Walk: 4km; total: 234km
We were at breakfast nice and early this morning as we thought we had about 70k to ride today. We were packed up and on the road at 8:15am, and the downhill run was awesome, max speed of 52km/h! We became a tad disoriented trying to get on the Loire á Velo, mainly due to lack of signage at two critical turns, but it only cost us about 2km extra. The path today was mostly on smooth bitumen off-road paths, with the odd exception of a rough wide track, to a downright ugly, very rough and narrow track. We rode through more wheat, maize, sunflowers, and canola fields with some livestock of goats, Asian water buffalo, horses and cows. We stopped for mornos and lunch, and it was at the lunch stop (42km) that we consulted the paper map and it said we had at least another 30km to ride. Wendy was not happy as her Maps.me said 18km. On further analysis, it seems we could take a short cut, but it would mean that we would not be cycling the Loire á Velo all the way to Nevers. Never mind that, said Wendy, this path takes us almost directly to the hotel, and the path is beside the road for most of the way. We ended up taking the short cut and arrived at Ibis Nevers at 1:20pm and checked-in to room 227. The room is not the most salubrious, but the price is not as exorbitant as it was at Sancerre either. It is still functional, with the exception of the desk lamp that does not have a globe in it, so that’s the main thing.
We stopped for the usual photo opps along the way, before crossing the river to have mornos at La Charité-sur-Loire. We had requisitioned mornos from the breakfast bar this morning, so we sat on the steps leading up to the Notre Dame de la Charité-Sue-Loire and ate it; ever so civilised! Whilst Wendy took in a tour of the church, Greg guarded the bikes. We then crossed back over the bridge and continued our ride.
Lunch was had at Marseilles-Les-Aubigny, (an inland port for work and pleasure boats) sitting on an uncomfortable concrete park bench overlooking a lock on the Canal Lateral à la Loire. A number of cycle tourers passed by and said “bonjour et bon appetite”; friendly bunch. We would have stopped for longer, however having realised we had more to ride than anticipated, we set off again soon after finishing our lunch.
When we got to the next bridge crossing (to Fourchambault), we saw the sign that said Nevers. This is where we confirmed that we’d take the shortcut across country instead of following the Loire á Velo beside the river. Over the bridge we went, and like we expected the bike path signs dried up. Oh, well, let’s go with our gut feeling and do this. The path was smooth and fast, beside a very busy road, skirting the Nevers airport. We saw a few parachutists which is a new one for us on this trip. As we got closer to the city, we went through some parks and finally crossed the river again. 8.5km from the crossing we were at out hotel. Occasionally our plans work out nicely.
After unpacking and washing, we had a little rest. We then walked back over the bridge to the city centre, first to the tourist info centre to get a town map, then for a general wander. Nevers has certainly got some interesting things to explore. It was then to Carrefour to purchase our dinner. A little over 4km later we were back in our room. A pre-dinner drink and a discussion on the next few rides took pace before dinner.
Blogging, Facebook posting, teeth, shower and bed.
Mornos stop
Notre Dame de La Charité-sur-Loire
Lunch stop
Chapelle St Marie, Nevers
A bank building in Nevers
Palais Ducal, Nevers
Nevers Town Hall
Cathedral St Cyr and St Julitte
Back of the Palais de Justice
Front of the Palais de Justice
Our route map
Elevation and speed profile
Front of our hotel
Back of hotel and room in red circle
Our room, #227
