I woke this morning to the sound of rain on the tent.  I should know by now that it always sounds worse than it is, but this rain wasn't in the forecast I saw yesterday. So I got my phone and checked the weather (not sunny) and used Booking-dot-com to find a dry place to stay tonight.  There are times I really love technology!

My original goal for today had been Barbezieux-St-Hilaire, being a reasonably-sized orange blob on the map.  The place I booked is on my planned route, about 10 km before.  Perfect; today's plan had been a little long and tomorrow's a little short.  (While checking that on the map, I see that I will go through a hamlet called Reignac just a couple of km further down the road.  What?  Wasn't I just there this morning?  I was.  There are two Reignacs, about 40km apart, and there are probably more.)

I packed up and left the campground as quickly as possible. While brushing my teeth, I noticed an able-bodied man arrive with his shower stuff and a key to the (locked) handicap washroom.  Through the open door I saw a clean, modern bathroom, in stark contrast to the rest of the facilities here.  If I were staying longer, I'd ask about a key!

On the other hand, the bakery-café on the main street leading from the port had great pastries and good coffee.  And the rain had stopped.

There is a "piste cyclable" between Blaye and Étauliers, about 13 km.  It had numerous "Route Barrée" signs, most of which could be ignored.  One section had been excavated right down to the sub-base, about 30-40 cm down and looked quite long.  I took a detour around that one but most were short sections of about 6 m where the surface had been removed and not yet replaced.  As I got further from Blaye, it became evident that the work wasn't proceeding quickly since there was evidence that many users were ignoring the barricades and the caution tape had been torn down.

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After Étauliers, I took small roads east-northeast until my route joined the Voie Verte Galope Chopine which leads all the way to Barbezieux-St-Hilaire.

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The weather today was changeable.  I started with full rain gear, but the rain had stopped by the time I got going.  It was cool at first, but eventually I had to remove the extra layers and rode along in very pleasant conditions.  I stopped at a little shop that appeared suddenly to get some supplies for lunch and when I came out with my baguette and cheese, it was starting to sprinkle. There was nowhere really to stop, so I put on my jacket and continued.  Then the skies opened and it rained heavily until my shoes, gloves, and shorts were truly soaked.  Then the rain stopped.

There were a couple of picnic tables by the road near Chatignac so I ate my  lunch there.  The stop was just before a small climb and then the route continued along a ridge, from which I could see the dark clouds all around. By the time I got to Les Pins, the temperature was dropping and the winds were increasing.  I put my jacket and shoe covers back on and carries on as the rain started.  It rained all the way to Le Tâtre.

My accommodation here in Le Tâtre is a chambre d'hôte called La Veille Distillerie.  I put my bike in the giant shed and even set up my tent footprint and fly in there to (hopefully) dry.  I was given a giant cup of tea and some biscuits which just disappeared!