A light rain accompanied us as we set off from Verdun. The satnav was not leading me in the direction I was expecting so I ignored it’s suggestions and headed down into the old city hoping to view some of the fine old buildings and features of a city that has previously been ravaged by war. We did see rather more of the town, not necessarily all the best bits, but certainly some of them. What the satnav understood better than me was the nature of the one way streets, so after we had crossed the river for the 4th time I eventually hit upon the way out I needed to the south-west. Soon we were ‘making progress’ passing more roadside cemetries.
We were heading to the Champagne area, first towards Chalons-en-champagne and then on to Epernay. I had visited Epernay before, the last time just in April with Gareth, Dave and the our wives, and I knew the guys would appreciate the look and feel of the lovely town. We rode slowly down the Avenue de Champagne where many of the world famous champagne houses are located with their extensive cave networks tunnelled into the chalk hill far below. Pol Roger, Moet & Chandon, Mercier and several others – all very smart now having been dressed in recent years for the high-end luxury image they present.
We found parking and a pleasant cafe in the town centre and strolled a little, having removed the waterproofs, before moving on again. More fuel, then out of town and into the gentle hills that are covered with vines and the houses of dozens of smaller champagne estates, following the tourist scenic route. At the time we rode through the grape pickers were at work.
Roads were rural but fairly direct now, we passed through areas of the Somme valley with more cemeteries and monuments to fallen heros. We reached Laon, which is another notable town set on a steeped side high hill rising out of the plains of northern France. Again, I had been there in April on our Champagne trip so I knew a scenic route in, up hairpins and around the battlements of the old walled fortress to reach a carpark right beside the huge austere church. (we did have to go round twice using a higher circular road when I was confused by some roadworks, but the view out over the distant plains were worth seeing again). We walked over to a bar/restaurant where I have rested before and put down our gear on a table under large canopied area.
The owner came over to seemingly to take our order, but instead he announced that we could only have drinks outside but not food. As people were visibly enjoying food inside and we were a little embarrassed by our casual attire, I politely enquired why that might be. He looked at the clouds in the sky above and said that his staff refuse to work outside if there is a possibility of rain! He was not happy with the situation and apologised but he could not change it.
We moved on down a lovely side street of shops with oversized lampshades hung at high level. Past another bar that had stopped serving food at 1330pm and looked at some lovely cakes in a bakery window and stood wondering what to do next. At that same moment, a bar-keeper opposite was opening up and setting out his chairs and parasols. He summoned us over and with great enthusiasm and insistence, he suggested we buy sandwiches from the bakery and eat them at his tables and buy his beer. An offer we couldn’t refuse and that’s exactly what we did. He admired John’s pizza and when John asked if he’d like a piece, without hesitation he tore off a slice and wandered off saying he was normally too busy to eat lunch. He was quite a character and was really friendly, he told us he rides bikes and there was a small one mounted in the bar. We took photos with him and left a BTBM sticker with others on his front door and left as grateful friends. Strange how another poor starting episode turned out ending so well.
Entering the outskirts of Arras, our route was blocked by a road closure for a fete and the satnav wouldn’t offer alternatives, so I chose another roundabout exit in order to force it to recalculate another route in. We took the opportunity to fill-up our tanks so that we could save time in the morning when we would be heading for the port. After filling and being desperate for a pee, I buried myself into a large bush for privacy and promptly got stung on the hand by a bee. As I had had a wasp sting earlier in the week, I knew the anaphylactic reaction was going to result in more severe swelling. Not wanting to go to a hospital in France, I consulted our tour medic Will and I started taking the – by now 2yrs out of date – steroids and antibiotics that I had retained from the 2019 Spain tour. (postscript – They worked fine)
The Ibis in Arras was only a 5 minute walk into the magnificent medieval city with countless former merchants’ townhouses set around 2 huge squares. Whilst having a drink at the hotel bar the receptionist kindly recommended a fish restaurant on the sunny side of one of the squares and we walked there for the tour’s last night’s dinner. The waitress was very friendly and helpful and joined in with our jokes and general silliness and recommended some dishes and wines that were indeed very good. Final tour group photos were taken and we made our way back to the hotel, some taking a slower and more zig-zagging route than others. Will and Colin had a final duel on the hotel’s bar football table and we retired for an earlyish start to ride to the tunnel the next day.
