le Tour 22

First time abroad since the Covid pandemic global restrictions and my test is negative. Not that the French border force bothers to check. Meet Simon in Kennington and get an earlier train from St Pancras than planned so Pete meets us on sunny Dover seafront supping beers. Usual maze to th ferry with a good crossing then the usual mix-up getting lost out of Dunkirk port. My new drive chain is still slipping and Pete notices that my new chain has a broken link. 15 minutes later that's removed from the chain and from here on in the drive chain behaves perfectly. One of my panniers then jumps off but that's the 3rd of the troubles as they come in 3's and the rest of the week is trouble free with no punctures for any of us either. We get to the AirBnB above a convenient garage with friendly hosts and settle in a local bar for the evening sampling the various beers. I have a comfortable night in the double bed with Simon next to me. Just like old times.

Tuesday is why we're here. After getting breakfast stuff from the lovely local shops we depart our home having taken a photo of our female host. Well, I asked her to take a photo of us but she thought I wanted one of her. Then down to the seafront for a beer, watch the caravan (we get a whistle and coffee bag) and then meander up to where the team coaches are. Back along the promenade to see the peloton go past, not racing yet, and then we eventually get through Dunkirk onto the Calais road. Lots of others mainly Brits cycling to Calais to catch the end of the stage and we all lose and meet each other as we all take wrong turnings. The French road signage has not improved. We make Calais which is packed at the end of the stage so we see the race coming into Calais near the end of the stage with van Aert the easy solo winner. Probably not easy for him though. We cycle along the route taken stopping off for beers and salt (crisps) at a crowded bar with loads of polka dot T shirts where Simon buys wine and Pete blags a baguette. Fortified it's up a steep hill then down to Escalles where we camp for the night. Not as far as I planned but we're happy to stop. A lovely spot and after wine and a trip to the bar and wine I sleep well in my new 1 man tent. 

An early rise and packed and cycling by 8 am. A couple of proper hills to start taking in a coffee at Wimereux market but then gently rolling hills after our stop at Boulogne. It's hot and I nearly bonk (as in the cyclists term) but after a good lunch of my vegan pate and cherries I'm cycling fit again. With cycle lanes on the busier roads it's easier going than yesterday. We cycle from Le Crotoy round the Somme estuary along a cycle track to the lovely Saint-Valery-sur-Somme then along the coast to camp at Cayeux-sur-Mer. We're in a quiet corner of the site and cycle to the pebbly beach for an invigorating and much needed dip in the channel. Then the campsite bar for beers, calvados and negotiating a vegan pizza. 

Thursday is the big day getting back on schedule starting with a lumpy ride to the pleasant looking Treport harbour and then Dieppe where Pete leaves us. Then it's a lot of very rolling hills for me and Simon that I find quite hard. Europe having a heat wave doesn't help me through our dog leg detour but we eventually reach Caudebec-en-Caux (aka Rives-en-Seine) and camp by the banks of the Seine. Well, across the road from it. We cook up a great meal with vegetables on cous cous washed down with beer and wine watching big boats pass with the crescent moon overhead. After 90 miles according to my bike computer I'm ready for bed.

Friday up early but can't see the river due to mist so we go back to sleep for a while. Porridge and tea start us off along the invisible river which soon appears as the mist is burnt off by the hot sun. Another day that I struggle in the heat and apologies Simon if I became a bit fractious - like demanding to know how many and how steep the hills are going to. Anyway, the pleasant riverside ride veers into Port Jerome then through a load of oil refineries to get to the ferry to Quillebeuf. We then take a very very bumpy track which we should have probably double backed but you hate doing that when cycling. The track has loads of potholes and is very stony and it's a wonder that we don't puncture given our pack weights over the 3 miles to the big bridge where we pick up the road. Our route then alternates between very busy roads with artics to small country lanes. And over a couple of very large lumps but the fun descents I guess make up for that somewhat. Well, not really as I admit I was struggling again and suffering from the heat. We lunch at a trucker roadside frites place that didn't want our bikes in the garden area. Very odd but good chips and cold orangina. After a while we split with Simon heading straight to Caen to get a late afternoon train and I go to the coast and meander along as my ferry is at 11 pm. The coastal route is all bike paths or quiet roads and I take the opportunity to cool off in the sea. A great hard gravel route takes me up and down the Orne estuary crossing at the WWII Pegasus bridget and on to Ouistreham port. After a meander I find a great place to eat a massive salad and drink beer.

After a red wine I sleep on the floor of the ferry and then an uneventful train ride from Portsmouth to London having a good natter with the Gooner train guard who loved my Sega shirt. Cycling from Clapham Junction home was a breeze and lovely to see Debbie who orders me into the bath. Needed from both relaxation and cleanliness viewpoints. A great trip and thanks Simon and Pete for the ride.

Norfolk 2021

 

The bar

Hazel & Adam's for Euro 2020 (in 2021) semi final vs Denmark

Flats

Pipe

Pizza furnace

The bikes

Church

Lovely weather for it

Our beach hut

Camp site

Cycling along the beach

The sea

Sand dunes

Beach buggies

A country park

Chilla out in Devon

Debbie’s found what looks like a lovely cottage in the depths of Devon in west Chilla close by Halwill Junction, Beaworthy. Setting off on a mid morning Monday the traffic is OK and bang on schedule we reach Crewkerne where we stop off at Gill’s new place and go for some lunch with Jack at a local café. Then it’s back on the road and after some fannying around near Beaworthy we reach our home for the week which is even more lovely than it looked on-line. Debbie’s choices get better and better. It’s an old converted barn with ancient timbers supporting the ceiling. Immaculately clean, all mod cons, everything you could want for a week in fact looks like the owners spent a fair bit of time going on holiday and noting down everything you could wish for in a holiday cottage. After a couple of gins and a bite to eat we jump into the pièce de resistance being a hot tub in the garden. With a very nice bottle of prosecco served in flutes especially for this purpose being plastic. I said they’d thought of everything. What else would you drink in a hot tub except for sparkling wine. It’s pretty cold outside and spits with rain which makes the tub even nicer to be in.

