacho flavor, cucumber and mint.

Champagne gravel. Such a pretty path. Such blue skies.

Fields of shallots. It took us a minute to remember what they are called so from now on we will call them scallywags.

The style of chapels and steeples in this region is called Pont-Croix school style. Nothing exists to document if this style was the work of one architect or a guild of workers versed in specific techniques. The steeples look noticeably airy and with distinct buttresses.

The English Channel! I texted this photo to a friend in Wales “We’re waving to you!”

Made it to the Channel. Plouescat and the dramatic rocks of a low tide.

Now get back on that bike and keep pedaling.

Another stop for food. I think this is our third lunch.

The fearless tour leader. Successfully getting his one client (me) through a long day.

The port of Roscoff was more charming than we anticipated. The big ferries from Ireland and England stop a bit further north, saving the historic harbor from the deluge of cars and trucks.

Some of my favorite things: pretty gate, blue shutters, and a well behaved gull being picturesque.

It can be difficult to tell if buildings are inhabited. Shutters in disrepair, but curtains in the lower window.

Rolling out of Roscoff the next day. Église Notre-Dame de Croaz-Batz behind me. Headed to Morlaix.

Église Notre-Dame de Croaz-Batz has a very unusual and distinctive steeple.

We had been joking about not seeing high tides as we always seemed to leave harbor towns at low tide. Finally – a high tide!

We’ve ridden a lot of places. I can be forgiven for sometimes forgetting for a moment where we are. In this lane I looked up at Rich and thought- Wait, are we in Wales? The narrow lane up a hill brought back strong memories of Pembrokeshire.

But this allée of trees says France to me.

And I will definitely remember the coast of Finistère.

The marked cycle route took us down along a boat ramp which made for a perfect break spot.

Our much loved and well ridden Koga World Traveler S bikes. Taking yet another break in Penzé.

A picnic table! Perfectly timed for lunch.

Next post will continue the ride to Morlaix and on.

Mood Swings in Finistère

Getting sick while traveling. It’s inevitable, especially when eating and staying in so many different places. And when you are sick bike touring, it can feel particularly dark.

Just one of the risks of bike touring. Big wind, tides, and storms are part of life in Finistère, the westernmost department in France.

Taking a walk along the bluff south of the hotel. Feeling a bit better after 24 hours…

Leaving the lovely Les Sables Blanches Hotel where I spent the better part of 36 hours in bed with a lovely ocean view as my body recovered from a stomach bug. It could have been worse-:)

The coast around Concarneau is part of the famous
GR34 long distance walking route, which covers an incredible 2000km along the coast of Brittany. Much of our coastal bike route ( V45) covers the same zones, but not always as close to the sea.

You generally don’t know where you caught a specific ick, but this time we definitely have our suspicions. The lovely Chambre D’hôte we stayed at in Josselin had two visiting grandchildren, both of whom served us multiple courses by hand at breakfast. It was very cute, (and I guess France has more lax labor laws allowing 3 and 5 years olds to work!) but as we left, we were told the younger one had a stomach bug so was staying home from school…oh? It will be fine, since we’re tough.

First meal after a stomach ick is always the exciting and a bit daunting.

Well, luckily it’s 36 hour incubation period got me perfectly through our final two pleasant days of cycling as we headed to the coast. But then I got hit hard by a stomach flu type illness and I missed 4 meals, with a day of rest, saltines, hydration tablets and watered down apple juice. It always amazes me how strong our bodies are, until they aren’t.

Cheryl loving the unique designs of every cidre “coupée” in Brittany, and the fact we were eating together again.

Cheryl’s pick with spring white asparagus and even some greens!

My choice of classic emmental, egg, and a touch of andouille sausage went down ok (and stayed down, yea!).

But luckily the worst resolved fast and we were able to enjoy a lot more of our second day in Concarneau. But it would linger in my system for a few days more, making everything a bit tougher. And I suspect Cheryl also had a milder case, but she will never admit it. But ha, as we’ve been travelling together for almost 5 years straight, I know -;) She was slower too for a number of days. I know.

