And when they were up they were up...

28 July - 3 August

And when they were up, they were up, and when they were down they were down, and when they were only halfway up they were neither up nor down! (The Grand Old Duke of York)

On Sunday we finished the "Vélodyssée", at least the French section, which we joined at Lacanau Océan, near Bordeaux last year. This year we took up where we left off last year, at La Rochelle. As we'd already done the section on the Canal Nantes-Brest, we crossed Brittany using a series of Voies Vertes. The Voies Vertes (called Greenways in England) are often railway lines that have been converted for cyclists. They are all different in their own way, according to where they are, what their history is, and how well the current administration maintains them. Often there's a break in places, because the train track has been lost to some private or industrial use or a motorway. We spent seven days cycling on 3 of these greenways in Brittany, so I'll try to give you a bit of the feel of it, with a few highlights. 

From Alexandra's place we took local roads, with traffic and quite steep hills to rejoin the Voie Verte 3 at Malestroit, fortuitously close to a big supermarket, where we would have stocked up on food for lunch, had we not noticed that a couple running a restaurant on the corner of the building did midday lunches at a very modest price. The food was fabulous and it took the pressure off finding food for the rest of the day. A good thing.

The surface was great and we made good time, past old railway stations that have sometimes got shelters and toilets set up, past fields of maize, wheat, rolls of hay or straw, paddocks of cows, either black and white or 'blond', over bridges that took us over the canal and canal path that we had travelled last year. 

Up all the way, and down to help the morale, paid for by another UP! We stopped at Ploërmel, as the old station has been converted into a biscuit and chocolate factory and the bike track goes right past it. Tempted by the array of biscuits, we settled for a hot chocolate...gloriously chocolatey and thick, served with...a couple of their biscuits! 

And bought some chocolate (in bag at back)

This part of the Voie Verte 3 ends at a place called Mauron, then the route continues along small roads until you reach the small village of St Léry. With a church and a Mairie and people, but no shops. It had been a long day (over 60km, but a good surface) and the thought of doing another 7km to buy food was overpowered by the good midday meal we had had and the few pieces of food we were carrying with us. Camp ground (municipal) was behind the Mairie; no sign of anyone to take our money. Some caravans obviously belonging to workers in the area but no tourists. We put the tent up anyway and were joined by a couple, Béatrice (French) and Reinhart (German), a little younger than us and doing the same thing - only they had been there before and had stopped to shop in Mauron. 

St Léry camping ground and church

Fabulous camping ground. Simple - grass, shelter, tables, water, electricity, and lovely, fairly new facilities, including a roomy (=accessible) shower, and clean toilets. Hot water without a button to press all the time, and no-one else using it, so it stayed hot. Béatrice and Reinhart pooled their dinner with ours, giving more variety to them and more bulk to us! We talked for a long while into the evening.This is what we like about camping - meeting and talking to people. It doesn't happen in a hotel lobby! And so to sleep!

Next morning we woke late, sometime after 8 and before 9. Shortly after, Reinhard rolled in with their van, which he had collected from the next town by starting out on his bike at 7am! He'd also bought breakfast things for all of us. We usually have a very small breakfast, so it was with trepidation that we started out on a German breakfast!! Actually, it was so good that it lasted us all day!! We didn't leave until some time after 10.30am - on an arrowed route on small roads until we reached St-Méen-le-Grand, where we were to meet up with the Voie Verte 6. Bonus - the Tourist Office was fantastic, and supplied us with the only maps we have so far come across which show us a possible bike route across the north of Brittany. (If the traffic is too heavy, this being August, we'll let the idea go. Meanwhile we at least have some maps with a bike route marked!) To find the Voie Verte we had to cycle through the outskirts of the town but it was well marked. It even started at the 3km mark to show us we had already covered some ground. 

The first distance marker starts at 3km!

We were to follow this track until Carhaix, more than 110 km later (I missed the final distance marker but I remember KM113.) The surface was sandy but do-able, though the dappled light from the trees could easily mask holes or soft spots, so concentration was essential. Still with the cows, maize, wheat, fields of straw, rolls of hay/straw. Gradual ups, sometimes lasting many kilometres (9.5 was the longest over the 3 VVs), followed by the same kind of down. It certainly could be tiring.

Through little towns from time to time but mostly rural, mostly up and down but not nearly so much as on the ordinary roads we could see. The voie verte slopes are within the capabilities of  train engines of over 100 years ago but we found ourselves chuffing like trains or doing the "I think I can, I think I can" of our childhood stories about trains. Lovely little picnic spots from time to time where old stations have been 'recycled'. At least one of them was a gîte, where we could have stayed if we had wanted to wait until 5pm but our tendency is just to keep going until we see somewhere good or reach somewhere we want to get. Loudéac was like that. Rodney had a broken spoke for a day but there are very few repair people along this track - plenty of bike hirers, on the other hand.

I forgot to mention hydrangeas! EVERYWHERE. Loads of them, in all colours, shapes and sizes

We knew Loudéac had a bike repair place so we made that our goal for one of the days. Bike repair quickly done by a fabulously helpful husband and wife team; Rodney's cyclometer was quickly 'fixed' by the wife realising that it was counting miles instead of kilometres... we hadn't thought of that as we always use km but I did know that it was consistently about 2/3 less than mine - that was the clue. Loudéac had a treat in store for us. We couldn't quite cope with the 'awesome' camping ground this town has, with aqua whats-its and this and that and as we passed by the central Hotel le France the day's special was 49€. And a place out back for the bikes. AND a view from the window.

