Day 35- Lorquin to Nancy
The accommodation last night might not have looked the best from the outside but it was very homely and welcoming by the host. I am afraid I did not get her name. There were several others in the house with us as we found out at breakfast this morning.
We had a sleep in this morning!!!
Up at 6.00 am to be ready for breakfast at 8.00 am in the kitchen with the other guests. Breakfast was juice and toast for me with a coffee…. For others there was cheese and meat sausage which did not really appeal to me.
After breakfast it was time to load up our bikes for the ride to Nancy. We were on our way at about 8.45 am which was a little later than usual but the days ride was essentially a downhill along the canal through to Nancy so the later start was not a problem.
The first few kms we had a bit of a climb to get back on to the canal cycle path which was a bit of a tester for the legs but all went well.
Weather wise, the day was reasonably cool with temperatures in the high teens with high clouds. It started with no wind but as the day went on a breeze in our faces made for harder riding.
The ride along the canal was much like yesterday but we were heading downstream rather than upstream! It seems that the lake near Lorquin is the head water for the canal running in a westerly direction. It was quite interesting that we crossed the lake with the canal running through it and the lake either side of the banks…. See the photo which gives you an idea of what I mean.
The canal on this side today was not as busy with boat traffic as we experienced yesterday and the bike traffic was light too.
We made our first stop for morning tea at the 30 km mark at Lagarde and the only shop that was open was a ship chandler selling goods for people renting boats…. No coffee to be had unfortunately so I had a Fanta… Funny I was not a Fanta fan back in Australia but it seems the European Fanta is more tasty and thirst quenching!
After coffee it was on to lunch at the 50 km mark of the ride at Einville. Luckily for us the bakery was open and we could get some lunch. Chris and Steve both had a salad and I had quiche and a muffin and a coffee…. All good for the final 25 kms into Nancy.
Once again we were alongside the canal for the majority of the trip which made for easy navigation for me as the designated navigator for the day.
We arrived at the end of our course at about 2.30 pm and had some difficulty in finding the accommodation. We had several tries including a bike ride about 3kms away to an abandoned building with several trashed cars!!! All looked very bad until we had a good look and went back to the original point we had on cycle.travel and we found it…. Lesson learned from this was believe our plotting on cycle.travel which is signed off by all of us each evening before the ride!!!
We are in a very comfortable apartment in what appears to be the modern sector of Nancy. The cost for all 3 of us for the night is € 78 which is very reasonable.
I have found today that I am starting to think in the French language a bit more and have made the German language KAPUT…. Funny how that word in German makes you feel so much better when you say it… on several occasions in Germany we all found ourselves saying this with a lot of vigour when required. The French language I find a bit softer and less abrasive when spoken… anyway just an observation.
The ride today was about 78 kms and we climbed about 180 metres… most of that was in the first 10 kms.
The photos today are:
The route
Steve and I with our host for last night’s accommodation saying goodbye this morning .. with the dog!
My Garmin showing the canal in the lake as we were riding along the canal!
A view of the canal from the lock which had a 17 metre fall !!!
All is calm on the lake!
A very nice barge near where we had morning coffee…. Or should I say Fanta!
A selfie of me at the 2000 km mark!!!! Great effort for a 72 year old!
The bakery at Einville where we had lunch… the Bikes needed a rest!
Our accommodation for the night…. Very comfortable when we found it!
