Just back from a loop to see the Tour de France in Rouen. I'll keep it brief and let the photos speak for themselves.
Day 1: home to Poole (20 miles) for the 0830 ferry to Cherbourg, then onward 45 miles to Ste Mere Eglise (with the famous parachutist on the church tower).
Day 2: The excellent Airborne Museum, then onwards to Bayeux via Utah Beach Museum - 49 miles. Saw the Tapestry that evening, nice hotel over a brasserie in sight of the cathedral.
Day 3: Wet and rainy, but a stonking headwind to take us to Pegasus bridge north of Caen. Then onward to Honfleur, the second half with some stonking climbs and a quiet road on the map which turned out to be a bit of a rat run. Finished the day with a fast straight downhill into Honfleur to round it off at 55 miles.
Day 4: 50 miles to Rouen for a late lunch next to the cathedral, then saw the Tour finish, at about 1.3km before the arrivee.
Along the Seine (we took a boat across 20 miles upstream rather than this terrifying bridge:
Here is the place where Napoleon's ashes hit French soil in 1840:
Stupid tour promotional caravan stuff:
Day 5: A quick tour of the cathedral (Richard the Lionheart's heart is there), then 66 miles to Deauville, a nicer route with some better choices of climbs and quiet roads.
Day 6: 77 miles to Carentan. This was the big day, hot at 26C or more. However we had a good lunch of crepes in a lovely cafe and arrived by 5 in Carentan to a very welcome beer.
Day 7: 58 miles to Cherbourg. As the forecast was very hot, we opted for a longer route along an old railway line (voie verte) which offered much more shade and gentler gradients. Arrived to 30C heat in Cherbourg, and then the boat home. Left Poole at 22:15 for the 20 miles home - still very warm and o need for anything other than short sleeves and shorts. We got home just a couple of minutes past midnight.
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