2023 - La Loire à Vélo: Day 29: Wed 21 Jun

18-29 (felt like 32) degC, overcast in the morning to warm sunshine by mid morning, to overcast in the afternoon

Walk:10km; total: 225km

Greg was up early in the hope he would get some good pictures, however, as it was overcast and dreary, not good light for photos. He could have slept in! Breakfast started at 7am, and we were amongst the early attendees. The usual fare greeted us, cereal, bread, meat, cheese, eggs (boil your own), jam, Nutella, croissants, coffee and tea. We didn’t eat too much as we knew we were leaving the bikes in the garage.

With no map or particular plan ( much to Wendy’s dismay) we followed the Henry IV Canal taking in whatever sights we came across. Eventually we came across a lock that was still in use so we used it to cross the canal to come back into town. At that time of the morning, the water was very reflective and we got some lovely photos. We followed the canal to where it met the Loire, turned left in the direction of the canal bridge. After some more obligatory photos with the engineering feat, we moved on to check out the hotel Greg and Bob stayed in 2019.

It was almost time for mornos, so off we went the local Carrefour. While we were there purchasing mornos, we decided that we may as well get stuff for lunch and dinner. Back packs full, we headed back to the hotel, stopping off at the Church of St Étienne. The sun had made an appearance by this stage and the church looked a lot better. We also went inside, and although not as flashy or big as many we have seen, it was still nice.

We found a spot on the canal adjacent some houseboats and had mornos and rested the feet. It was tough getting back up after the 9.5km we’d just done, but we made it back to the hotel. Lunch was had a while later, then a nana nap. Greg went for a walk to nowhere in particular later in the day, just to stretch the legs. Wendy went out a little while later to source some liquid sustenance to compliment dinner. She met Greg near the Church and together they walked back to the hotel having achieved the mission.

Not a long day and not a full day, but a good day nonetheless. In planning the stages, Wendy had the next stage as being 41km, however, the signs say 51.5km. And there are a few small villages we can stop and look at along the way, so we shouldn’t be at Sancerre any earlier than 3pm for check-in, famous last words! We may also have to dodge a few storms along the way by the look of the forecast.

A very noisy storm with a shower or two of rain ended the day.