Friday 3 July 2015
It was a little chilly last night, but we woke at about 0900 to a warm, still morning. I wandered over to the campsite shop for a couple of baguettes and a croissant. Breakfast done, I prepared my bike and changed into my kit, while Cathy cleared up. She was going to have a long beach walk while I was out cycling. I road out of St Denis, following the road south along the East Coast. At the village of La Brée les Bains I came a cropper, hitting a patch of deep sand as I slowed alongside a truck waiting by the junction. I managed to unclip and grab the truck before dropping the bike, but no harm done! I cycled through Sauzelle into a strong headwind and, head down, missed the turn to St Pierre. Before I realised I was in Boyardville, so had to reverse my route to get back on track, through St Pierre, I again took a wrong turn in Le Cotiniere, but eventually found the road towards La Biroire. Now heading north along the west coast, it was very hot and sunny. I passed through a few sleepy hamlets, including Domino, Chaucre and Les Trois Pierres before passing the aire we stayed at last time and back to the campsite. At the bar just inside the barrier I bought a couple of cold cokes and enjoyed one of these sat with Cathy in the shade of the tamarisk tree. She had enjoyed a long, low-tide walk, paddling though the rock pools and asking a lady what she and others were digging for - some type of clam, (palourds) delicious raw or cooked. A quick change into swimming shorts and I got on with a few chores, emptied grey water, topped up fresh, emptied the loo, then washed and oiled the bike. We shared a melon for lunch with a brew and I put my cycling kit to soak. The rest of the afternoon we read and snoozed in the shade.
