Where east meets west

We’ve been slowly moving east on this trip, while our friends Michelle and Steve have been moving west on their first European cycling trip. We knew we would meet up at some point and today is the day.

They’ve ridden from Basel (Switzerland) to meet up with their friends Deb and Howard who spend their European summers cruising the inland waterways of Europe on their barge Moondance. They met Moondance in Nevers last week and have turned back east, cruising slowly along the Canal Lateral á la Loire to Decize.

We’re still in Never this morning, and after a quick ride around town we head also along the lateral canal.

Canal riding is easy. It’s flat, apart from some occasional short and sharp uphills where the tow path rises to cross a road, and the paths are (thus far on this trip) paved and relatively smooth, although sometimes tree roots can be a little troublesome, making the path bumpy in a way that is not immediately obvious.

We fly along the canal not really noticing that it is every so slightly uphill the entire way, and passing several locks. At Fleur-sur-Loire, in fear of missing out on lunch again, we stop at a pretty canal-side cafe for lunch. There are plenty of people enjoying the day, and it looks like this is a boat docking area. Boats don’t travel fast on these waterways – Michelle and Steve spent three days I think travelling from Nevers to Decize, a trip that will take us only a couple of hours by bike.

French lunch menus tend to have a “formule” where you can order entrée and plat, or entrée and dessert, or entrée/plat/dessert for a set price. We totally buck the trend by ordering only a plat (main), and then sharing it. Margherita pizza with a side of ratatouille. What isn’t there to like?

It’s just a short ride then into Decize, where we find Michelle and Steve waiting for us on Moondance. We meet Deb and Howard for the first time, though as they are very long-term friends of Michelle and Steve we must have crossed paths with them before at birthday parties as I’ve known Michelle now for more than 20 years.

It’s great to catch up with friends, share travel stories and just hang out in familiar company. We all eat dinner together, though finding a restaurant in Decize that’s open on a Tuesday night is not easy. It seems that on Sundays/Mondays/Tuesdays in smaller places I’m going to have to be content with pizza or veggie burgers. It doesn’t seem so French!

Stats for today:

• Distance: 38.87km
• Climb: 44m
• Average speed: 16.9km/h
• Average temperature: 30C
• Moving time: 2:18:23
• See our ride on Strava

The beer picture

At the end of a day’s ride, our tradition is to enjoy a beer, and to photograph it for posterity. Today’s beer picture was taken on Deb and Harold’s boat and with Michelle and Steve, who’ve been riding west from Basel, while we’ve been riding east from Saint-Brevins-les-Pins. We met in the middle with zero days to spare. The beer is courtesy of Harold’s well-stocked fridge on their well-appointed barge.

Along the way today: