Days 8-12

I’m writing this from our campsite in Mirande, mid Day 12! We’ve checked into the campsite in pretty cold and dreary conditions – quite a contrast from the sun as we left La Reole this morning! The waterpark isn’t open so the kids are making their own fun with washing up liquid, water and a slide 😁 Sonny’s having a sleep so I thought I’d take the opportunity to write a quick update about the last few days.

Day 8: Day 8 was the ride to Chateau- Renault and the first 80 miler in France. It was a difficult day in the saddle for the lads with thunderstorms in the morning and strong winds so they were being battered all over the place with little coverage on the route. It was also very humid. Chateau-Renault was a very small, sleepy village. The campsite itself was very basic – but we had a hook up so had everything we need. It wasn’t busy and conditions were good overnight so all in all I think we had a decent night.

Day 9: A beautiful day weather wise to ride the Chateau-Renault to Chauvigny leg. The boys agreed this was the best day riding so far. Perfect tarmac and whilst a very hot and sunny day, it was a hugely enjoyable 85 mile ride! The campsite at Chauvigny was a good find – well equipped, quite busy and friendly. We managed to do a few laundry washes to keep us in clean clothes. A couple from the Uk came up to us and donated 20 euros – thank you Polly and Paddy Ader! This was the first campsite that was within walking distance of a town so we took advantage and went out for dinner for the first time. A lovely change from cooking and a beautifully balmy evening. We walked back through the park to the campsite and my word, they had the loudest frogs we’ve ever heard!

Day 10: Blimey this was a humid day! Really, horribly humid and it made for very difficult riding conditions. It was a tough 85 miles to ride from Chauvigny to Chateuneuf-Sur-Charente. Surrounded by vineyards, our campsite for the night is probably best described as “boutique”. Firstly, they didn’t have record of our booking and only had 1 pitch left so we ended up in the neighbouring field. It then took about 2 hours to find electricity for us – at one point we thought we’d have to find somewhere else to stay or lose all of our food supplies! But it all worked out in the end. Danny found a nearby lake for swimming and after their small ride, Jon and Gareth hopped on their bikes to join Danny for a swim. This ride is probably best described as a little painful as they didn’t have their padded shorts on so were unable to sit down properly 😁 Gan Gan and I stayed at camp and enjoyed a G and T instead! We were then treated – if that’s the right word – to an almighty thunderstorm and some seriously impressive lightning. In the early hours I thought we were being burgled only to step outside and find J packing the rest of the camp up in the pouring rain as he was worried everything would blow away! Unbeknown to me I had forgotten to close the passenger seat window of Glenis before going to sleep and at 5 am was woken by a commotion, which turned out to be the dog jumping out of the window. So I had to get Sonny out of bed (we’re up on a high bed and it has no rail so I couldn’t leave him in there without me) to go a fetch the dog in the very early hours! We managed to find her and also managed to get everyone back to sleep for another couple of hours – relief!

Day 11: The rain continued all morning, coming down quite heavily. Thankfully it eased off just as the boys were setting off on their first 90 mile ride of the trip. It was a long day for them but they were buoyed by the surroundings – cycling past some seriously impressive vineyards – and with shops too! They felt sure the support team in Glen of Gan Gan and Danny would stop to get some Pomerol or St Emillion – just two of the vineyards they passed – so imagine their disappointment at finding out they bought NADA!

Safe to say I would most definitely have bought some (A LOT) of wine had I been fortunate enough to drive past the vineyards but I was on a special mission of my own – collecting the rest of family Mawby and my daughter Sophie from Bordeaux airport! I have to say it was a very easy pick up – we were lucky enough to drive straight into a parking space (well two as Glenis can’t fit in just 1!) and they family came out about 5 minutes later! Unfortunately on our drive to La Reole we had lots of traffic issues due to crashes so it did take double the time. We made it there just in time to see Jon and Gareth crossing the bridge to the campsite so the girls could give them a very excited welcome!! After a very long 7 hours in the driving seat and a long day behind the lens, with more to do in the evening for his actual job (yes Danny is working alongside all the brilliant camera work he’s doing for our ride), Gan Gan and Danny stayed at the site for a dinner date for two, whilst the rest of us headed into La Reole for dinner. It was a bit of a cold and drizzly evening, though the huge downpour kindly happened before we had left so we were spared a drenching. Seemingly not much is open in La Reole on a Monday evening and we walked around what seemed like a deserted town for quite sometime before finally spotting a pizzeria that was open! We got back to camp around 10:30 and everyone was rather tired after a long day. With an extra 4 bodies, it was a little cosier in the motorhomes but we coped well and other than a 4am trip to the toilets, generally slept well and woke to a bright and sunny day!