Through France in March

As we’ve enjoyed the ride reports and travel info from so many of you tossers, I thought that I’d keep my own little journal of our recent trip down through France, a few weeks after G (Summerland) got his first GS! Hope you enjoy it.

(As far as I can make out, I can't insert images at the appropriate point in the text, so I will split this into a separate post for each day of the trip.)

Day 1 – Friday 23rd March

Blatting down from Yorkshire to the Channel Tunnel, a further two hours or so on the French side down the A26 brought us to our stop for the night. We had treated ourselves to a posh “chambres d’hote” at Danizy (Domaine le Parc) and it was indeed fabulous. Lovely room, superb four course dinner and a comfy berth for the GS in one of their several outbuildings (tight squeeze past the shrubbery and up the stone step!). A great find, reasonably close to Calais, run by friendly Dutch people.


www.domaineleparc.fr

Through France Day 2

Day 2 – Saturday 24th March

Packed up after a superb breakfast and decided on a bimbling route today in advance of visiting a friend near Lyon on Sunday. Unfortunately a drizzly morning turned into a cold day with unremitting fine rain (“the kind that soaks you through”) and after a full day of this I was feeling very, very sorry for myself on the pillion.

Finally reached our destination at Chaumard, and unfortunately the room and bathroom was all a bit “Bates Motel” being rather cold, damp and needing a refit since about 1960!! However the welcome was warm and a big fire was burning in the wood burning stove in the salon. Interesting conversation in French with our three fellow guests and the father and son team running the place – another top notch feed made us feel a bit better.

France Day 3

Day 3 – Sunday 25th March

Heading back from our diversion into the boondocks, towards Lyon. The weather was better this morning as we left Chaumard, but we then saw plenty of snow near Chateau-Chinon and the temperature plummeted. As we rejoined the motorway after a fuel stop, I felt a bit of a draught round my face….”I think I’ve got a problem!” Pulled over again on the slip road and sure enough the bolt and fastener (?) on the right hand side of my visor had disappeared….worked their way out on the autoroute and flown off???

I hadn’t heard anything but then you wouldn’t do with that wind noise! What to do now? Not far to our mate’s place south of Lyon, luckily. So a quick temporary repair was made with some gaffer tape….so now the visor is taped shut, which is fine on the autoroute but quickly steams up in the sun when we stop at the peage! We make it to our mate Paul’s house and spend a very pleasant evening catching up.

France Day 4

Day 4 – Monday 26th March

We were persuaded to stay on an extra day, relax in Paul’s garden in the sun, have a little bimble around town and sort out a couple of things including my helmet fastening. We managed to find Bricomarche (luckily just before it shut at 12pm for the customary 2-3 hour lunch) and the nice man there fixed it with a couple of replacement bits and pieces, no charge.

Hurrah! Went to check out the local bike shop (Honda) but of course along with many other stores it was shut, this being a Monday in France. We spotted the BMW dealership and popped in (cars and Minis as well as Motorrad) and although the doors opened, the place was deserted. It was spooky. They do love their lunch breaks. A further pleasant evening followed, with us cooking for our host and hostess this time.

France Day 5

Day 5 – Tuesday 27th March

Onwards to the south!

We joined autoroute A48 towards Grenoble and then turned south west on the A49 past Valence. Bright weather and stunning landscapes either side of the motorway. Leaving the motorway just south of Montelimar we headed east on the D541/941, past the picturesque village of Grignan perched on a crest. Rolled on into Nyons and had a very pleasant lunch at a restaurant in the central square.

Continuing on the D94 east, a twisty turny but open road. Unfortunately John Thornley’s B&B is not open for the season until next week, so we had picked a couple of possible options for “chambres d’hote”. We had called “La Colline” at Remuzat and it turned out that this was reached by a tiny (but tarmac) track about 2m wide that zigzagged up the hill for about 1.5km – fun for G with me on the back! We reached the top safely and introduced ourselves to the owner and the menagerie of dogs and cats. Dinner is enlivened by another interesting chat with our fellow guests, a French couple who have actually travelled outside of France quite a bit, pretty unusual in our experience.

