Redon- Elven

15 August

At Redon the river we were travelling on changed from the the Vilaine to the Oust, which we followed all the way to Malestroit. There are long stretches of canal but the river section is longer. There are weirs on the river to keep the level high enough to navigate, and locks for boats to use to get up or down the height. 

Right next to the track on the Ile aux Pies, which is an attractive holiday destination in itself, is a kind of confidence course, at 5 levels, from 1-25 metres, and from age 5. There are all sorts of opportunities to try out skills in a safe environment, with long flying foxes joining sections of the 'parcours'. We were fascinated and just watched for quite some time.

Lunch was taken outside, 'on the terrace' of a restaurant, in a small-town called St Martin-sur-Oust, just over the river from the track. The day was hot and it was lovely to sit in the shade of the umbrellas. The Breton crepe is not too much of an indulgence for lunch, neither price-wise nor quantity-wise. 

It didn't take long to do the 13km or so to Malestroit, where our friend, Alexandra, came on her father's bike to lead us up to her parents' house. I had stayed there before and it was great to see everyone again and to sit - again in the shade - with cold drinks. We talked, walked round the garden, threw objects for the dog to retrieve, and generally had a great afternoon. Locked our bikes up in a sheltered part of their place and went off in the car to where Alexandra lives, in a lovely village not too far away, called Elven.