The adventure began with the unpacking of mum's bike which had been carefully dismantled and wrapped for its flight by the lovely Ryan from the Bike Shed in Exeter. Mum had called in his help after attempting the feat alone and then getting stuck even after enlisting the help of two neighbours! Martyn and Tracy (see previous post) very kindly spent an extra hour in Toulouse Airport car park helping us to put it all back together.
The bike before unpacking!
We approached Toulouse along the Garonne river which gave us great views of the city as we approached. After a quick drink in Place du Capitole, Toulouse's main square, and a peek at Basilique de St-Sernin, we were off along the canal!
Our first meeting with the canal left us less than impressed, but things quickly improved and we trundled along in the shade of the plane trees and beside boats, pretty houses and lots of cyclists. Our first stop was Villenouvelle where we stayed in a lovely B and B, jumping straight into the pool as we arrived and then enjoying dinner with the owners and other guests. By this point both mum and I were concerned as to whether she would survive the trip at all due to her reaction to the heat- I thought she might explode after a couple of hours of cycling! We soon learned to manage it though. See more on that later.
Unimpressed meeting the canal for the first time
A triple lock
Canal side
The next stop was Castlenaudary where we were both glad to try Cassoulet, the local dish, and not to have to eat it again!
Trying Cassoulet
Then the impressive and popular Carcassone which we explored in the evening after the heat and crowds had subsided.
The old city in the background
The gravel and bumpy paths had been making me stroppy so the next few days we took some of those famously lovely quiet French back roads and enjoyed exploring villages and whizzing past grapes, figs and olives which were growing everywhere. Our next stop was Homps where we found a lovely lake for a swim and a sleep after the day's ride.
Pretty villages
Pretty bike
Next up was Beziers which we skirted around and said goodbye to the canal as that was due to be the end of our following it. However, the next day I confidently led us away from our campsite and it wasn't until we'd been in an industrial estate for a while and couldn't find any roads other than a dual carriageway that I admitted I'd got us lost! In the end google maps and the canal saved us when we found it again and followed a footpath along side it down to the sea. Our first sighting of the Mediterranean was magical as we found ourselves on this long strip of sand with water either side, endless beach and very few people. Perfect for swimming in the bluest water!
Mountain views
First sight of the Mediterranean
Bikes safe while we swim
The next two nights we spent camping at the youth hostel in Sete. It's high up above the town so gave us great views and a base from which to explore the area. We took our time wandering through the old town and beside canals, swimming in the sea and eating great sea food.
Our final day's ride was to Montpellier and we followed the coast and then the river Lez right in to the city. Son after leaving Sete and Frontignan we were surrounded by water. Sea, canals, lakes, rivers and at one point a canal built through the middle of a lake!
The canal is the middle stretch of water. Lake on the left. Sea on the right.
Montpellier was surprisingly interesting for mum who had expected it to be a "Marks and Spencer's town" which apparently is a town without much except for shops- not her preferred type of town. It turned out to be interesting and full of energy though. We explored the cathedral, medical school (first in the world), old windy streets and enjoyed the luxury of a hotel for the night!
A cathedral door
And now I'm going solo again for the first time in a while! I am heading through Provence, the Alps and over into Italy- wish me luck!
I've run out of time on wifi but look out for another blog following soon: '10 ways to keep your mother cool on cycle tour in the heat'.
I'm afraid I don't have a map of the route so far yet. Haven't worked out how to do this yet. For those asking for more regular updates, find me on Instagram where I put something up most days. My account is: Emilyseuropeancycleadventure.
Distance cycled (approximate as I don't have a bike computer- just paper maps!): 1800k
Beautiful sights Emily and loved reading your blog. Enjoy the next part of your journey xx
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