Monthermé to Mouzon: 73.3 km
The day’s trips are steadily getting longer as our legs (and bums!) get used to being back on bikes. Fortunately the weather is improving. When we set off from Monthermé, saying goodbye to Sally and Joris who are returning to Belgium, there was still a bit of rain, but this stopped by midday and we enjoyed some sunny weather. Even better, the headwinds seemed to have turned round to tail winds. We even managed a bit of the cycle without our fleeces and waterproofs.
The familiar pattern of gentle riding along the towpath continued for most of the trip, complete with typical French eccentricity (see the pictures of Cate with her wooden sculptures!). By lunchtime we were passing through the small town of Sedan. Annoyingly, it being a Sunday, we couldn’t find a single open restaurant, so ended up buying a couple of snacks that we ate a little further along the route.
We reached Mouzon by about 3pm, to be greeted by the best surprise: the chambre d’hote that we have booked for the night turned out to be a grand manor – it has even hosted French presidents in recent times, and the interior is almost a museum to the former owner’s eclectic tastes, including a vast array of stuffed animal heads reflecting their passion (in times gone by) for big game hunting. We are hoping for a restful night, as tomorrow we have booked accomodation that will be over 100 km from here. Looks like we will need an early start!