Cheryl ready to explore the walled city of Concarneau

So one expat somewhere recently commented to me about Concarneau with “Well, the French seem to like it”. Now I kind of get it. It’s pretty from above and famous in France, but super touristy and honestly, a little Disneyland like with a crammed single street of tourist shops inside the walled city. And the adjacent town itself is also fairly plain and lacking in character, with a frustrating layout of unimproved streets with narrow sidewalks. Not really much charm, but the coast and area surrounding Concarneau are beautiful. If you travel about Brittany, you will experience 100 more scenic and authentic places, maybe in a single day.

I’m ready to walk after a day in bed, and the lunchtime crowds are thin.

You can walk the ramparts for free now as there used to be a fee, but I suspect too many people complained, as it’s a bit overrated, even when you explore at peak French lunchtime (12:30-1:30), a great travel hack anywhere in France.

The ramparts take you behind the Main Street and restaurants, complete with Medieval plastic skylights and vents and exhausting fried food smell….

Ok, I’m a bit crazy as my second meal recovering was a fairly spicy Thai curry. But it tasted so good. That look from Cheryl is “Are you sure about this?”

Meeting this friendly cycle tourist Lukas leaving our second hotel in Concarneau cheered me up. He is Czech but lives in Italy and is currently circumnavigating the European Coasts to raise awareness for organ donorship. @ Wild.lukaas . The owner of our hotel had comped him a room and we gave him a little dinner money too -:)

So to facilitate another rest day and allow us to explore the walled city, we moved just 800m down the road, as unfortunately our lovely sea view room hotel at Les Sables Blanches was booked up for Friday night. But the other hotel was just fine and actually had a decent view, kind staff, and nice covered pool that had just opened for the season (most are covered here as it’s never that warm!). So we walked quite a bit, took a refreshing swim, and I even managed two meals successfully. So I was really looking forward to getting back on the bikes.

Swerving a bit to get up a 15-20% slope. I would pay for this early effort.

Cheryl more sensibly hiking her bike up the same long grade out of Concarneau.

But despite being only a mere 35k from Concarneau to Benodet, and starting out feeling pretty good, my body started to revolt at about km20, as I realized that I still wasn’t really recovered and my body was not producing normal energy. I could eat, but it would take a few more days to get back fully to normal.

I was still on the mend, but the Boulangerie stop is still essential.

The route swerved and weaved from dirt to pavement through a beautiful stretch of the Finistère coast.

Every turn was a new view and perspective on this jagged coast.

A lovely stretch of coast near Near Cap Coz. Here they did exactly the street treatment that Concarneau needed. Turn the two lane road road one way, and make a wide bike and walking space.

Then through marshy backwaters with a ton of birdlife. (Cheryl’s intense look BTW)

My intense look as the face actually matches how I felt… crampy and weak…but it was beautiful.

It went from sun to wind to rain to all at once every 10 minutes or so. The weather can be crazy here at the ends of the continent.

So as we approached Benodet, we decided it was now or never for lunch at 2:30p, so of course it was crepes, as they are everywhere here and a staple. Also, it’s pretty hard to get a bad crepe in Brittany, sort of like pizza in Naples.

The lighthouse at Benodet. A very tidy town with lots of nice vacation homes and beautiful coastline.

Benodet was a fancy coastal town that didn’t really grab us, and we had to force two pizzas down quickly as the one Italian restaurant was booked (my fragile stomach really wanted pasta) but we agreed to take an early table, only order pizza and finish fast. You have to eat, but sometimes it’s tough in France given the rigid schedule and reservation culture. We often do make reservations, but the town didn’t feel busy on this slow Saturday night.

The next day to Audierne promised some winds and a surprisingly varied route. It proved to be challenging but very rewarding with historic sights and an overload of scenery.

The smiles were authentic the next day as I paced myself better and felt stronger.

The somewhat forgotten Pont L’Abbé, a once strategic control point for commerce and defense, including a stone bridge first built by a monk in the 14th century, complete with buildings atop.

Our route included a gravel section on the old “Carrot Train” route, a small railway that brought goods to sale to and from Pont L’Abbé but was abandoned in 1935 with the rise of truck transport.

