September 21, 2023
Day 9 - Eurovelo 6 across France
Nevers to Sancerre
This will be our shortest ride of the trip so far ... and our wettest. So, few photographs today … sorry!
After breakfast, we headed off from our abode around 9:00 am. Helene, our host, was ill, so we self-checked out. We did a 'bloke' check to make sure we’d cleaned up adequately, so I hope my Airbnb rating remains intact!
We enjoyed a nice ride out of Nevers, though we had to play chicken with cars at roundabouts during peak hour a couple of times. On the outskirts of the city, we came across a Decathlon store. I told the guys that this is the Bunnings equivalent of sports stores in Europe. Begrudgingly, they entered the store, and I saw them re-emerge about an hour later like kids from a candy store. They even bought a full-size bicycle pump to replace the small hand pumps we’d been carrying and stocked up on bicycle tubes.
We’re heading into a thunderstorm, so we’re keeping an eye on the skies ahead. There aren’t usually many places to shelter during a lightning storm, so it could be an interesting day!
Today's 56 km ride to Sancerre was mostly flat, except for the last kilometre, which has an 18-degree incline ... oh joy! It’s part of a popular Tour de France route due to the challenging climb. The ride took us along excellent bike paths, and the cool weather made for a pleasant ride.
Rain began mid-morning, so we decided to head across two stone bridges into La Charité-sur-Loire. Founded in 1089, it’s famous for the Church of Sainte-Croix-Notre-Dame, which was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998.
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After cycling around the historic areas of the town, we eventually found a place to eat and get some respite from the rain. Three Napoli pizzas were ordered, along with an undefinable egg "thing" for Col ...
As we ate, the rain got heavier, with forecasts of more to come in the afternoon. We decided to pick up the pace, and for the next hour, we averaged around 24 km per hour, soon finding ourselves on the outskirts of Sancerre. Although we were wet, the ride was quite relaxing - until I realized my waterproof rain jacket wasn’t.
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Sancerre is surrounded by acres of vineyards. It’s an award-winning wine district, so I’m looking forward to testing out the local talent!
After some riding and walking uphill, we made our way to the Hotel Du Rampart in Sancerre. We eventually found our first-floor rooms (112 and 113) on the second floor, and the second-floor room (201) on the first floor ... as you do!
After a warm shower, we embarked on a self-guided tour, this time following a red line painted on the streets (a bit different from the blue line in Nevers). The town is small, so it didn’t take long to see the main sights. You could tell it was a tourist town, with so many wine-tasting venues and niche retail shops. You could also tell that the end of the tourist season had arrived - the place was dead at 4:00 pm on a Thursday!
I eventually found a café open in the main square, ordered a coffee in my best French, and sat down to people-watch. No one walked by. I finished my coffee and went off to find a pub.
I wandered into the pub under our hotel and ordered a beer. The female bartender was engrossed in an episode of Mrs. Marple, badly dubbed in French, with the TV volume blasting. As I looked around, I realised the pub also doubled as the local disco nightclub (yes, advertised as such) with a disco ball and flashing lights. It even had two dance cages, complete with poles for the brave!
We found another pub around the corner, regrouped, and spent some time booking our accommodation for the next few days - now for five people, as Stewart will be joining us in two days.
Another day ends! Tomorrow, Gien awaits, some 57 km away.
Today's ride: 56 km (35 miles)
Total: 606 km (376 miles)
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