MBD2 Enroute: France

Lisieux
Mon 9 Jun 2014 Cumulative distance 1705km
Another grey morning, with growling thunder and occasional heavy showers. However, the superb landscape, in parts cloaked in mist, was adequate compensation. When the sun occasionally broke through the effect was dramatic. After about two hours on the road we stopped in St. Pierre-sur-Dives for our morning coffee/tea and found a local market in full swing.

After leaving St. Pierre we followed minor roads as usual and were intrigued by the quite sudden changes in architectural style of the buildings along the way. Stone buildings gave way to houses and barns constructed with exposed wooden beams infilled with mud or mortar and, in some places, thin bricks. The roof lines also changed and the overall effect was of being quickly transported to a whole new area.

After weathering yet another heavy downpour we reached Lisieux in the mid-afternoon and found the place sleepy, to say the least. Few people in evidence and the first hotel we checked, although supposedly open, had no-one about. So we moved onto another and soon had rooms for the night and a secure garage for our bikes.

Like so many other towns in this region Lisieux was heavily bombarded as part of the Normandy landings, killing 800 inhabitants and destroying two thirds of the town. Near the town centre there is a large bascilica in honour of Sainte-Thérèse who lived in the nearby Carmelite convent. Devotion to Sainte-Thérèse has made Lisieux France's second most important site of pilgrimage, after the Pyrenean town of Lourdes.

Ussy to Lisieux

(click on image to enlarge in a new window)

Lisieux

(click on image to enlarge in a new window)

Ussy
Sun 8 Jun 2014 Cumulative distance 1650km (no change)
A restful day in a lovely village, under sunny skies. After a late breakfast, having cycled the short distance to the village boulangerie to get some freshly baked baguettes, we tackled the usual chores - laundry, bike cleaning & maintenance, route planning for the next days - before stretching out in the sun lounges in the garden for a snooze.

As the internet connection was a bit dodgy we had to sit in the garden close to our host's front door to get adequate reception.

We all enjoyed the day off and, with our batteries recharged (figuratively and literally) we are looking forward to the next phase.

Our Gite in Ussy

(click on image to enlarge in a new window)

Ussy
Sat 7 Jun 2014 Cumulative distance 1650km
Well that was a short summer! A dramatic thunderstorm during the night - lightning and thunder that rattled the windows combined with a heavy downpour. The morning was grey and the rain steady as we had breakfast and loaded our bikes. However, buoyed by the predictions of improving conditions, we set off towards Falaise in all our wet weather gear, hoping soon to strip off some layers as we warmed up.

As usual, on the road, the conditions were not bad, although we had to spread out to avoid the spray from our rear tyres. By mid-morning the rain had stopped, the clouds were breaking up and the sun occasionally making its presence felt. The lushness of the countryside was a testimony to the large amounts of rain in this region.

Our route avoided major roads, occasionally causing us to tackle some steep hills as the gradients on such roads are somewhat random. As compensation, in one small village, as three of us pushed our bikes (Marianne rode) up a 14% section, we encountered a group of the locals out on their tractors. They came, one after another, probably twenty in all, some ancient but carefully restored, others obviously still working beasts that lived outdoors most of the time. Denis was especially pleased, sighting various makes and models with which he was familiar, and others that were complete novelties. We snapped some photos and greeted the farmers, much to their delight.

We had determined to deviate to view the Gorges de St-Aubert and stopped at a look-out at Roche d'Oetre, a fortunate move as although the road we followed paralleled the gorge, we didn't get another glimpse of it! Nevertheless the road was fabulous, winding through forests and past lovely old houses. With the sun out it was magic.

We reached Falaise around 3pm and made a beeline for the Tourist Office. This time our concerns regarding accommodation shortages were realised - the confluence of the D-Day celebrations yesterday and a long weekend (Monday is a public holiday) resulted in all hotels being fully booked, and most B&Bs occupied. The young woman behind the counter laboured tirelessly, working down the list of B&Bs until she finally found a place in Ussy, about 8km outside town. It is a 'gite', a house that is usually only booked by the week, with all facilities. So after a quick coffee and loop through the town (William the Conqueror spent his childhood in the fortress there) we went shopping and, with the bikes loaded down with groceries for the next days, we headed out of town.

The 'gite' is delightful, with a surrounding garden, and a large combined kitchen/sitting/dining room, a couple of bedrooms and a single bathroom. A little remote but suitable for a couple of nights as we are due for a rest-day.

Tinchebray to Falaise