A perfect lunch spot at the Church ruins along the Route Du Vent Solaire. The “Solar Wind Route” is named after the work of Pierre Jakez Hélias, a writer born in the Pays Bigouden region, the Solar Wind Route is like the wind: it often changes direction.

Lots of 15th century ruins to explore all to ourselves

The next day was a hilly 55k from Benodet to Audierne. It was absolutely brilliant as I was filled with that post sickness euphoria that heightens the senses and makes you appreciate every mile, or kilometer. The weather also cooperated to keep the rain at bay and the strong winds only from the side.

A few free range chickens crossing the road. We don’t know why.

The ruins, sky, and sound of the crashing ocean in the distance is inspiring, and reminded us of Ireland…really not too far away and another Celtic culture.

Breton flags and language are ubiquitous. Many kids now attend bilingual schools in this area, keeping the language alive.

Breton flag and typical ceremonial dress, which often varies even from village to village.

Blue is the color of the region and buildings take a beating along the windswept coast.

Spring marks the start of festival season and small local events. The Sunday Microbrasserie event was tempting as we passed within a km but a break is tough to get restarted from and my stomach probably didn’t need an afternoon beer!?

The Bay’of Audierne is vast and exposed.

Rows of breakers from strong west winds. We quickly realized why the more popular swimming beaches are in less exposed areas of Finistère.

Neolithic sites are dotted throughout the region, including a cave indicating habitation over 400,000 years BP. Yes, you read that correctly. See the amazing Menez Drégan

This dolmen is new compared to the cave site below on the coast and only dates back 2,000 to 4,500 years BP.

These Neolithic burial sites still feel awe inspiring, and put today’s troubles in a bit of perspective. Time will pass and it will all be ok. Or it won’t. But time will pass.

Up and down relentlessly as we approached Audierne.

Destination reached! Another spectacular corner room over the beach at the friendly and nicely renovated TY YS Hotel in Audierne. Swing season is great.

The light of Brittany is both soft and ephemeral.

Rolling out of Audierne for the interior on another beautiful day.

Audierne is built on a major inlet for protection and reminded us of Scandinavian ports such as Bergen.

So psyched to be riding and digesting again!

These small hearts on the road signs were unique

We arrived to the city of Audierne, which feels like an outpost near the ends of the continent, because it is. No one passes through here on a whim, and the people seemed extra hearty, even for the Bretons. We loved our small modest coastal hotel, and another night of ocean waves breaking to lull us through a solid night of bike touring sleep. We headed out the next day on an route that arced to the northeast and then back into Quimper, the cultural heart of Finistère.

Heading up Le Goyen from Audierne. A spectacular morning.

The tidal reach up the river is extensive.

Finally heading upland towards Douarnenez.

The architectural church style here is the “Pont Croix” and sure enough, you can walk all the way to Santiago de Compestela from here if you have a few months and good shoes.

The beautiful Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Kérinec, literally in the middle of nowhere. Why?

Water was definitely a reason for this Chapels Location.

Calvary cross and outdoor pulpit. Oh, and an access point to get up there….

Apparently in the 1700s, the occasional Sunday Pardons (religious festivals) required an outdoor venue as crowds gathered from the countryside.

Perhaps the spring was a draw here and motivation to build a church. It may also have been the drive to override the pagan Neolithic sites of the area.

And onto the Menhir with my spring camouflaged panniers!

This day of riding summed up bike touring perfectly as we started out blissfully into the morning sunshine and a beautiful interior trail along the Goyen River. We then explored empty chapels and Neolithic sites as we crested the hills toward Douarnenez. But the afternoon was a drag a Cheryl had a somewhat unexpected hangry meltdown after we bought groceries at a crowded supermarket, and then couldn’t find a place to eat for miles…it still stuns us how moody bike touring can be. But what always helps is a bit of patience and understanding as we’ve all been there and we have to remind each other, it will all get better. And it’s all worth it.

And after a brief afternoon meltdown (Cheryl’s turn) on a somewhat dull gravel rail trail, the happy bike travelers make it to charming Quimper.

Bike touring bingo, part two. Nantes Brest canal.

Château de Josselin in the flattering sunset light.

