Digoin is a centre for ceramic manufacture but otherwise not a lot going on there. The town was pretty dead of a Monday evening as we wandered round trying to find an evening meal … we should have stayed at our hotel’s restaurant as the Thai restaurant we’d seen on our way in was closed Monday night. We considered a kebab place or a burger bar but ended up at a Chinese restaurant, which proved an event in itself. Again, getting a vege meal proved difficult but eventually we were able to work out what was what on the buffet (a volonte’) menu and the chef also cooked us some rice/egg mixture. Overall not very inspiring but it gave us some carbs to work on for cycling the next day. As we wandered back to our hotel the bridge & street lights went on so we were able to take come nice photos of the aqueduct that takes the canal over the Loire. The Loire here looked pretty manky, with long green strands of algae noticeable but I read on Wikipedia that there are over 100 species of phytoplankton in the Loire & amount alters with flow & season.
25th April: After breakfast at the hotel we packed up & left our bikes at the hotel while we visited the Ceramics Museum. We spent about 1.5 hours there as it was very interesting but the woman attendant had to wait at each level for us to complete our viewing so she could direct us to the next level – now that must be one boring job!! While we were there another couple of tourists came into look but I don’t imagine the place is ever busy out of season. I was fascinated by the varied art work and even humorous illustrations that were common on plates back in 18th, 19th & early 20th C. Digoin’s ceramic factories have all, bar one, closed down as can’t compete with China for cheap crockery but they still do special artisan work as well as make toilets and bathroom ware.
The weather took a cool turn as we left Digoin and threatened rain but as we only had 37km to do we were not bothered …. perhaps we should have been! Anyway, the cycling was pleasant much of it along the Loire or Canal Lateral a la Loire. The bird song was delightful with the loudest being the cuckoo; mind you in some areas the cicadas gave it a good go despite there being little sun to warm up their song. The interpretation panels along the route were informative & well placed. We had bought a couple of pain au chocolat and a pizza in Digoin but when Caroline spotted an advertisement for Bar Le Bistrot offering fresh bread, cheese etc she took off there while I minded the bikes resting on the brightly painted seat beside flowers, gumboots & old painted bikes. I can imagine that Le Bistrot in Pierretitte-sur-Loire would be a busy wee place during the Summer season ….. on Tuesday hardly anything moved except for the chickens, the local dogs & the man fishing the canal about 500m from us. Caroline even thought Le Bistrot was closed as lights were out but she pushed the door & was served her request for cheese & bread …… some of the best so far!
As we cycled on from our lunch stop the clouds began to darken but it wasn’t long before we reached Diou where we crossed over onto a greenway alongside the D979. Before we knew it we had reached the outskirts of Bourbon-Lancy, a spa town, where we were to spend the night. We followed the Plan D’eau du Breuil through a lovely park (in which there was a kind of garden display as well as a recreation area & swimming pool) into the old town. It was as we pushed our bikes up the steep hill toward the tourist office that the skies opened & it poured. Rather than wander the medieval inner centre we opted for a cuppa at Pub 1900 but that wasn’t warm so we set off for our accommodation booked through AirB&B – C d'H Le Vietnam. Would have been more easily accessed from the EV6 route had we continued on the trail when we first came in; it is right on the route.
We had thought of returning to the centre once we had got ourselves warm & dry but the thought of walking the 2+km back in while it was still pouring meant we hung around in our room writing postcards & trying to sort future accommodation via internet. It is a truism that the weather affects a way one sees a place; I had hoped for sunny weather to explore the old town & to see whether a back massage would be possible but the rain & bitter cold squashed all enthusiasm out of both of us.
Hoping for a genuine Vitenamese meal, we went down to the café at 7pm to find that it was exactly like the Chinese place the previous night – à volonté; not at all what Caroline was prepared to eat (she ate bread & cheese up in the room later) but I gave it a go & certainly ate enough to keep the wolf from the door. Whilst we were there another 7 people came in …… by the look of them from local farms & all ate heartily. Nothing Parisian chic about these people – just plain, hard working rural folk.
26th April: We had considered going back into ‘Le Vieux Bourbon’ for the morning & checking out the spa resort but the rain had not ceased!! We were not offered breakfast (Air B&B not really the second B!) so we wrapped up well & moved on to Decize, a mere 50km ride away! Almost immediately we dropped down into rolling farmland; mainly dairy country with some cropping. We made it to Cronat (16km) for ‘breakfast’ around 10am after a couple of nut & water stops at the top of steep hills…… at one of these we upset the farm dogs in a big way! Hotel Des Voyageurs in Cronat is to recommended – they certainly can make a hearty omlette naturale, which we each washed down with tea AND a hot chocolate next to a warm fire. When we arrived there was one man propping up the bar with his apertif, by the time we left there were 4 in animated conversation with each other and the landlady. She not only served us & kept their glasses filled but also served the many locals popping in for bread & Lotto tickets. All done with immense bonhomie!