View from window. Concert to right of church

Bonus: this night there was an outdoor concert (free) of Breton music, just beside the church opposite the hotel. Bombarde (Breton wind instrument), biniou (Breton bagpipes), then the accordion added - and the people all dancing, first in a circle, then in different shapes, sometimes separate circles. Those that knew the movements served as models for those still learning, especially the little ones, who would imitate from behind. There was also a group of people whose co-ordination was not good, who were willingly incorporated into the dances, even though they were unable to follow the steps. Such a treat. The music went on long after we had left and we enjoyed that from our open window. And just after 11.30pm, silence, and we slept happily.

Some time after Loudeac we met up with the canal route from last year again, and in fact both the Voie verte and the canal Nantes-Brest follow the same path for a number of kilometres. Interestingly, there was a whole section of gradual climbing that we simply hadn't noticed last year, since the access from the canal to the voie verte is so steep that the railway track (ex) seemed flat by comparison. There's a big descent down to the same Abbey (Bon Repos) as we stopped at last year but this year we had a quick drink and moved on through (on the canal path which the voie verte shares at this stage to a camping ground right beside the canal. Simple, again, with good facilities and a link to the main road where there is a small supermarket. Although it closed at 7pm they let us through to get our much-needed food at a few minutes after! Thank goodness and good on them!

The Spanish couple who arrived just before us were delightful. Anna sounded English and had done the New York marathon twice, when she was living there for 2 years, though her accent was English, since she had lived in London for 8 years. They too like camping grounds as you can just talk to people and they don't think you're weird. Marc spoke English  less fluently and was very friendly and interesting to talk to. He was an active participant in the care of their 17month old son, Bru, who is a real live-wire! 

Anna, Marc and Bru, from Spain

They had biked up from Bordeaux, two bikes and a child trailer that carried lots of their belongings, following the route of the Vélodysée up the coast and were off to London, via Roscoff, to stay with friends for a week.We enjoyed their company and were pleased to meet up outside the supermarket at Carhaix the next afternoon, as we continued on our individual ways - we to to the Carhaix camping ground and they to Rosscoff for the ferry to the UK.

The Carhaix-Morlaix section of the Vélodyssée follows the Voie Verte 7, which we had taken from Carhaix down to the south coast last year. Also lots of ups and downs but the surface on the whole better than the VV6 which was slow going due to the surface - sand which had holes, bumps and areas of soft sand in places. On the other hand it had been raining, so a good part of the track was wet and the sand flew up all over the place - we don't have mudguards. 

Maize - "the corn is as high as an elephant's eye", (Oklahoma 1943)

Busy busy! Tandem has just past the caravan with 4 happy children!

On this stretch you can hire 'gypsy caravans', complete with steel tyres, and the strong horses that pull them, following pre-arranged routes and staying at race courses, where the horses can be well looked after. We met several of these groups on the track, including 4 very excited and smiling children with parents in one caravan, and in another the middle generation taking one of their parents and an adolescent daughter. We also cycled past the rental place later on.

We met and kept meeting a German couple doing the same route as us. (We passed them, then stopped. They passed us, then stopped in their turn. We swapped information and looked at their German guidebook, which is more detailed than our French one.) No camping ground within 5km of Morlaix, so we chose a central hotel. No problem for the bikes - they could stay beside the desk, next to the (XVII century) staircase. I explained about the mud/sand but it wasn't until I showed the lady that she really understood and gave us a bucket of water! Two buckets of water later they were both clean enough to go on a hotel carpet and our German couple had passed by and decided to stay in the same hotel. 

The Hotel de l'Europe - at least two centuries as an hotel

There are apparently only 3 hotels there anyway. Being in the centre was great.
Morlaix has a fabulous train viaduct which you can reach from either the short street - la Rue Courte, mostly steps) or the long street - la Rue Longue. Both are very old streets and some of the houses date back at least 3 centuries. From the station next to the viaduct you can see all over the central area where again many of the houses date back 3 or 4 centuries. History is definitely with us there. 

The German couple left a bit before us and intended to take the inland route to Roscoff, whereas we had decided to take the coast road, promising a prettier route and fewer hills. Halfway to Roscoff the road route crosses the voie verte and takes you away from the traffic onto a series of small, steep local roads. Mercifully with few cars. Within half an hour or so we met up with the German couple who had also decided to do the coastal route, having consulted their guidebook. The hills were still steep though and we had a welcome stop at St-Pol-de-Léon, about halfway. On the way out of town a wolf-whistle drew our attention to the people having a drink at the cafe there - the Germans again! 

Church spires of St-Pol-de-Léon

Artichokes

The land between Morlaix and Roscoff is devoted to market gardens for the most part. Artichokes, beans, hothouses with ?? inside, shallots, garlic, onions, carrots, potatoes... Our narrow, steep roads wound all around the gardens. Quite a lot of new plants too. They need the rain that didn't fall that day, though it threatened to.

We last met up with the Germans at the tourist office. No camping ground for miles - the two we passed at St-Pol-de-Leon did not attract us one little bit and were very expensive because of all their attractions. We opted for a central hotel. I think the Germans took the one with the view of the town. 

Roscoff - view from hotel window 

So that was VV 3, 6 and 7. Plus normal roads. Lots of ups and corresponding downs, fairly challenging surfaces for a lot of the way, passing through countryside and forest, not many towns. About 310km covered and 2085m climbed* (and descended). 

*Thanks, Garmin.

Near Roscoff