An Irish ex-pat couple we chatted with along the canal path told us that we would love Josselin. Very very pretty town, they said. Rich does a lot of research about distances, what we can reasonably ride in a day, places to stay which are bike friendly- and that generally means an enclosed space where we can lock the bikes – and grocery stores and bakeries to fuel us up for the ride. That means he, or we (I’m not super involved in that part of planning), don’t look at a lot of online photos of the actual towns and villages. Which means we get to be surprised! And that’s often a total treat.

Our lovely room in Josselin at 14 st-michel chambre d’hôte. A super well run place.

Josselin has 54 half timbered buildings. Some date back to the 1530s.

And the super helpful and informative history plaques add to our enjoyment.

A small cafe run out of one of the historic buildings.

So well maintained. And some work going on right nearby.

Cat shaped bell. Doorbell or bell to call the cat home?

Rolling out of Josselin. It’s a warm day and we’ll be shedding our jackets after the downhill.

What a fantastic bike route. Complete with comfort stops.

It’s going to be another warm day so we’re happy to refill our bottles and use a toilet (instead of a nature break.).

Warm weather and sunshine means another helmet cover comes out, the hat! Perfect for the sun phobic cyclist.

We’re crossing a ride we did in Brittany in 2023, we visited L’orient and Pontivy on that ride.

How many cute lock keeper houses did I photograph? A lot.

Bingo. Juice with Jesus. We love the small roadside shrines to Mary and Jesus because they frequently have shade and a bench. Outskirts of Pontivy. A town we stayed in and I cannot remember. Rich remembers it.

Guémené-sur-Scorff, our next stay. Aux Sabots Rouges, a hôtel and restaurant in a stunning old building.

It’s now Tuesday and a lot of the restaurants in town are closed. After taking a walk around to make sure we’d get food somewhere- we sat for an aperitif while we waited for the crêpe restaurant to open. Hopefully.

The town had recently lost its
Petites Cités de Caractère status, which was upsetting for the owner of our BnB. It sounded as if it was an administrative lapse on the part of the mayor. We found Guémené to be loaded with character.

Delicious goat cheese, mushroom, walnut and greens crêpe.

Another stunningly old house of character.

And the best addition to any town, a cat of character.

Rich named him Gravlax. After his slightly salmon tinged color. Murder mittens of character.

We have a long ride ahead of us, so a grocery store stop is the first order of business. Tonight, we sleep at the coast!

Back to the land of cartons of Gazpacho! Yum.

And making bike touring nachos. Laughing cow cheese (kind of sacrilegious in a country with so much good cheese, but it goes down easy and travels well), tortilla chips and guacamole.

Eat early and often. That’s a bike touring rule. Especially on a hot day. And a long day. We had 85 kilometers to do which is a long day this early in a bike trip and half on dirt and gravel. So, lots of snacks, electrolytes in our water bottles, and pod casts and music in our ears.

Meslan. The color of the stone houses and blue shutters. Adorable.

Another food break in Le Faouët. The 16th-century timber market hall behind Rich is still used. It’s a rare surviving example of a large timber structure from that period, per Wikipedia.

We left the canal and were on small roads, complete with farm vehicles.

Uh oh. Rich flagged down a passing car to ask the driver if they thought we could get through. Yes. So on we went. We always say to each other “they don’t mean bikes”. Bingo.

We’re on a rail trail for the last 30 kms or so. Which is nice. It’s hot and we’re getting tired.

When it’s hot and you need energy? Ice cream bars.

Magnum Mini scene of destruction. Yes, we did feel a bit ill a few miles later.

I had just enough mental and physical energy to stop and snap a picture of this leopard Appaloosa horse. I had to check with my sister that it was an actual type of horse, not a genetic accident. It’s rare, she said. And beautiful.

We made it to the North Atlantic Ocean. The Bay of Biscay, actually.

Our nice big room for two nights at Les Sables Blancs.

Our trip so far. The far right hearts are our friends near Geneva, and Lyon. The long gap was the 6 hr train from Lyon to Angers.

And a closer view from Angers to Concarneau, where we are now.

