August 30, 2009
Landres
It was a very hot night, we were up at 6am had orange juice and yoghurt then carted all the gear downstairs and extracted the bikes from the shed and loaded up. Amazingly I put my panniers on the wrong sides and of course couldn’t pedal. We were on the road by about 7.30 with all our warm gear on. Despite the fact that it was so hot in the hotel the overnight temperature must have been about close to zero. Today we did find the right track going on to small quiet roads that took us up the valley of the Suize. The valley was beautiful – trees, grass and charalois cattle. This is a favorite Sunday morning ride for local cyclists and we plodded along as they whizzed past us at great speed.
The day was glorious and as we thawed out we really enjoyed it. Through several tiny villages then into one by another stream with geese having a bath and an open shop to get bread and iron rations (chocolate)
A huge number of motorcycles came towards us soon after – then a collection of carts, hayrakes, binders outside. Someone had just emptied out a barn and put them outside; they are in great order now but won’t stay that way unless they are under cover.
We crossed the motorway twice and took a small road into Landres. We had a distant view of the Cathedral and St Martin Church but before the final climb we plunged into a deep valley which left us with a long steep push up a hill but we were still there by midday.
The town is lovely on a hilltop and has been an important church centre since the 4th century. All fortified and everything restored and in good order. We walked around the walls most of the way. There were lots of visitors and a fairground in operation. A small shop opened at 4.30 so we were able to stock up
Today's ride: 41 km (25 miles)
Total: 840 km (522 miles)
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