This past week has seen us continuing to trudge through rural northern France.
Highlights of each day include greeting friendly farmers who are busy plowing - leaving clouds of dust in the wake of rumbling tractors. Massive machines make short work of gathering hay into huge rolls. Tractors fit with lifters pile the rolls onto trucks. Other tractors pull sprayers set up like out-riggers. These are the guys we’ve run from! Not sure what’s in some of those sprayers but really don’t want to find out! One farmer paused as he approached the track where we were jogging along to give us time to get past. All with a wave and smile! The irrigation hoses watering the road as well as the fields have also posed some hilarious moments. As we approach, we time the cycle. There is usually about thirty seconds when we can dash the one hundred meters or so without much risk of a serious dousing. Of course a system apparently set on random mode was a bit more problematic. The weather has been so hot the gentle mistings have been quite pleasant.
We’ve been setting off each morning as early as possible to get a few kilometres under our boots before the afternoon heat makes walking a sweat-soaking enterprise. Yesterday we left at 6:45 and experienced the joy of walking into a beautiful dawn.
We’ve stayed in a couple of notable accommodations. In Bapaume, the owner of Hotel Restaurant le Gourmet welcomed us and provided an excellent multi-course meal at walker’s discounted price in her restaurant - we were the only people there.
After a long 28 km day we arrived in Peronne where we stayed at very comfortable L’Aubergue Des Remparts. We had a huge beautiful room, breakfast was included, location was perfect for restaurants and bakery, but even more important - the helpful friendly staff.
While every day has been hot and humid, during our walk to Peronne there was a short lived but heavy rainfall. We took shelter in the doorway of a church and remained dry. The day before we’d been having our afternoon snooze on the lawn beside a church when a woman came to see if we were OK. Perhaps it is odd to see two woman sleeping beside their packs in the shade of a church on a hot afternoon? This woman brought us a bottle of water along with her concern for our well-being.
Seraucourt-le-Grand offered the most interesting accommodation yet. At Gite Rural we stayed - for free - in a cozy little room in a garage. Very simple, very comfortable. Mattresses provided to put on the floor. Next door to a terrific pub - with great live music and beer, and a park where we ate the dinner Pat made on the burner in the gite. This is where we met another pilgrim, Laura from Montana. She joined us for dinner bringing a bottle of wine from the pub! Another memorable evening. A new connection made. We expect Laura to visit us in the Comox Valley next summer.
We’re now in Laon. Pat found us a cute little apartment beside the cathedral in the historic old town. The internet is impossible but we have a kitchen, tiny courtyard garden and there is a washing machine! Nearly everything has been washed and is now drying in the courtyard. We ate dinner at a restaurant by the cathedral. Close proximity to such an historical building ups the cost of a meal!
Today we are resting in Laon - waiting for our clothes to dry.
Great pictures. So glad to find out how welcoming the people are. Encouraging me, maybe, to get into this hiking/trekking thing. What do you think, Kim?