Tuesday we have a lazy morning and then go for a wander. Past the Methodist Chilla Chapel, quite big really, and along a track through woods and past plantations until we reach Halwill village. We visit the local sites of interest being newsagents, sewing shop, chip shop, hairdressers and the war memorial which by the names brings home how many families were greatly affected by WWI. We then have a quick drink in the Junction pub which is cosy enough with lots of photos of steam trains. This was a big railway junction, hence the village and pub name, before the Beeching cuts in the early 60s. We then retrace our steps at first along the old railway line home where we spend a lazy afternoon reading and a lazy evening reading and hanging out in the hot tub looking at the half moon and stars peeping between mist and clouds. Lovely.

Wednesday morning it’s rained in the night and does so a bit more before glorious sunshine appears. We’re going west to an ancient market dating from at least the charter granted in the 12 century at Holsworthy and then on to Bude and then the cliffs for amazing views. Ah, the best laid plans of mice and men. The market was about 6 stalls of cheap toot, bar a couple, and we needn’t’ve put 2 hours worth on the pay and display. We were off in 20 minutes. We drove to Bude and parked next to the beach emerging into either rain or sea spray or a very low fog. Or all three. It felt like it. Undeterred by a bit of damp we wander into Bude and then seawards along the canal which was built for taking goods to and from Holsworthy to the coast and has a big sea lock which is still in use. We wander along the beach watching the waves crashing in and a lone surfer trying to tame them. After warming up in the car and a food shopping we drive up the coast along narrow lanes to Coombe Valley and down to the sea at Duckpool. It’s a rocky beach with a stream going into it but guess it’s sandy with the tide out. We wander around admiring the cliffs, rocks and the turbulent sea which we could both spend hours looking at if it weren’t so wet and cold out. Our last excursion is to Morwenstow where we wander towards the cliffs but turn back as it’s very muddy and we can’t see 20 yards in front so going to a cliff is probably not worth it. Instead we visit the church which is surprisingly big and there’s a massive vicarage next to it. The church is old and has a very old font. I resist a bit of campanology by pulling on the bell ropes and instead we wander round the graveyard stopping at the section with local kids, and many are kids, sent to fight in WWI and not returning. By now we’re feeling the early February chill and we turn homewards for a lazy late afternoon and evening in front of the wood burning stove.

Thursday is meant to be a sunnier day and we drive to Shaugh Prior car park to set out on a walk over the moors. The first bit of the walk is up and around the the Dewerstone rock made more arduous by me not turning off the main path in time and us having to double back on ourselves. With the steep bit over we are out of the trees and walk over the moor down to Cadover Bridge where we stop for lunch. It’s a bit damp out as a rain cloud came over and showered us back on the moor but the sun’s out now. The walk back to the car follows the river (think it’s the Plym) and a ceramic irrigation pipe that is mainly above the ground and now broken up. It’s a lovely walk through the trees starting next to the tumbling river and rising above it through the wood. The pipe rises with us and then drops down when we do. So not entirely sure what is was used for as seems to be taking water from the river before dropping back down to the river. Possibly built by the grand old duke of York? Anyways it’s a pleasant walk back to the car where we change out of muddy boots and drive home via the main road going over Dartmoor through Two Bridges. A lovely drive over the magnificent open moorland. Back home it’s a lovely cup of tea in front of the fire. After tea it’s a clear night with a half moon with a few clouds scudding by so we sit in the hot tub supping wine and star gazing picking out Orion in the south and the plough in the north.

Friday morning we wake late and there’s still a frost on the grass. It’s cold and beautiful cloudless sky is a brilliant blue. After breakfast I go for a walk and Debbie decides to relax at home. Probably a good option as although the walk was enjoyable and exhilarating I find myself going in and out of muddy cow fields, along a very muddy bridleway through a wood and then across an open field that turns out to be a boggy marsh. With a few streams to cross. At one point my whole boot goes into a boggy bit and I can feel my sock getting soggy. Ah well, I eventually get onto a farm track and back onto the road down to the Chilla Chapel and home. After lunch Debbie and I lounge around in the hot tub which is just right for soothing overworked limbs. Dinner is a trip to Karen’s chippy for some proper fat chips and then to watch the disappointing Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Saturday we’re up early to finish packing and then the drive back to London stopping off at Duncan’s for lunch. A lovely break.

The lounge

Back of the cottage

View from the cottage

Smugly in the hot tub

The path to the village

Chilla Chapel

Bude beach

Duckpool near Bude

Morwenstow church

Bridge over the river Plym

Dewerstone walk

Dewerstone rocks guarded by crows

Dartmoor

Dartmoor ponies

Dartmoor sheep giving us the eye

Cadover Cross

Along the pipe path

Sunlight thru the trees

Dewerstone crags

View of the cottage from up the lane

My boggy walk