France Day 6

Day 6 – Wednesday 28th March

Off around 09:30 with an audience of well wishers (not ideal as you struggle on to the pillion of the beast) waving us off down the track of doom….G manages to get us down the hill again without incident.

There’s a lot of low lying morning mist which takes a long time to burn off. Somewhere near Ribeyret we get a glimpse of the wonderful views. On through Serres, on to the A51 at Sisteron then off again at J21 to take the Route Napoleon towards Digne-les-Bains. We left the traffic behind to join the D17, a tiny road which rejoins the main road near Chateauredon. We enjoy the sweeping turns of the RN and finally arrive in Castellane for a spot of lunch on the very civilised terrace of La Taverne. Lovely! Strolled up to the office du tourisme to ask about B&Bs etc and they recommend a place. Off we go towards the hamlet of Chasteuil. We soon discover this is up an even more hair-raising 2.5km track replete with hairpin bends and gravel…and when we get there, the room is tiny and the owner doesn’t do meals – and there is nothing else in the village. Don’t fancy that track in the dark!!

So we continue towards the Gorges du Verdon…and then the rain starts. Stop to put the waterproofs on and decide to turn south on the D955 instead. Heading for the town of Draguignan, the sun comes out and the waterproofs back off. The Gorges du Chateaudouble is beautiful and we’d never heard of it before. Soon find out no hotel space in town due to some event or other (on a Wednesday in March??) so we head off to a hotel the tourism office find for us near Les Arcs. It’s a dump, on the main road, with no garage, so we decide to continue on.

Through Vidauban, we emerge on the road to La Garde-Freinet and spot a B&B/Chambres d’Hote sign. Hurrah – they’re open, there’s a friendly English lady, the room is immaculate with a fabulous bathroom, a fridge and a kettle! Plus serene views of the parasol pines and secure garaging for the GS.

We’re finally home for the night (although we end up back in a little bar/restaurant in Les Arcs later on for dinner).

www.rouquan.com

France Day 7

Day 7 – Thursday 29th March

Decided this is a top spot to be based so we will stay another night.

So we left our (small amount) of luggage at Le Mas and as it’s fairly warm and sunny here near the Med we didn’t need the waterproofs either – whoo-hoo!

We had a great ride out today – to Collobrieres on a lovely tiny road (D14?) then up the D41 to the Col de Babaou – lots of French cyclists in their racing gear – and bimbled down the hairpins into Bormes-les-Mimosas which did seem quite fragrant and pleasant. We joined the coast road towards Le Lavandou. Some bits are a bit grotty and some bits more pleasant as is usually the case on the Cote. Cavaliere seemed a nice little spot and we stopped for a little stroll on the beach. :sunshine

Then through Cavalaire, up to the posh hilltop spots of Ramatuelle and Gassin (a bit underwhelming) and then into St Tropez in search of a supermarket to pick up a few things for supper. Big mistake – what a dump, a big traffic jam in and out. And of course, there is only a small expensive Quik-e-Mart. So we followed the French mopeds and rode round the outside of the queue heading back out of town. Back to base via Grimaud and La Garde-Freinet where we picked up bread, cheese, fruit and a couple of beers for our supper.



More travelogue to follow......

France Day 8

Day 8 – Friday 30th March

Off at 09:30 after a fab breakfast spread.

Definitely a little cooler today as we picked up the motorway which we took right through to Nice (another dump!) Lots of hills and bends on this autoroute (the A8) then took the D6202 (renaming the old RN202) north, past St Martin du Var and through Puget-Theniers and Entrevaux (which looked rather nice). Back down past Castellane and thought we’d take another try at the Gorges du Verdon.

So along the D952 and then round the famous Route des Cretes. Wow – what a road, what views and the weather turned out glorious. :sunshine

Spent quite a while at one of the first viewpoints watching some eagles soaring lazily on the thermals – up to seven together at one point, it was just fantastic. Got a little bit of footage on my mobi, if I could only work out how to get it off there…incredible sheer drops at the side of the route plus a flock of friendly goats which jumped into the road and swarmed around, licking the bumpers of the car following.

