OK, here’s a suggestion for you. It will take the sting out of planning.
Go to the viaMichelin website http://www.viamichelin.co.uk/
• Enter Caen as your departure point
• Enter Limoges as your arrival point
• Drop down a bit
• Click on ‘Options’
• Click on the motorcycle icon
• Select ‘Discovery’ from the drop down routing options list
• Select miles
The route it offers up is 275 miles of which 77 is on motorways. That’s about 1/3 or viewed another way, you have 200 miles on non-motorway N and D roads. As a bonus the route is not too bad either. Now, here comes the fun bit….
Look at the map the website offers up, with the magenta route displayed on it.
Zoom it in and out a bit. Notice anything? No…. OK, here’s what you should see:
(1) Very often the non-motorway roads run exactly parallel to the motorway. That’s why they (probably) built the (dull) motorway, to speed up traffic flow on a (possibly) dull main road. You might be better off just taking the motorway, after all it’s just tracking the same route.
(2) Don’t want to? OK. Zoom in a bit more. You can now see the yellow D roads filling in the gaps. Do any of these look as if they might suit you and your overall 300 miles in a day plan? Yes? Great, we are now cooking on gas.
(3) Compare the routes with the Michelin 726 map you’ll by now have ordered… say yes. Do you get a feel for what the overall route entails? Yes? Wahoooo… we are on a real roll!
(4) Now comes the tricky bit….. You will not have your computer with you as you hoon your awesome steed towards your mother-in-law…. Panic not!
(5) Load your final route into your GPS, if you have one. Job done.
(6) Don’t have one? OK, take up a pencil and paper and write the route down, along with the road numbers and towns you’ll pass through. You will not remember it all otherwise. Job done, two!!
(7) Want to have a fun final check? Look at the same route in Google maps and go into streetview. You’ll be able to see exactly what each road looks like and even the road signs.
Enjoy your holiday.
Richard
Go to the viaMichelin website http://www.viamichelin.co.uk/
• Enter Caen as your departure point
• Enter Limoges as your arrival point
• Drop down a bit
• Click on ‘Options’
• Click on the motorcycle icon
• Select ‘Discovery’ from the drop down routing options list
• Select miles
The route it offers up is 275 miles of which 77 is on motorways. That’s about 1/3 or viewed another way, you have 200 miles on non-motorway N and D roads. As a bonus the route is not too bad either. Now, here comes the fun bit….
Look at the map the website offers up, with the magenta route displayed on it.
Zoom it in and out a bit. Notice anything? No…. OK, here’s what you should see:
(1) Very often the non-motorway roads run exactly parallel to the motorway. That’s why they (probably) built the (dull) motorway, to speed up traffic flow on a (possibly) dull main road. You might be better off just taking the motorway, after all it’s just tracking the same route.
(2) Don’t want to? OK. Zoom in a bit more. You can now see the yellow D roads filling in the gaps. Do any of these look as if they might suit you and your overall 300 miles in a day plan? Yes? Great, we are now cooking on gas.
(3) Compare the routes with the Michelin 726 map you’ll by now have ordered… say yes. Do you get a feel for what the overall route entails? Yes? Wahoooo… we are on a real roll!
(4) Now comes the tricky bit….. You will not have your computer with you as you hoon your awesome steed towards your mother-in-law…. Panic not!
(5) Load your final route into your GPS, if you have one. Job done.
(6) Don’t have one? OK, take up a pencil and paper and write the route down, along with the road numbers and towns you’ll pass through. You will not remember it all otherwise. Job done, two!!
(7) Want to have a fun final check? Look at the same route in Google maps and go into streetview. You’ll be able to see exactly what each road looks like and even the road signs.
Enjoy your holiday.
Richard
