Monday 4th April 2016 is lurching toward me on the not-so-distant horizon and I begin to wonder whether attempting to cycle from England to the South of France is altogether prudent. The preparations are nearly complete: Velomap downloaded to the Garmin, paper maps marked up, superb new Lezyne pump with pressure gauge, checklist prepared and accommodation booked for the UK leg from Worcester to Plymouth, having done the Lancashire-Worcester stage last year as a warm up.
Man made fibre underwear (for ease of drying overnight) has been purchased, a first, and not altogether welcome, life experience. Yes, I know that this is familiar territory for ladies, so I must steel myself to the alien crutch experience. On the French stages of our quest we have decided to book overnight stays as we go, using Airbnb, budget hotels and what we can find. Otherwise we run the risk of getting behind and racing to the next overnight stop. This would be too reminiscent of one of my more ill-judged holidays, when we hired a narrow boat at Worsley to do the Cheshire Ring of canals, which would have been fine, except that I had allowed a week and you need a fortnight, if it is to be a relaxing and holiday-like experience, which it was not.
My main fears are the misery of extended rain and head winds on the Atlantic coast but we will be having days off and could stay out of the rain reading or in French cinemas, watching low grade no-very-funny comedy films, where they talk very fast indeed and I get about 15%. The iPad will be a great boon as the Guardian will download most days, le Wifi permitting and we have ebooks to read.
I am also hoping for some decent scran but it has to be said that les Français have been corrupted by the rise of Le MacDo and other fast food offers. Pizzas are endemic and of mixed quality. The family-run auberge/restaurant has suffered particularly badly and many sont allés au mur, comme les Français ne disent pas. There is still great food to be had, if you look and choose carefully. Michelin is still good and Trip Advisor is quite helpful, although it often looks as though the reviews have been gamed by staff, family and friends.
In another post I will show the route that we plan to follow. The hardest bit is at the end when we must cross the mountains to drop down into our Pyrenéan valley, the Têt.
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