Day 22 - Vieux-Boucau-les-Bains - South West France
"But, you know, it can't rain all the time."
Hmm...talk about tempting fate because, actually, it did rain all the time. Well, it did on Sunday at least and I can tell you with some authority that rain, camping, sand and cycling is not a good mix.
After three hours of it on Sunday, and no end in sight, I retreated to a hotel to lay my things out infront of a heater and remove damp sand from, err, damp sandy places. My panniers are waterproof, if you pack them properly. Lesson learnt.
The other lesson learnt is that quiet France is all very well and good but a different game altogether when you get to the real 'summer' towns - the ones with the beaches. Here you find that instead of summer just being busier, it is, in fact, 'it'. At this time of year they are just dead.
Still, South I continue to go, now finding some (sandy) campsites open. The boarded up bars, restaurants and supermarkets on site hint at more profitable, and sunnier, times, and also add another 2-4 miles to my daily riding in order to stock up on supplies and get a beer in the evening. Not a hardship by any means and I comfort myself with the thought that in 2/3 months time I may very well be sick of 'the summer season' and crave a quiet, chilly French town in April.
The riding continues to be flat and the pine forests beautiful and calming, perhaps natures way of preparing me for the 'storm' of the Pyrenees?
Hmm...talk about tempting fate because, actually, it did rain all the time. Well, it did on Sunday at least and I can tell you with some authority that rain, camping, sand and cycling is not a good mix.
After three hours of it on Sunday, and no end in sight, I retreated to a hotel to lay my things out infront of a heater and remove damp sand from, err, damp sandy places. My panniers are waterproof, if you pack them properly. Lesson learnt.
The other lesson learnt is that quiet France is all very well and good but a different game altogether when you get to the real 'summer' towns - the ones with the beaches. Here you find that instead of summer just being busier, it is, in fact, 'it'. At this time of year they are just dead.
Still, South I continue to go, now finding some (sandy) campsites open. The boarded up bars, restaurants and supermarkets on site hint at more profitable, and sunnier, times, and also add another 2-4 miles to my daily riding in order to stock up on supplies and get a beer in the evening. Not a hardship by any means and I comfort myself with the thought that in 2/3 months time I may very well be sick of 'the summer season' and crave a quiet, chilly French town in April.
The riding continues to be flat and the pine forests beautiful and calming, perhaps natures way of preparing me for the 'storm' of the Pyrenees?
posted by Percy Herbert @ 3:21 pm
3 Comments:
At 11:17 am,
Anonymous said…
Pyrenees!!!
They don't look that steep on the map!!
Greener
At 2:44 pm,
Mike said…
Pyrenees. Certainly not flat - at least not as 'the crow' flies eh percy?
At 4:58 pm,
P. said…
Vieux-Boucau
That's the town I worked in (camping Lou Pignada in Messanges)! Lodsa pine trees and dusty roads. I remember Vieux Boucau being a small but picturesque place - though not so much when it's wankering it down I guess. I cycled down to the Spanish border from there on my day off once, so kinda know what you're going through - although my only 'luggage' was a water bottle - not quite the same.
Post a Comment
<< Home