Unfortunately, since this nice sunset photo on the beach was taken, Rich has been felled by a stomach bug.

There were other Bike Touring Bingo moments, the well dressed gentleman strolling the canal path while reading a book, the small river otter darting out across the path and then changing their mind when they saw us and darting back to the canal bank. A farmer in a beret leading his draft horse along the Loire River path. And this is also a form of bike touring bingo; who will get sick? This time it’s Rich. Usually he has a stomach of iron and it’s me who gets an upset digestive system. In the midst of his illness he is still travel planning, trying to figure out where we go next as this hotel is full for the Friday night.

Concarneau on a sunny day. What will we do now?

Bike touring bingo, Nantes Brest canal.

A sunny day with a tailwind on Nantes Brest canal. One of the many écluse buildings. Lock keeper houses.

The Nantes Brest canal, conceived by Napoleon as a strategic inland connection of two important ports to avoid the British controlled ocean, is 390 kms long. That’s a good distance for a nice long game of Bike Touring Bingo.

Leaving Nantes. The canal starts a bit outside of Nantes proper, and the leaving of cities is frequently a bit of a jumble.

Pastry break! At 17 kms. That’s a chocolate babka from marguerite Boulangerie du coin in Nantes.

Bike Touring Bingo is an adaptation to the office game BS Bingo, where you and your co-workers would have made up Bingo cards on the xerox machine of all your boss’s favorite and overused phrases, to be checked off during interminable conference calls.

Babka ready for its close up. Hazelnut and chocolate.

Bike touring bingo is much more free form. It’s any bike touring eventuality – such as having to open all four panniers to find the thing you’re searching for. Or getting stung by nettles. It can also be any French cliche, for example an elegant French woman bicycling by with a baguette in her basket.

Canal this way! Oddly named snail restaurant also this way? That sign deserves a bingo square.

It’s steadily getting warmer and the day is calm but with a nice tailwind.

The travel planner stops to admire a helpful map.

Lunch break in Nort-sur-Erdre. We’re appreciating how well benched and picnic tabled this route is.

We’re on a Camino de Santiago trail. We chatted with one pilgrim and saw two others. They had 1,200 kilometers to walk to Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

We’re headed the opposite direction from the pilgrims so merrily we roll along.

Bike touring bingo square! French gentleman in striped shirt smoking a ciggy while piloting a boat. I got bonus points the next day when I saw the same guy (I think) having a wee by the side of a marina.

Our first night on the canal in Blain at a lovely Chambre d’hôte, Le Nid d’Omer. We’re trying to remember to take photos of our rooms before we dump our panniers and make an ugly mess.

Bingo! Well behaved chambre d’hôte cat observing breakfast.

The canal links up four rivers, so it’s fascinating to see the change from canal to river. It was quite a clever engineering feat as only 20% of the route had to be made from scratch.

Here’s a tiny Rich riding past a boat in a canal section.

And here he is waiting for me to catch up in Fégréac on a section of L’Isac River. So many birds!

Between those two photos was a coffee/tea/Easter chocolate break.

And a lunch break. Although the path was busy this Easter Sunday, we always found places to stop and sit.

In our travels around the world we’ve always felt welcome as Americans, or at least not disliked. We always say people are good at distinguishing between a person and the country’s politics. But these are different times. Awful things are happening and the USA is responsible. We questioned if we wanted our American flags on our bikes at all. But we are American, we have to own it. Rich has a French flag to show our affection for France, and my No Kings flag hopefully conveys our lack of support for the current administration. We’ve had quite a few conversations so far and no French person has been anything but kind and understanding and as upset as we are about the war.

“I’m a little potato and I believe in you.” Thank you little potato at the crêpe restaurant in Redon.

Crêpes and cider. The Breton stand by for dinner. Delicious.

Dessert crêpe with
caramel beurre salé. Salted caramel sauce. Yum.

No photo of the hotel room in Redon. It was adequate. And small. We thought Redon would be a bit of a nothing town, and quite empty on Easter Sunday evening, but it turned out to have a lot of half timbered buildings and some fascinating historical plaques to help tourists understand the history of the buildings.

