Day 16 - Paullic - on the Gironde, North of Bordeaux

As any cyclist will tell you, the wind is not always your friend. She has been a cruel Mistress to me these last three days, making me fight my way down the West coast. Her relentless presence is like a hand on my forehead, pushing me backwards. If I stop pedalling on flat, or even slightly downhill, ground, any momentum I had, and every effort I've put in, is lost almost instantly as my invisible foe relishes her power. Frustrating, slightly demoralising and, mainly, bloody knackering.

That aside, it's been a pleasant if uneventful few days. I discovered France's Great Yarmouth - Royan, a town that was (apparently) bombed to dust in the war and re-built in true 50's style. They actually say that on the leaflets - Frances premier 50's town! It's kitsch, in a strangely French way and, unsurprisingly, slightly more charming that Great Yarmouth.

I crossed the Gironde at its mouth, by boat, and have today cycled most of the length of the left bank (wine buffs will nod in appreciation at this point). The number and size of the vineyards is truly staggering - I cycled a good 30 miles without losing site of vines as far as the eye could see.

I'm hotel-bound again tonight, due to camping ferme, so I'm off to sample some of the local produce.