Tag Archives: cycling along the Loire

Last of Summer in Blois and Stendal

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Today was our last day of summer in Blois. And, despite the sun, there was a slight chill in the air. We know that the next time we go there, in mid-September, autumn will be on its way. We had hoped that waiting until Monday night to go back to Paris after the Assumption weekend would mean less traffic, but we’re not so sure.

Morning view at Closerie Falaiseau
Morning view at Closerie Falaiseau

Before we left the house this morning, we chatted with our current guests at Closerie Falaiseau, Karin and Lothar from Stendal in Germany which is a mere 2,200 kilometers from Blois. They drove 1500 K the first day and 700 K the second , which sounds very Australian, doesn’t it? Karin explained that their home town of Stendal has a French connection. The well-known French author, Henri Beyle, author of Le Rouge et le Noir and La Chartreuse de Parme (1783 to 1842), is believed to have chosen the pseudonym of Stendal  in hommage to  the German writer Winckelmann from the town of Stendal.

Blois Cathedral seen from the esplanade along the river
Blois Cathedral seen from the esplanade along the river

The first thing on the programme for the day was a photo shoot in Blois as we wanted to take enough photos for Blois Daily Photo to last until we come back again. I just took my iPhone but Jean Michel took his Canon 1DS 24/36 which has a special lens that takes photos of buildings without distorting them, unlike mine where I have to stand as far back as I can.

A bench casting shadows in Jardin de l'Evêché in Blois
A bench casting shadows in Jardin de l’Evêché in Blois

We parked along the Loire on the Mail which is what they called the Esplanade here and wandered up the hill to the Jardin de l’Evêché (Bishop’s gardens) behind the Cathedral, feeling very much on holidays. I love the shadows cast by the morning light.

Saint Jacques fountain in Blois
Saint Jacques fountain in Blois

Our last port of call was the Saint Jacques fountain which I had discovered on a previous occasion. It’s just next to the Restaurant de la Fontaine Saint Jacques. I asked the waiter if it would be alright if we momentarily took down the Sangria sign and he very kindly removed it until we’d finished our photos.

My favourite photo in the Blois photo competition
My favourite photo in the Blois photo competition

Before leaving Blois, we checked out this year’s amateur photo competition on the banks of the Loire. Next year, we hope we’ll be able to enter it. This year’s theme was “L’insolite” – the unexpected. My favourite photo was an old gabarre flat-bottomed fishing boat by Thierry Thomas.

A snazzy red and black Smart car
A snazzy red and black Smart car

And, coincidentally, what should be parked just next to us on the Mail? This very snazzy rouge et noire Smart Car!

A gabarre flat-bottomed boat ready to take tourists on the Loire at Château de Chaumont
A gabarre flat-bottomed boat ready to take tourists on the Loire at Château de Chaumont

After a late lunch, we packed the car and drove to Chaumont to try out a new cycling itinerary, upriver a short distance, then down to Valliers les Grandes, across to Souvigny en Touraine, up to Mosnes, then along the river again to Rilly sur Loire and back to Chaumont.

A lavoir with an interesting fountain head in Valliers les Grandes
A lavoir with an interesting fountain head in Valliers les Grandes

It turned out to have lots of hills, especially quite a steep one at the beginning. We saw two lavoirs, four churches and several historical homes and lots of sunflower fields which in French are called tournesol . I always thought they turned in the direction of the sun. However, these were facing east and not west. Perhaps someone has an explanation.

Sunflowers facing away from the sun!
Sunflowers facing away from the sun!

I had just remarked that we hadn’t seen any hot air balloons – you can usually see a half a dozen in the sky at once late afternoon and early morning – when we saw one just ahead of us and quite low down, travelling very quickly towards Chaumont and no doubt on to Chenonceau.

A hot air balloon on the bike path near Château de Chaumont
A hot air balloon on the bike path near Château de Chaumont

The original 25 kilometers somehow turned into 35 because we changed the starting point and took a wrong turning at one stage and it was 8.30 by the time we got back to the Little House for our last barbecue of the season. And now we’re sadly on our way back to Paris and work.

A Barge on a Cycle Path in the Loire Valley

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Writing about cycling along the canals in Brittany and the Loire reminded me of another trip in the Loire Valley. We have this book called (in French) Freewheeling from the Atlantic to the Black Sea and one of the bike paths really took my eye. In the photo, you could see this couple, with their bikes, crossing the Authion River on a little chain-operated barge. I wasn’t going to miss that!

So we found ourselves a lovely B&B called Le Beauregard at Cunault. Mme Tonnelier was away so her husband looked after us and proved an excellent host. The only other guests, a family of 6, were charming. Our room, down the other end of the house, had an oriel window with a spectacular view of the Loire. The next day we visited the castle in Angers which has a wonderful tapestry of the Apocalypse. We left the car there and set out on our bikes. We started off in a rather desolate-looking old slate mining area with enormous pieces of slate all over the ground and quite a bit of dust.

Then came the exciting bit when we got to the banks of the Authion. We could see a young couple in the barge about halfway across, pulling frantically on the chain but the barge seemed to be going further and further down the river instead of across, pulled by the current and the strong wind. Relationnel took charge and shouted instructions on how to get the barge over to our side. It eventually worked and the couple invited us onboard to my surprise; I was expecting them to get off. But in fact they were trying unsuccessfully to get across to the other side when we arrived. There wasn’t much rain in spring this year and the low water level had caused too much slack on the chain.

So, with the four of us tightly backed onto the barge, the stronger members of the party pulled us across to the other side with no further mishap.

We continued down past La Daguenière, Saintes Gemmes sur Loire and Bouchemine. We stopped for a welcome drink and a rest in a café and then went back to Angers via the lake rather than going through the slate again. The round trip was about 40 K.

The next day, we set off from Artannes sur Thouet near Saumur where Relationnel was born, in the direction of Montreuil Bellay. It was a pleasant ride with a lovely surprise at the end. The view of the Thouet River from the bridge as we reached the mediaeval town was absolutely stunning.  And then this wonderful new outdoor restaurant called Auberge des Iles was just waiting for us! We weren’t the only ones though so we attached our bikes and reserved a table and went off to explore the little town.  Still no table on our return so we sat down in the shady armchairs provided and enjoyed the view of the river.

Rose-covered ladies’ tower

After lunch we visited the very beautiful castle with its century-old Lebanese cedar and its rose-covered towers then continued on our way to Saint Martin de Sanzay where, miraculously, we found another café open. Quite often in the smaller villages in France, the cafés have all shut down. By the time we had clocked up our usual 40 ks, we were back to our starting point.

The next day, we moved onto Loches, but that’s another story!

 
B&B Le Beauregard
Fanny et François TONNELIER 
22, rue Beauregard
49350 CHENEHUTTE-TREVES-CUNAULT 
hmcbeauregard1@club-internet.fr
http://beauregard49.com/index2.html
Auberge des Isles
312 rue de Boëtie
49200 Montreuil-Bellay
02 41 50 37 37
www.auberge-des-isles.fr
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