Half timbered building from the 1600s, now with shops on the ground floor, as many were originally both businesses and dwellings it’s fitting.

Nettles. Rich won that bingo square with a “shortcut” suggested by Komoot. Thankfully it was a small nettling.

Person traveling with a donkey? Is that on my Bingo card? It is now.

I forgot his name, but he had just bought the donkey and he was headed out for a ten year ramble! With his cat too, who is wearing a GPS collar and was not happy about the crazy cat lady wanting to get her hands on him.

Lunch. Smoked salmon for Rich and peanut butter and dried cranberries for me.

Crossing through Malestroit. This is perhaps one of the most interesting and beautiful canals we’ve ridden.

The riding surface of the path is mostly really smooth fine gravel.

My ongoing love affair with French bike route signage.

Château de Josselin. On the Oust River. Still the residence of the 14th Duke of Rohan.

Part two of our canal ride up in our next post.

Nantes. Worth a second, or even a third visit.

Rich at the Quai de Versailles of the Erdre River in Nantes.

Yes, I admit straight off that we will need to visit Nantes again. We first came through in September 2023 and spent two nights mostly taking care of business and exploring the old town streets. We went to Les Machines de l’Île which is a fun steam punk type attraction. This time we spent two nights mostly taking care of business (laundry, blogging and travel planning) and exploring the new transit and bike improvements, and a trip to Trentemoult, a small fishing village turned art village.

But first things first. A beer and a glass of wine. Le Chemin De Traverse Bar à Bières. In the USA, beer focused places frequently do not have wine, that’s almost never a problem in France.

After a good night’s sleep, despite some fellow hotel guests being inconsiderate until a big American opened the door and scowled at them, we headed out to visit Trentemoult. Best part? You get to take a little ferry boat across the River Loire.

So much work going on in Nantes. A new bridge, the Anne de Bretagne bridge, is being built for two new tram lines, bikes, and “Beyond its practical function, the bridge was primarily designed as a place for strolling.”!

The towers of the new bridge, connecting the city to the Île de Nantes.

Yes, it’s raining a bit but that doesn’t stop anyone.

The new ferry terminal on the Trentemoult side.

It’s a short walk to the town from the new terminal and you have a few things to see. La Pendule. Yes, that pendulum is swinging – except in high winds.

Ador, a Nantes street artist with a lot of works in Nantes.

Good thing about cloudy skies? Nice light to take photos. That’s the river Loire, we’ve now cycled our missing link of the Loire and we can head off the river.

The narrow car free streets of the little village are very atmospheric. Especially in the mist.

Our bright cycling jackets fit right in.

I looked at this photo about five times before I realized it’s the zebra’s stripes hanging on the laundry line.

Our day in Nantes was technically a rest day. But with so much to see and do we end up walking about 20,000 steps anyway. Is that really a rest day?

Crossing the construction zone and seeing that Nantes is working on **three** new tram lines. Go Nantes!

Tram construction is catnip for the engineer and the transit advocate.

Street art and a bus built into this building.

The Île de Nantes is full of fun artistic delights.

An afternoon of laundry and chilling left us needing more walking, so off to the Jardin des Plantes we went. One advantage of early spring bike touring is the blooms.

The tram system, which Nantes is expanding, is already quite impressive. Not only for its free flowing movements, unhampered by car traffic, but also for the fun color schemes on the trams.

Rich added for scale in front of yet another patterned tram.

We were also very impressed with the intersections on one of Nantes’ main streets, Cr des 50 Otages. The name of the street is another reason for us to come back to Nantes, to visit the history museum. The name of the boulevard pays tribute to the 50 hostages or victims of a WW2 event.

The intersections along this street have been redesigned with traffic circles unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Almost zero markings. Here it is from the view of a cyclist biking through.

And from the Google street map view of a double circle. Tram tracks and pedestrian plaza space to the left, Bus and car lane, bike lanes in the middle, another bus car lane, and then more sidewalk space.

We rode this street on our way out of Nantes towards the Nantes Brest canal. It took us to an area we hadn’t visited and gave us another reason to come back to Nantes- the basin of the Erdre River with the Île de Versailles and live aboard boats and loads of quai side attractions.