August 8, 2006
Day 30: Agen - Lagruere: This campground I love
We mosey around Agen for a while in the morning, it's a pleasant town with charming old streets. Agen's highlight, however, is the canal-bridge which allows the Canal Latéral to cross the Garonne. The construction of the Canal Latéral was a brilliant piece of engineering at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, opening up new possibilities for transporting goods coming from Sète to Toulouse on the Canal du Midi.
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We have no information on the Canal Latéral after it leaves Agen. Will there be a path that is good for cycling? We set out and find we can follow the canal for the rest of the day, the paths are fantastic.
In Buzet we leave the canal, not on purpose actually, but because we didn't find the continuation of our path. The detour on charming small roads takes us past fields of sunflowers, now withered, farms, small woods, one or two villages.
Later on we again find the canal, the excellent tow path is still there, and ride to the next campground at Lagruère. We deserve this campground after some of the bummers we've had. I feel comfortable here. The campground is located between the bank of the canal, where a few house boats tie up for the night, and fields, has sites for a dozen tents at the most, it is all very simple but with everything you need: peaceful surroundings, hot showers, as in almost every campground in France, and a little restaurant where we have an excellent meal with good wine.
It is full moon, is that why I sleep so poorly? Or is sleeping in a tent just not that comfortable. Lying awake, I hear owls hooting very close to our tent, maybe in the tree next to us. I love hearing their plaintive, haunting call in the night, it's almost worth not sleeping.
Today's ride: 52 km (32 miles)
Total: 1,796 km (1,115 miles)
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