A new route & new challenge..........

We are still here in Confolens having survived the biggest thunder storm in the world last night. Glad we were in a hotel - the storm seemed to circle us for about 4 hours and it seemed a thunder bolt just missed the hotel. This morning the damage to Toulouse was all over the TV. We have not 1 but 2 weather girls back near Woking reporting in on a daily basis on the future weather - boy did they get it wrong - I certainly would not like to have been camping last night. I keep telling John to give them a "buck-up" but he very defensive and maybe a little afraid - he says they are doing the best they can mmmmmm!!!!!!!!

We had a review of where we are at and where we are going. We have completed well over  third of the journey, just over 600km and looking at the book the easiest section. The terrain gets more hilly as the journey progresses and we have the Central Massive to cycle over. Is this too much of a challenge? Are we fit enough and are we made of stern enough stuff to keep a PMA when it really starts to get tough? We discussed this over a caraffe or 2 or Loire Rose, and we decided that we were weak and feeble and that today we would look for our adventure elsewhere.

In a small village about 45km away in Mansle, some old friends of ours have an old farmhouse thingy which they have renovated and a quick phone call revealed that yes someone will be there tomorrow. Some guys from the 'Barrel Club', so named because they all used to congregate once a month and stand around a barrel in someone's  kitchen and drink until it was empty or they had all fallen over. Every so often they come to France and do the same thing and that's tomorrow night. We will be there.

We  have decided to head for the west coast, we should hit it in about 3 days at Royan on the north bank of the Gironde at it's entrance. We will then mosey into Bordeau and pick up the Canal du Gironde and then the Canal du Midi and flow effortlessly across the middle of France to the Mediterrainean. This route will be less challenging terrain wise but just as much fun wine wise!! Gilly & I have done some of this route a couple of years ago but are quite happy to re-visit. This will also cut  few hundred kilometres off our total. It will mean we will have crossed France by velo - yippee!

We are going to keep the camping stuff, cut down on our daily mileage, drink more wine and take time to run bare foot through the wet meadows in the mornings - or someting like that!!!!  Some maps are on the way home and some new ones have been added so at 0800 tomorrow morning we shall be pedalling out on a new adventure.

P.S. We saw 'Mister Big' in the bar this lunchtime - black shirt, black jacket, black tousers and white shoes with a 'moll' on his arm. He had a bullet hole in the side of his neck - luckily he did not focus on us and we escaped unscathed! Please do not mention that we saw him as we do not want his mob chasing us through France. Thanks.