Bike life on the rivers

Since leaving Nantes the view has mostly been one of water. Specifically the river Loire, the river Cher plus various canals in between the two. The terrain also has been amazingly flat. Who knew it was possible to cover so many miles and to deviate so little from sea level? Even the Canadian prairies (which everyone promised were pancake flat and weren’t don’t compare.) No, the Loire Valley definitely wins the prize for being flat as a…. crépe.

The Night Before

It’s been nearly 4 years now since the idea of a ‘gap year’ raised its provocative head one evening after a bad day at work and a glass of wine too many. Spurred on memories of previous adventures and a sense of life sliding by at an alarming rate, the thought of ditching the bills, the endless zoom meetings and the shackles of adult life was just immensely appealing.

Piles

Having known each other a little while now I feel it’s ok to share a little personal information. In the last few weeks, I seem to have developed piles.

The Stuff Mountain

So, it turns out that handing in my notice was the easy bit and, after a brief, heady interlude of celebration, the reality has now well and truly taken hold.

As have the practicalities.

I now have just 2 weeks left at work and around 6 until we head off into the sunset (or the local ferry port) on our bikes. It’s not long!

In fairness it’s a similar/greater length of time to other pre-adventure preparation but there’s nothing to kick your heart rate and bodily functions up a notch like having a deadline looming.