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Today was a struggle to get moving as we had Sunday off (day of rest etc). We decided to move away from the coast as the wind coming off the English channel was freezing, so we headed south in hope of finding warmer weather.

There seemed to be endless hills on our route, and having left the chilly sea breeze behind us, we actually worked up a sweat.

The route was also on a busy road with big scary trucks. We headed off the main road and forced the garmin to re-route us onto quieter roads. The garmin got his revenge by sending us up the hilliest routes possible. He’s about as vindictive as the lady in our Tom Tom!

We did a meagre 30kms before calling it a day and decided to stop in a hotel for the night. The campground was another 20 kms away and we just couldnt be bothered.

The hotel was in the middle of hicksville. We said we would like to eat in their restaurant. At 7.15pm the phone in our room rings, summoning us for dinner.

We arrive downstairs to a plate of salad consisting of potatoes, mushrooms, avocado, some fishy things (looked like that pickled fish you get in a jar) and a selection of meats and breads. There was also a carafe of red wine. Please note we did not order any of this and we have no idea how much it will all cost. It was yummy and we ate it all knowing this was only a starter.

Then the main course came out. It was a big blob of meat, with noodles and lettuce. It also was really yummy – but very filling.

Then came the cheese platter with a large selection of cheeses. We figured we were not expected to eat all of this.

Then they bought dessert – and Mike took two. We still arent sure whether he should have taken the custard with his cake. Guess we will find out in the morning on our bill.

Day 9 – Dinard to Saint Cast-le-Guildo (click to display route in new window)

Wednesday May 11, 2011, 26 km (16 miles) – Total so far: 340 km (211 miles)

Cycling with a hangover is not much fun. We spent the last couple of days at Ali’s campground in Saint Cast. It wasn’t open till the weekend so she was able to put us in a luxury cabin with toilet, shower and full kitchen with oven. They call this camping!

We found a supermarket which sold beer for 22c per can and this is to blame for the hangover. Beer is cheap in France and would be a great place to live if you were an alcoholic. We are moving to France next summer to run a campground.

Ali was still in the process of getting the campground ready for opening so Mike helped to build a few barbecues. He built so many it is starting to look like one.

Day 3 Denneville to Gouville-sur-Mer (click link to view route in new page)

Our usual routine is to get up around 9am, Mike makes a cup of tea, I complain the water tastes funny, so he makes another one out of our bottled water. Then we have a big bowl of cereal with fruit, pack up our tent and stuff and be on the road by about 11am. It’s a perfect lazy way to start the day.

On the road the first priority is to pick up a baguette for lunch and a couple of pastries for afternoon munchies, and either some ham or cheese.

The trick is to get to the shops either before 12 or after 2pm as they shutdown for lunch.

We had another stunning day of flat riding.

At 2pm, after 35kms I decided I had enough. We found a perfect campground right beside the beach. The weather was deliciously warm. It was nice to thaw out after the previous freezing cold days. We grabbed our e-readers and sat on the beach reading for the afternoon and drinking beer we bought for 44c.

We cooked a delicious bacon and mushroom pasta for dinner, served with crusty bread.

We finished the day watching the sun set over the atlantic while sipping our 44c beer.

Day 2 Le Rozel to LePieux to Denneville (click link to view route in new page)

The day started with a big arsed hill. I moaned and cursed as I pushed my bike up thinking “I’m not sure I wanna do this any more, it’s just too much effort”. As I approahced Mike who was waiting for me at the top, he said ” Look, we have a nice downhill run now, doesn’t that make it worth it”

And he was right. If this is the reward for the uphill slog then it’s definitely worth it. 2 km of sheer downhill bliss, no peddling, wind in our faeces, not a care in the world.

Until the road ended.

“That bloody GPS is a piece of shit”, I exclaimed

“oops, sorry” said Mike.

So we pushed our bikes back up and continued on in silence.

The rest of the day was perfect cycling along quiet country lanes and quaint villages. After only 30kms (yeah my arse was hurting) we decided to stop for the night. We staked out the campground and decided we would be happy to camp here. Then someone had a bright idea to try the next campsite as it was more likely to have a bar and internet.

We cycled 3 kms to the next campsite only to find it was 5 euros more expensive ,they didnt have internet, the bar was closed and they had no toilet seats! We decided to backtrack 3 kms for toilet seats.

For dinner we cooked cajun pork, fried rice and mushrooms.