To Carcassonne

October 5, 2023

Marie-Josée's place was just we needed to recover from the events of yesterday - a great night's sleep and a fabulous breakfast of Dutch treats, especially the Crepes Hollandaise. Fortified, we sally forth for another day. The weather is perfect - sunny and not too hot with a little breeze. This really feels like the time to be here.

Waiting for our crepes in Marie-Josée's stylish dining room

Ollie hangs out to watch the packing process

Paraza looks like a cool town to explore, but after faffing around too much in the morning yesterday, we're eager to get on the road.

Back on the Canal trail. It's in pretty good shape here.

Old towers, new toys in Argena-Minervois

From Argena-Minervois we turn south from the canal to ride along the River Aude for awhile. It's a nice change being on the quiet roads between vineyards and small towns, each with its own castle.

Villages cap the high spots in the countryside

Just as the road starts to get a little too busy for our liking, we veer back to the canal in time to watch a boat go through one of the locks. This stretch of the path is shady and soon leads us to Marseillette and the Cafe de la Terrasse. We haven't had a proper lunch since leaving Montpellier four days ago. There's a great menu du jour here of Quiche Lorraine, pork with olives, a chocolate eclair, wine and coffee for 16 Euros.

I've read about the tour boats cruising the Canal du Midi, but we didn't see too many tourists on them.

Cool and shady on the path going into Marseillette

The porch of Cafe de la Terrasse, a pleasant spot to enjoy their lunch deal

One of many lovely spots on the Canal today

Watching the water flow between the locks

In Trebes we turn away from the Cana du Midi one last time and ride through the suburbs in Carcassonne. It's an easy trip into the city. The bike lanes are wide enough and the traffic isn't bad.

Our apartment is roomy, with a nice big balcony. Looking forward to spending the day here tomorrow to see the medieval fortress.

We can hear carillon bells from the balcony

The bell tower of Saint Vincent Church, just a block away

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Today: 29 miles, 909' ascent

For the tour: 262 miles, 10529' ascent

Today's ride: 29 miles (47 km)
Total: 262 miles (422 km)

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