wow

Route: Fecamp to Meules les-rose, distance about 50 km

So, today, I really felt the effects of yesterday’s 100km jaunt. I will have to perform at that level soon, but I think I needed more recovery time than a few hours in a windswept tent on a cliff overlooking the churning English Channel. That plus I got up this morning and the damn wind that had picked up during the night intensified. It is literally blowing straight down the coast from the North at around 20 kph. It’s probably gusting to 30 or 35. That just saps your strength man.
The way the country is here, the farm land sits on a shelf above the water, not unlike the famous white cliffs of Dover which are actually not far across the channel. Because of this, the wind whips down the channel, gathering force as it’s constricted between the two landmasses of England and Europe. A venturi effect ala grande!
The good part about this wind is that it is what saved England from being invaded by the Spanish in 1588 by blowing south and giving the Queen’s fleet a massive wind advantage. The bad news is that it’s sure taking the sap out of poor old me. If it beat the greatest sea armada in the world before World War Two, how am I supposed to feel good about overcoming it?
This is a long winded (pun intended) way of saying that I am flat tired after 5 days. I haven’t been sleeping well, it’s cold and windy, and I don’t have enough to eat. On top of that, I’m expecting myself to get up and haul a bike loaded with 50 pounds of gear into this wind and make appreciable progress everyday. That generally translates to 70-100km per day, or my schedule is off.
The best laid battle plans are usually off when the first shot is fired. This was certainly true on D-Day when none of the tank support, or the landing parties made it to shore on location and time. It was chaos governed only by a few quick men who realized that to stay on the beach is be a dead man. “Better to get off this beach and die inland!”
Well, I’ve tried. Lord knows, I’ve tried to get off the beach, but each time I head inland, there is no camping, water or stores. This is a problem. Also, my general direction is northeast, but a long way farther north than you realize sitting in a comfy chair at home looking at maps.
Long story short, I’m changing my plans. I’m staying on the channel all the way to Dunkerque. This takes me straight through Dieppe, famous for a botched raid by the British and Canadians in 1942, Calais, famous for being close to Britain and the place where Hitler was convinced until too late that the main thrust of the allied invasion would come, and Dunkerque, famous for being the place where the British made a hasty retreat after the Fall of France in 1940.
All of these are worthy WW2 goals, and I don’t pick up Grandpa’s tracks again till Holland anyway, so what the hell. From Dunkerque I will go inland to Gent and from there I’ll follow my original plan.
This is getting to be quite a trip. It’s a test of strength and will. If it’s those things this early, I don’t even want to think about what it’ll be like later in the Ardennes with real hills and snow. The main problem is finding camping. No one seems to know where it is and it’s not like America where you can pretty much camp anywhere. Here, you have to find specific designated camp areas, pay $20-$30 and camp. They usually have showers and electricity, which is good, but that’s about it.
Anyway, I feel the spirit of Grandpa here, but honestly, he probably got to ride in a truck or something to Holland. There is a lot of France to smoke before I get there. But, I know myself, and I would be ashamed to come home without having ridden the whole thing. That is, after all, what I’m here to do. I just needed to give the body some rest today. Tomorrow I’m going to come out swinging and put up some big numbers!
So, thanks for staying tuned. It’s nice to know I’ve got a lot of friends out there pulling for me! Keep reading, and I’ll try like hell to get some pics up soon. Apparently the internet and France don’t mix well; something about being too efficient