Northern Brittany

July 15, 2011

Bastille day took it's toll... Rest day!

July 16, 2011

The rain has returned after a couple nice days and it hung around till about 9am. I quickly packed up my stuff at that point and hit the road planning to head north. After heading inland from the coast a couple kms the land started to roll and was lush and green. The coast has been nice, but a change is always good. 
Throughout the day I travelled on small sealed roads past small towns and farms. It rained a lot, but not constantly. Usually 30 minutes of every hour was rain. It wasn't heavy rain and the day wasn't cold so I couldn't complain. Once I got close to Nantes I had to cross the Loire river. I caught a small (and free!) flat decked boat with some cars and was quickly transported to the other side. The tide was coming in so it was interesting how the boat had to maneuver to get to the other side. Once across the rain started to get progressively heavier so I decided to start looking for campgrounds. I came across one in a small town just west of Nantes and quickly set up my stuff trying to keep everything dry. I heated up some ratatouille that I bought and huddled in my tent for the rest of the night. Covered around 105km today

July 17, 2011

It was still raining this morning so I laid in my tent and planned my route. During a break in the rain I quickly packed up and started out north again. My goal was to make it close to Rennes. 
The rain today was a little less steady... But when it did rain, it poured. My MEC jacket has been amazing this whole trip. Its practically the same thing as Gore so I keep dry but not stuffy. 
The day was mostly uneventful except for the rain and I covered another 105 km. 
Near the end of the day I was trying to find a campground so I consulted an area map in a town center. I learned that there was one about 10 km east so I headed that way. Upon my arrival I found the campground had been shut down even though it was still on the city maps and there were signs pointing to where it used to be. I asked some locals where one was nearby... What I actually asked (because I dont know how to say nearby) was is there camping beside the town, but they got the point. They sent me another 5 or so km east to Paimpont.
On the way I found a supermarket that was open on a Sunday which was a huge score. I was planning on eating bread and peanut butter (which I found again yesterday). Paimpont is set in the Forêt de Paimpont which is where the stories of King Arthur, Merlin and the knights of the round table arguably originated. The stories are thought to have been brought in from offshore but... I don't really care that much anyways. Theres not much to see. However, the forest was dark and dewey and it is a perfect setting for a story such as King Arthurs. 
The campground was small and cheap. Nuff said!

July 18, 2011

I awoke again to rain and started to wonder if it was going to stop at all during this trip. Like yesterday, during a break in the rain I quickly took everything down and loaded up my bike. As I was leaving I took a look at the group who had just arrived across the road from me. It was 4 adults and probably 15-20 kids most likely on a summer camping trip of sorts. Just as they split the kids into groups to set up the tents the rain started again. As I pulled away there were all these kids trying to figure out how the tent works while the stress levels could be seen rising in the adults. No one had appropriate rain gear and I'm sure it was a while before everything was set up. Great start to their trip... I felt bad, but also couldn't help but laugh. It seemed typical to me that all the kids would be soaked and complaining 10 minutes into the trip. I'm sure the chaperones had a lot of fun keeping them all in order.

I set out north-east towards the legendary Mont St. Michel Abbey which I figured was right around another 100km. The ride had less rain than the past couple days which was nice. Brittany is just as I pictured it would be. Endless rolling green hills, forests and farm land (which is remarkably stinky
I might add) It's beautiful, but so far it's been quite cold and obviously rainy.

About 18km from the abbey I finally came over my last hill and began to drop into the flats that were at sea level. Alas, on the horizon was the abbey rising up seemingly perched on nothing. I couldn't help but smile and pedal faster. Upon arrival of the causeway that connects the abbey to the mainland I snapped a couple quick pictures and took in the jaw dropping view... It was like nothing I have ever seen! I headed to my campground which was within walking distance of the island abbey. I knew I'd be visiting the abbey in the morning so I rested. For any of you that have never seen a picture of Mont St. Michel google it now!
When I arrived at my campground I was greeted by an older couple from holland who had parked their RV in my spot by accident. I took their spot right beside and they quickly offered me a couple beers. The man said that I needed a beer for each leg and I couldn't have agreed more. 

For dinner I bought food from an overpriced super market and didn't really enjoy what I had. However, I tried my first taste of Brittany Cider and it made up for the crappy food.

July 19, 2011

I got up around 7:30 this morning and grabbed my baking before walking the 2km causeway to the abbey. It rained again all night so the majority of my stuff has had no chance to dry out. Can't do laundry if you can't hang the clothes... I'll stop here.

Once inside the inner ramparts I walked along the street that curved along the island pitching up steeply. The streets are no more than 10 feet wide and it sure is a sight to see. 
I got up to the abbey doors with only a couple people ahead of me. I was glad i got there early before the midday swarms came. The abbey doors opened at 9 and I paid my admission and grabbed the audio guide.
The history of the abbey dates all the way back to 708 when a sanctuary was built on Mont-Tombe (tombe in Latin meaning raised place) in honour of the archangel Michael. It was continually built throughout the centuries and was unesco listed in 1979. There is so much history to the place that I'm not willing to write much more. Go to Wikipedia.
 The abbey was through and through stunning. The architecture and the views from every angle are worth every penny. The audio guide was great too! When I was in the abbey I could see more rain coming my way across the bay and I wondered if I was ever gonna get a break!
After the tour I walked back along the causeway and grabbed a sandwich. I also visited a couple exhibits on some of the work that is going on at the abbey right now. The causeway that was built I believe around 50 or so years ago has affected the natural movement of the tides therefore taking away from the Monts marine setting and leaving salt marshes all around. Because of this there are several measures being taken to return the abbey to it's original beauty. A small dam has been installed that will help push the sediment back out into the bay and it isn't an eye sore at all which is nice. There is also a pedestrian foot bridge been put in that will allow the water to fully encircle the abbey once again and take away the ugly car parks right in front of the island. I would very much like to return in 40 years to see the difference. The work is supposed to be done by 2012, but pushing the sediment out naturally will take many years. 
After my visit I had a nap during another shower and then packed up my stuff in some very rare sunshine.  I hit the road with low expectations and travelled about 40km to Brécéy. I had a little more rain but was able to do some laundry. I hope it dries!
Tomorrow I will cover about 80 or so km to Caen which will be my jumping off point for the D-Day beaches. The town is also supposed to have some awesome museums. After my ride to Caen and my ride to the beaches that will be all for my touring trip. From Caen I will return to Paris by train, stay in the city for three days and then fly home on the 27th of this month. It's been an amazing trip and it's nice to know it's not quite over yet. It looks like I will cover just over 5000km by the time I leave. 

Time passes too fast.