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squiz Member Member#: 6644 Location: Registered: 27-05-2007 Diary Entries: 3071 |
4th October 2013 Mt. Biking: Corniche de Gironde river Wind Direction: Wind Stength: Surf / Sea State: Air Temperature: Sea Temperature: Weather: dull and rainy :( Max Speed: Distance Covered: Friday 4th October – travelling and bike along the Corniche de Gironde river *** - dull and rainy :( We left the island after filling up with diesel (very cheap at 1 euro 26 a litre), water and shopping. We even paid the toll to get down near Bordeaux in about an hour and a half. It was only 9 euros so worth that to save going round all those roundabouts! I decided to make for a place called Blaye for lunch which is on the Gironde river just where the Dordogne comes into it. It rained most of the way and was still raining while we ate lunch. There is a citadel which looked interesting so when it stopped raining we walked round that and it was very interesting and had some lovely old buildings inside it. The views over the estuary were great too. We decided we would stay here because although it is a camper aire, it is free, we have prime position on the end nearest the river bank and it will save us having to look for somewhere else. After a cuppa we took the bikes off and set off in the direction of Bourg which is quite a long way up river. We have got used to the wonderful cycle tracks on Re so having to bike on the road was quite scary! We got to Plassac which is an ancient village with lots of Roman buildings including a Roman villa which has had a building built over some of it to protect it. We met a very helpful English man in Plassac, near the Roman dock, and he gave us lots of useful information including the fact that we could have stayed right next to the Roman dock overnight! If only we had known. While we were talking to him it started to rain but we carried on to have a look at the buildings and the ruined villa. We wanted to go along the corniche road for a little way too and by the time we got there we were absolutely soaked because the rain was torrential and there was thunder and lightning! There were several fishing sheds, with their huge nets hanging out ready to be dipped into the river, along the corniche in the village of Roque de Thau and beyond. When we had turned round I decided to bike up onto a viewing point to see the sheds better – however, I hadn’t realised that the whole viewing point was made from wood and as it was completely soaked as soon as my front wheel hit it I went flying one way and the bike the other!!! Mag was really worried I had really hurt myself because it looked so spectacular but I was fine and only had to put my chain back on! Phew. We peddled back getting even more drenched if that’s possible and got back to the van laughing our heads off! It was fun in a strange kind of way:) While we were away a river cruise ship had docked at the mooring right next to the van and we had prime position to watch the guests coming into dinner and the chefs working in the kitchen at the back. We watched all this go on while eating our tea. I went for a wander with the camera when it was dark to see if the citadel was lit up. So a good day even if we have a bag full of soaking wet clothes and shoes to try and dry out!! Saturday 5th October – travelling and bike ** Ste-Foy-la-Grande - sunny periods with heavy rain We watched the river cruise ship (Princess d’Aquitaine) leave as soon as we woke up! We hung all our wet stuff around and then after breakfast packed it all away again and set out to drive along the road we biked along last night. It was a really nice morning but the weather for the whole day was extreme – sunny bright blue sky, huge white clouds then black clouds, thunder and lightning and rain all within a few minutes! We stopped where the Dordogne meets the Garonne and were amazed that the point is completely covered in industrial ugliness The road along the corniche was really pretty though and mile after mile of vineyards. Some of the vines were being stripped by the strange looking machinery and then we were pleased to see one being harvested in the traditional way and it looked like the people had dressed traditionally and made it a real occasion:) We headed for Libourne to find a tourist information and were amazed that when we got to the outskirts and looked at the river the Princesse d’Aquitaine was coming round the bend to moor up!!! So it took them 4 hours to get from Blaye to Libourne. We watched it moor and the poor blokes getting absolutely soaked as one of the freak showers just happened to pour down at that point! The guests were eating lunch as they moored and I suppose they were going into the town in the afternoon. Watching the men put the gangplank together showed how much hassle it is every time! We got a local map from the tourist information but it was a very frustrating day of trying to find a simple, nice little town to park in to get the bikes off and cycle along the Dordogne – it just wasn’t happening! We tried all the little towns and villages but didn’t really find anything like we were looking for. The river itself and the surrounding area is very pretty but there is not a lot of access to the river and the roads are not really suitable for cycling safely either. We stopped at Castillon a Bataille for lunch and watched some people skulling/rowing then carried on our search but didn’t find anything until we got to Ste-Foy-la-Grande. Well it is Port-Ste-Foy-et-Ponchapt really! We followed some camper van signs and found a nice out of the way car park where campers are allowed to park right on the river and with a walnut tree! Things were looking up. We got the bikes off and had an explore of Ste Foy and the surrounding area but other than the river and some very old buildings in the town across the bridge there wasn’t anything very exciting. Photo Gallery here |
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