August 21, 2011
A Head Wind to St Satur- Sancerre: Sunday
Last night's meal was the best we have had so far. We went to a small restaurant across the road from our hotel. They had a deal of an entre and a plat for 12Euros which looked good to us. The tables were beautifully set with the china that Gien is so famous for ((they removed it and replaced it withit standard white china from China for us to eat off). It was cool and the waitress very friendly. For an entre I had a salad of Moserella and tomatoes and Ken frogs legs. For my plat I had steak served with Bernaisse Sauce scalloped potatoes a beautifully cooked zucchinis and tomatoes. Ken's was similar with an animal of unknown origin . For wine we had a pichet of the house red which was a nice but fairly undistinguished wine. Unfortunately we forgot to take our camera to photograph all this. While we were eating we spent our time talking to the English couple next to us. They have lived in Brittany for 21years and are in the antique business. They do not have a shop but go to a different antique fairs each weekend - it sounds like a terrible exhausting life to me. They said this one has been awful a waste of time- no one is buying because it is too hot and if they didn't lose their 400Euro deposit they would pack up and go home. They were eating heartily and neither of them needed the food and wine they were consuming. We refused dessert thinking of the yummy peaches we had at 'home'.
During the night there was an orage with lightning flashing, thunder rolling and rain lashing down. By morning it was still raining but not very heavily so we decided to make the early start we had planned to beat the afternoon's fierce heat. As usual the early morning biking was great. We followed the road to avoid the unpaved track and it was quite, undulating and with a slight head wind. At about 9am we reached Chantillon-sur-Loire and stopped at a bar for coffee (big, good and only cost 1.9Euro). There was an absolute buzz of activity as a market was being set up in the main street a lot of the stuff looked as if it was from a garage sale and I idly wondered whether people bought something one week and sold it the next. The blur of activity reminded me of Pokeno on a Sunday morning. Our good friend Robert from Tartan Farms would have fitted in well with his big smile and the lovely apron Trish has made for him.
After about 30km things deteriorated. The sun got hotter and hotter and more importantly the head wind became very strong. Ken tried to get me to draft but I can't. He says it is because I am stubborn but it is really because I am scared I will hit his back wheel and crash.
Eventually we got to St Satur and were pleased to stop. Found a hotel and have set up. Went for a walk into the village which being Sunday was completely dead. The owners were outside the Bar and they were delighted to tell us they were shut and wouldn't be opening because it was Sunday and no there were no other bars that would be opening. The owner of our hotel tells us that the restaurant here is closed because it is Sunday. But faint glimmer of hope. There is a restaurant along the road and over the bridge that 'should' be open .
Stop press Ken has just returned from an explore along tomorrows track. He found an open boulangerie down there and came back bearing tarts and orange juice. What is more he found a bar and had a beer. This is at what is probably the place that maybe open for dinner so we won't starve after all.
It is another week until Sunday!
Today's ride: 52 km (32 miles)
Total: 757 km (470 miles)
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