St Malo to Nice

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Monday 16th September 48 miles

We had an early breakfast to be off to a good start has decent miles to do and likely to be very hot . We went slightly off route first to buy provisions at Aldi and the cycle travel tried to take us a cross some private property that had locked gates so we ended up going back through Brantome so not such an early start. There was definitely more uphill today, mainly through farmland and forests. This part of France is one of the most scarcely populated areas of France. We were travelling through the truffle capital of France and along the Route de Foir Gras. Mid morning we stopped for yoghurt and Mars bars! When I bought some the other day I had to buy a pack of five but they were likely to be a melted mess if kept too long so we decided to eat them. We stopped for lunch in Tourtoirac. We couldn't find a bench in the shade so we sat on the church steps. As we were finishing a lady came and tried to get in the church. We talked to her a few minutes and she said she worked in the caves nearby as the English guide and talking to us was good practice. She said Condat-sur-Vezere was only small but very pretty. After that it was four kilometres uphill to Hauteford, named after its Chateau. We stopped to try to buy a drink somewhere but no where was open. Leaving Hauteford we spotted a cemetery so filled up our water bottles. We didn't want to run out of water as it was so hot. What the guide book didn't tell us that there was several more miles of climbing after Hauteford. The guide book made it sound like the Chateau was at the top of the hill. After Hauteford we started to see walnut trees and Limousin cattle which are raised for veal.

It was hard work in the heat and at one stage Paul shouted to me "Can we have a week in Blackpool next year?".

Luckily the last few miles were flatter with a gentle descent and then a steep down hill into Beauregard -de-Terrasson. Then it was only another couple of miles to the hotel. The hotel was a very grand old building. The owner, who didn't speak any English, made a big fuss that I had booked for one person but she could just fit us in as some Canadians hadn't turned up. I checked my booking later and I had definitely booked a double room. The room was very large and full of antique furniture. The bathroom had a large corner bath with a shower over it but no shower curtain or screen so we had a bath. All the walls were about three foot thick.( It is a Templar house, ie the Knight's Templar used to own it). On arriving we had checked if the restaurant would be open and she said yes at seven o'clock. This was a relief as we didn't want it to be another Monday night we had to go searching for food.

We went downstairs at half seven and met one of the Canadians who had arrived. There was no sign of the lady so I went to find her and she showed me where the dining room was and there was a table set for two and a table set for four, us and the Canadians. She told us the menu was "beef steak" so we agreed, as there was no other option. I had to choose some wine and chose a small bottle as the prices were eye watering. ( Wine was the only drink on offer other than Champagne). We talked to the Canadians while we were waiting for the food. Two were from Toronto and two from Calgary. They were here because they were fans of an author called Martin Walker who writes 'Bruno' detective stories based on this area of France.

First there were fruit kebabs of tomatoes and grapes. Then there was a starter of raw salmon, rice and vegetables. It's not what I would choose but I managed to eat it. Next was beef steak, green beans, a piece of carrot and four chunky chips. Again steak and chips are not what I would eat but there was no option. Luckily the beef was 'well done '. Then she bought a platter full of cheese and we chose some each which she cut off and gave us. There were no crackers or bread to go with it. We actually did get a choice of dessert but couldn't really understand all the options. Paul had Creme brulee and I had a apricot tart.

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