Off the ferry first thing (w/ only one cup of coffee!). Made our way through the port and immediately found our route - thanks Komoot! Everything was clearly sign posted and easy to find (except more coffee!). Hit the hill out of Cherbourg at about mile 4.
We were fueled by croissants and coffee!
A car only every 15 minutes and otherwise it was just us and the countryside. Made our way over the hills on quiet lanes, by lovely French stone houses. At first it was so quiet, we thought there was a national holiday, but, no, it’s just quiet. And a perfect day for cycling, sunny and in the 60’s.
Followed the Voie Vert (Green Way) for somewhere between 35 to 40 miles. A gravelled rail trail, we’ve never been on one so long. Felt a little like being back on LEJOG. Steve’s comments, ‘Best route ever!’ and ‘These tracks are in better nick than the roads in England.’
Last week was the 80th anniversary of D-Day here in Normandy and it was heartwarming to see all of the American flags, the signs of the celebrations held here and the regard for the US servicemen even 80 years later.
We were here a few years ago with Mom and Dad and visited the beaches so Dad could see where Uncle Karol had landed. We stayed in a French farmhouse and visited Utah and Omaha beaches, along w/ partaking of some lovely French food and wine!
Stayed tonight in Carentan, a good sized village / small town in Normandy. The Hotel le Vauban was right in the centre and an easy walk from the port. We had dinner at Contoir des Marais which was waterfront at the marina, recommended by the hotel. Note to self, always check out the menu before sitting down and ordering wine. We found things that we liked though and the place was very cozy - the wine was very good!
https://restaurant-carentan-lecontoir.com/
Off to a good start. Although this is a much shorter tour than LEJOG it feels like more of an adventure. Probably due to there being a ferry involved and post BREXIT a stamp in your passport, different language etc. Hopefully we had our “fix the tandem on the side of the road” moment yesterday with a “ting, ting, ting” noise from the back wheel. We had heard this before on LEJOG and it’s a tiny bit of metal on the disc catching the brake pads. Bike looks like it’s on the Dakar rally with all the dust from the dry trails (compacted gravel). On the fitness/difficulty front we are nowhere near as fit as we were on LEJOG and frankly quite a bit heavier but we are doing OK. Big day is tomorrow (59 miles and 2500 feet of climbing) but last day is very Florida esk in terms of being pretty flat. Onwards and upwards.
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