On we went, refreshed toward Decize – uphill & down dale. Despite the rain it was an interesting ride passed many farms – loved the free range piggery – and through rural villages such as St Hilaire Fontains & Charrin. At one stage we cycled along a stop bank beside La Cressonne River (10km max. speed allowed) then wound our way around down to the banks of the Loire. What surprised both of us was how sandy the banks of the Loire are; it is described as the last wild river in France & it is obvious that it floods at times. Eventually we cycled up to & over the D981 & rail line to join a greenway (quite potholey .. munted!) along the L’Aron River & Canal du Nivernais into Decize. The latter part of the ride along the canal is through industrial warehouses & rail yards into St Leger before crossing the Loire proper again into Decize. And, I must comment on French drivers ..... they are patient; the few cars that were on the roads we took waited quietly behnd us until they could clearly see it was safe to pass and did so leaving a good distance between us & them. We feel quite safe on rural French roads & even on the inner-city cycle routes.
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| Follow the arrows and find the sights of interest in Decize |
The rain had got stronger so we warmed up over pizza & salad at Brasserie Chez Maxime's right on the main square. Whilst the food was good we were rather taken aback by the four Scotty dogs sitting with their people at the table or scooting round the legs of other patrons – nice dogs but ….!!! At 2.15pm-ish we went to the Information Centre where a friendly woman helped us locate a couple of Chambres de Hôtes we could check out. The first was full so he (Frederic) kindly phoned through to the other but whilst she (Mireille) could take us it was not until 4.30pm that we could check-in; it was just on 3pm so Frederic kindly allowed us to sit inside at his place in the warmth until time to go round to meet Mireille at Cd’Hotes Maringue.
Our host was delightful as were her two gorgeous dogs (French breed), who, with their long noses, quickly found where our food stores were! After settling into our lovely B&B with private bathroom & toilet at E67, we did an evening walk of the old town following the catfish trail – town ramparts, historic monuments etc – before heading to a café for dessert & a cuppa to end the day. We chose the café at Hotel de l’Agriculture where I had a tarte a la maison & Caroline a chocolate mousse; the strange thing about that restaurant is that it is only open in the evening between 7.15 & 8.30pm!! Most of the other restaurants we looked at seemed rather tired, closed or unappetizing ….. many shops closed in Decize, town looks a little sad but maybe over the Summer season it perks up. All in all a damp but interesting 50km cycle ride capped off by improved evening weather & a leisurely walk; temp. 8C & dropping overnight.
27th April: The day dawned brightly but cold for our 36km ride to Nevers along a greenway. It was a pretty poorly maintained greenway with lots of grass & weeds growing along it, which will soon turn it into a potholed route more suitable for moungtain bikes if the adminstrators are not careful. We wondered if this part of the region Bourgogne-Franche-Comte is not doing so well as even parts of the canal were collapsing. We saw only 3 other people during our ride so it was a pretty quiet day with plenty of wild life to see - herons, an otter, cats & dogs on a barge from Rotterdam. Our first stop was at Jaugenay to look at an ancient chapel on a farm - got teh dogs barking madly at the farm! Onwards to Chevenon to look at the chateau there & hopefully warn up over a cuppa at the local cafe but it looked closed. We found a yummy patisserie open where we bought bread & two cheese pies, served by a delightful woman who spoke English well & had travelled to NZ. As we cycled passed the cafe we saw a man go in so maybe it was open & they were just saving power (despite France's nuclear power perhaps they need to develop more solar & wind options)?!
Despite the low distance today we both felt the ride was hard work - a head wind, the sun playing peek-a-boo, biting cold, threat of rain & bumpy surfaces made it all a bit frustrating! We were very pleased to finally hit the smooth greenway into Nevers - it was tree-lined with a new cafe (being built of wood) being readied for the Summer season. We hadn't been able to book any accommodation before hitting the city and the Warmshowers network hadn't turned up anything but Caroline had seen an ad for accommodation at the old convent of Saint Bernadette ... so that is where we are alongside pilgrims on retreat. Take a look at the information on Espace Sainte Bernadette Soubirous
The rest of the afternoon we dodged hail, sleet & rain showers to explore a bit of this ancient city ..... and find something we could eat for dinner that wasn't pizza, omelette or cheese. So many of the cafes were either full of smokers, looked uninviting or offered only meat dishes UNTIL we found a delightfully small Vietnamese cafe - Tratteur Asiatique My My where we chose noodles vege and vege tofu, TWICE!! So good that we may go back tomorrow! Friendly owner & fresh food.
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| Ducal Palace, Nevers |
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