August 14, 2006
Day 36: Soulac - La Rochelle: Time's up
Today it's sunny, cool and we have little wind, perfect weather, which makes it even harder to say 'last day on our bikes'.
We follow the pretty bike path for 12 km to Pointe de Grave, located at the mouth of the Gironde estuary where the river empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Since Bordeaux we have been cycling along the coastline of a peninsula created by the Gironde. We arrive at the ferry to Royan with about one minute to spare and have to hurry to get on board before the loading ramp is raised.
On 5th January, 1945, the town of Royan was practically annihilated by the allied bombardments and there was little left of the seaside resort, fashionable and chic in the Belle Epoque. The town was reconstructed in concrete in the style of the 1950s. The expression "modern laboratory of town planning and architecture" was used to characterize the methods and the work of that time.
After a bit of sightseeing while searching for the way out of town, we find ourselves on country roads headed in the general direction of the marshlands of the Seudre estuary. We pass through villages with lovely churches, Romanesque gems with square towers, typical of the fortified churches in this region.
We have a pleasant long ride through flat, marshy landscape, fields laced with tiny canals and few roads, no cars.
We have one more river to cross today. A 'pont transbordeur' crosses the Charente River to Rochefort, in English a ferry bridge or transporter bridge. I have never before heard of or seen this type construction, a unique engineering feat. Between two pylons on either bank of the river, a sort of suspended gondola or portion of road is conveyed back and forth on a steel frame supported by cables. The ferry bridge at Rochefort, completed in 1900, is the only remaining bridge of this sort in France, although others exist in the US, Germany, Russia, Spain, the UK and South America (thank you, Internet). Today the bridge on the Charente is a tourist attraction. Fortunately, it is still in use and perfect for a cyclist crossing of the river.
| Heart | 1 | Comment | 0 | Link |
It is now 4:30 in the afternoon, obviously we aren't going to cycle the remaining 35 km to La Rochelle today. We purchase train tickets to La Rochelle and until departure drink a beer in the river harbor.
Had we only stayed in the quiet little town of Rochefort for the night. La Rochelle has a splendid old town and harbor and hordes of tourists that a place like this attracts in August. We comb the town for a hotel room, to no avail. We cycle to outlying campgrounds, but they are all full and refuse to allow us to pitch our tent, no matter how tiny it is or how we beg. What an ignoble end to our grand journey from Munich to the Atlantic! But I have an idea. How about one of those hotels with a few more stars? It didn't occur to us to look at that category. For 130 € we find a room in a nice hotel, not as nice as the price though.
Today's ride: 80 km (50 miles)
Total: 2,138 km (1,328 miles)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 2 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 1 |