Brittany Coast to Coast + a week in Pornichet

On Thursday 19th September 2013, a group of 15 Francophiles crossed the Channel to Saint-Malo where they were met on Friday morning by F & F to start a trip across Brittany from the Channel coast to the Atlantic Coast, north of the Loire.

Frank lead the group 29 miles west of Saint-Malo to Pleherel-Plage where we have been spending summers since 2008. After a French-style lunch of local food at our home, some enthusiastic cyclists enjoyed a short 20 miles ride along coastal and country roads before returning to Manoir Saint-Michel for a well earned night's rest. On the following two days, Frank lead the way for more harduous stages:
1) Sables d'or-les-Pins to Josselin (58.5 miles), then
2) Josselin to Pornichet (63 miles).

In Pornichet we joined a week's long tour organized for the 5th year running by the Cycle-touring Club of La Baule, designed to combine two activities: cycle-touring in the morning and thalassotherapy in the afternoon (for those who wished to enjoy water treatments and pampering!) We joined 50 cyclists coming from all over France. Rides were lead by various welcoming members of La Baule and Pornichet Cycling Clubs. Accommodation was in a holiday-village barely half a mile from the beach.

We participated in daily rides of between 60 to 120 kms, depending on ability, all starting at 8 am and completed by lunchtime. Several Wayfarers joined the faster groups. The "Promenade Group" rode more leisurely although it was faster than our "B" group - and a speed of 16 mph was recorded on the way back for lunch. The highlights included: a flat boat ride in the marshes, riding in St-Nazaire shipyards, across the salt marshes, in the area south of River Loire after crossing St-Nazaire bridge by car with our bikes in tow, in the valley of River Vilaine to la Roche-Bernard and Pont d'Arzal, along the pretty coastline, etc.... and of course the Thalassotherapy!

On Sunday 29 September, the group left Pornichet and the Atlantic Coast to follow Frank for the journey back to Saint-Malo in three stages:
1) Pornichet-Guerande-La Gacilly (52 miles),
2) followed by La Gacilly-Dinan (54 miles).
3) Finally after a relaxing morning visit of the medieval town of Dinan, a short afternoon ride (19 miles) took us back to Saint-Malo harbour in good time for the night ferry and before pouring rain fell over the northern Brittany coast.

Trip statistics:

- 6 moving-on days with F & F
- 6 days of rides and touring in Loire Atlantique
 - A very warm welcome from the benevolent French organizers and their team was extended to our group whilst we appreciated their most efficient organization

- Good cycling weather except for a few showers towards the end of the week and some very misty mornings
- 2 punctures (Terry and Cliff)

Top mileages:

 - Terry: 704 miles <1114 kms> (including some miles to Portsmouth and the whole of Portsmouth to Dorking on the way back)

- Pam: 692.44 miles <1108 kms> (including 108.44 miles <173 kms> on the English side)

- Brian: 650 miles <1040 kms> (almost all in France)

- 6 participants enjoyed a range of thalassotherapy treatments such as sea-weed wraps, massaging water-bed, aquagym, bubling baths, brumisation, hamman, back massages, ionization, sea-water swimming pool at 32 degrees, etc... and should now be fit, in theory, to face a rigorous British winter! 
- 33 paniers were efficiently transported along the way by 3 taxis companies
- Lunch packs were in good hands and carried by "La Tortue" - The Tortoice as Marcel & Brigitte call their camping-car.
Maps of Rides across Brittany:

St-Malo-Pleherel-Plage - http://ridewithgps.com/routes/3345168
Sables d'Or-Josselin - http://ridewithgps.com/routes/3261864
Josselin-Pornichet - http://ridewithgps.com/routes/3344010

Le Croisic - La Gacilly - http://ridewithgps.com/routes/3339454 starting from Guerande
La Gacilly-Dinan http://ridewithgps.com/routes/3343639
Dinan-Saint-Malo - http://ridewithgps.com/routes/3343858 

Photo albums: 
from F&F - Leader's and backmarker's snaps
from Tim - Tim's photos
from Gill- Gill's photos
from Jean-Louis - Les photos de Jean-Louis

Programme in Pornichet:  A week in Pornichet 

Chicken recipe - actually from an English website (Oops!) but adjusted by Francoise.
Link: Poulet a la Bretonne
(I used pieces from whole chickens rather than breasts only as indicated in the attached recipe. I added "lardons" = ie. small pieces of unsmoked streaky bacon. The vegetables can be replaced by a vegetable cube (diluted in the cider) and by mushrooms for a change. It is best to use very dry cider and to increase the recommended amount of cider and Calvados for enhanced taste.) Bon appetit!