Feeling flat

Yesterday’s rain had gone and the sun made a welcome appearance this morning. I planned to clock up another forty odd miles to Champdeniers St Denis in the knowledge that the terrain was hilly. The English proprietor of the Hotel Voltaire gave us a copious breakfast and I left Ros to pack and complete the formalities.

The first dozen miles were through superb countryside, buzzards overhead, meadows full of poppies to marvel at.

Coffee time was taken at Gourge’s picturesque bar/restaurant.

I listened as an English couple ordered drinks in appalling French and then engaged me in conversation. They have lived in the Vendée for years! I coasted down from the village centre to their medieval bridge where I met an Australian couple and we posed for photos.

Ros had chosen a lovely spot for a picnic on a grassy area between the river and the ramparts of Parthenay. The rest of the ride is a bit of a blur, so many short, sharp climbs and steep descents. Eventually, after an essential refuelling stop as I was flagging badly, I arrived in Champdeniers desperate for a flat bit of road to ride along.