VelOcean, part 1: Pornic to Barbatre

August 3, 2017

Outside my window I could see that everything was wet. The rain had returned overnight, but I heard nothing in my profound torpor, even with the window open. Luckily, it didn't rain into the room. Getting out of Pornic was easy: just follow the signs for EuroVelo 1, aka VelOcean. The route is laid out to avoid the limited access highway that baffled me the day before, but it does wind around and double back a lot in order to do so. Most of it is on a bikes-only paved path, at least for the first few kilometers, but there are times when the back streets are used as you pass through the villages along the Atlantic coast. In Moutiers-en-Retz the route through the village was blocked off for the weekly market and there was no alternative but to go the wrong way down a one-way street to rejoin the trail. Technically, this is OK if you are a cyclist, but the flux of traffic around the market and the blind corner turning behind the village church made me a little hesitant. Once past the blockade, though it was onto very lightly used coastal road.

This tide's out view shows the fishing shacks that line this section of coast. Its surprising how many of them there are.

Shortly after stopping to look at the fishing shacks, I came across a cyclist in distress. A woman was by the side of the road facing me and I stopped to ask if I could help. She said her pedals wouldn't turn, and when I looked at them I saw that her bottom bracket cup had come almost entirely un screwed. The ball bearings were doubtless all loose somewhere inside the shell. It was a very old department store bike and would require a lot of work to put it right. I don't normally carry bottom bracket tools so I had to tell her I really couldn't help and that she need to go to a bike shop to get it fixed. She was only a kilometer or so from Moutiers, so she left in that direction pushing the wounded bike.

The day was becoming very windy as I rode through the salt marshes along the coast. I spotted and said hello to a number of other cyclo-tourists as I followed the route. Here, it is mostly on narrow roads that wind through the marshes dodging canals and using the few bridges that are found there for farmers to access their below-sea-level fields.

Coming back onto the coast once more with the ever present fishing shacks. The tide is starting to turn, and will soon cover the cycle route onto the Ile de Noirmoutier, the famous Passage du Gois. The Ile can be seen across the water.

I was crossing now from the Department of the Loire Atlantique to the Department of the Vendee. The road surfaces changed as did the signs for the velo route. I stopped in the first Vendéean village, Bouin, to reconnoiter the route. The passage would soon be under water and would stay that way until the tide ebbed in six hours, so not wanting to risk being trapped I had to find an alternative route to get to Noirmoutier. I decided to take the country roads through St; Gervais and St. Urbain to get to the main route onto the island. The route continued through the salt marshes. Flocks of egrets were foraging in the swamp, but were too distant and too flighty to photograph. I stopped in St. Gervais for lunch of mussels and fries. The mussels were very fresh, but the smallest I have ever seen being served.

When I got to the village of Barre-les-Monts, I picked up the signs for the local cycle path network which took me to the foot of the bridge to the Island. Once across I stumbled upon a bike friendly hotel in the first village on the island, Barbatre. The Hotel Goeland has a bike garage with tool stand, air pump and racks. Perfect. The really friendly owner ever offered to let me use his clothesline if I needed to wash anything. There is a laundromat just down the street, too. I got a super nice room at a reasonable full-season price of 60€, unloaded my gear and took off again to explore the island.

There are multiple cycle paths on the island, all crammed with vacationers toodling along. And of course, the inevitable salt pans. I saw salt being harvested for the first time on this tour as here.

The village of Noirmoutier-en-l'Ile is dominated by its castle. There is a large parking lot nearby, and I locked up the bike there and went to have a beer in a local bar.

After returning to the hotel for a shower and a change of clothes, I walked over to the beach on the south side of the island.

Windsurfing seems to be very popular here.

After returning from the beach, I went for a light supper of pizza. The waitress wanted to practice her English on me, and it made a pleasant evening before wandering off to my room.

Today's ride: 86 km (53 miles)
Total: 689 km (428 miles)

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