Then rejoining the main drag through La Palud we continued through the spa town of Greoux les Bains. We’d wanted to overnight in Riez but no hotels in the centre – finally ended up in the slightly unprepossessing town of Manosque, in the Hotel du Terreau which has a secure garage (free pour motos – the owner Laurent, has a Triumph Sprint).

Revived over a couple of large pizzas (not each) and some red wine at the local pizza restaurant.

France Day 9

Day 9 – Saturday 31st March

Top coffee and croissants in the local bar/café after strolling through the Saturday morning market. Had to walk ahead to guide G and the bike through the market stalls to get out of the hotel (getting bad looks from the strollers). You can get pretty hot walking 200 yards in 4-5 layers of bike gear and thermals.…

Took the autoroute to Sisteron then back on the N75 again through Laragne-Monteglin and Serres. Didn’t have to go too far today to reach our destination near Grenoble, so when we got nearby we went for a two-hour rideout around all the little roads – absolutely gorgeous country round here, broad green valleys framed by lovely rounded mountains.

Took the D66 through Lalley to Mens. Past the barrage at Le Sautet (ugly man made lake) then back on to the RN85 to La Crozet, then the D526 through the Drac gorge – wow! Through St Jean d’Herans and Monestier, finally reaching our destination at Paquier at about 5pm.

This place (Chateau de Paquier) is a gem, we stayed here a few years ago. Outstanding chambres d’hote in a lovely old castle/manor house, top notch food, hospitable people. Stylish garaging for the GS too. Another great evening with interesting conversation at dinner in French/German/English due to the mix of fellow guests. Smashing.

http://chateau.de.paquier.free.fr

France Day 10

Day 10 – Sunday 1st April

Up and packed and off at 09:30 after another stonking brekkie. Both sets of thermals on today as this was a 500-miler on the motorway. So that’s TWO layers of thermal tops and trousers, then fleece on top, then leathers/bike jacket, then waterproof jacket and trousers.

Forgot about April Fool’s Day until I looked over G’s shoulder and spotted the clock passing midday. A long, long day blatting up the autoroutes towards our final night’s stay, with only a couple of 5 minute petrol stops – ended up staying at the Ibis in Amiens which has secure parking (for an eye watering extra 7 Euros).

A nice change from the B&Bs, great though they were, in that we could walk to the local pizza place/English style pub – one of the only places in town open on a Sunday night and therefore absolutely packed. Great to have a couple of cold beers to celebrate our 500-mile plus day.

France Day 11 - the return

Day 11 – Monday 2nd April

Headed off in good time for our Eurotunnel crossing at 12:20. Once again the cross winds were pretty bad in the northern plains of France approaching the coast – blatting along the motorway to ensure we made our crossing.

A little bit of faffing again at Eurotunnel as they want to put bikes on last – so we end up with a nice little cluster of bikes together, including an English couple with an 1150 and a VFR800.

Homeward bound on the English side, once up the M1 the matrix signs start….”M1 closed J26-28”. WHAT??? Bloody hell, just what we need.

So we decide to stay on and see what happens. Yes, it is indeed shut north of Nottingham. We filter several miles through the queue, several miles around the traffic jam all along the A610 and the A38 and back on to the motorway. Poor cage drivers must have been stuck for hours in that mess. It didn’t add too long to our journey after all, hurrah!

Thankfully the whole day has been fine and dry on both sides of the Channel. Finally home about 6pm, after another long day (400 miles or so?) – the final tally, 2505 miles in 11 days. And did you notice the heroically small luggage as we haven't got round to choosing panniers yet - top box (TC clothes plus other bits and pieces) one dry bag lashed to the pannier frames (G clothes) and tank bag (documents, camera etc).

Looking forward to the next one already - the Alps in summer, perhaps?

Cheers, TopCat and Summerland.

Excellent write up, makes me really look forward to my trip to France in June.!!

Chris

cracking trip report..............itching to get over there now for the French GP in May

Thanks lads. Don't forget those trip reports!

TC

That's a great report Maria, looks like a fantastic trip. I'm heading over there in a few weeks for the MotoGP and I can't wait. MUST get the battery checked out first though!! At least i haven't had to push it up the drive recently...

I can't believe you did it with so little luggage though. I'd take more than that just for a weekend!!!