Unlucky for some

Blue skies, gentle breeze,
towering pines, sun warmed rock -
am I in heaven ?

Sunshine and a cooling zephyr, cycling, climbing, a picnic lunch - what more could we want of a day ?

On awakening this morning I poked my head out of the bedroom window for the weather report. Exceptionally fine - a vast swathe of cobalt blue overhead with not a cloud in sight. After breakfasting, Neil made a couple of small adjustments so his panniers would fit onto the new rack, I hoisted our new friend Mat onto my back and we set off.

Using the smaller roads to get to Larchant added a couple of kilometres but also meant that there would be less traffic with which to contend - although we have not had any problems here in France with cars hogging the road and even on quite major roads have felt quite safe. It's the buffeting from the wind as a large truck passes that can get a bit uncomfortable, especially if you are cycling wearing a bouldering mat on your back.

We crossed under the A6 motorway once, then over thrice more before arriving at L'éléphant, after a quick detour to the boulangerie in Larchant village for fresh bread (and a little something extra). In the couple of weeks since we arrived in Noisy-sur-École the countryside has changed. Canola has finished flowering and it's seed pods are swelling, wheat is beginning to look more like wheat and less like grass and we see more beet crops. Plenty of elder and acacia in flower, both we can smell as we ride along.

Warmed up after 20km of cycling, we jump straight onto one of the circuits that proliferate in the forest until our bellies inform us that it's lunch time (well, mine does). Our climbing has taken us up a hillside and into the sun so we walk back to where the bikes and bags are parked and picnic in the shade. The bouldering mat, as well as being excellent landing when falling off a climb, is a very comfortable picnic bench.


First, a few photos from our Monday jaunt to Canche aux Merciers:

Neil with Mat. The trail became too sandy to ride, so we had to push.

Then we found an alternate bike path.

Our friend Mat - a welcome place to land, or to sit.

I think I can...(I did)

Climbing shoes - a necessary evil. Comfort is optional.

Concentration.

Cool rock shapes.

White arrows denote a kids circuit. This day we shared the rocks with a class of primary kids.

And a few from today:

Looking back to the rocks from our picnic spot.

Delicious fresh bread and a wicked soft cheese from Burgundy.

Boulangerie-wrapped dessert.

Mmmm - apple tart.

L'éléphant - one of the more famous rocks in the Fontainebleau forest.

Yes, I know I'm only a few inches off the ground - it took a lot of effort to get that far !

Neil showing how it's done.

Still taking it easy on the right shoulder though.

Trees, rocks, sunshine...

It looked interesting...

...but wasn't to be. This time.

Lovely sandstone.

Wonderful texture.

Did I mention that we like it here ?

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words by Gabby, images by Neil and Gabby

Home work

Tilt toward the sun,
elder flower's potent blooms
make sweet cordial.

The final parcel of bits and bobs for Neil's bike arrived yesterday, so after our morning climb he set about refurbishing his bicycle.

Al fresco work space.

New touring tyres, Schwalbe Marathons with kevlar protection and tougher inner tubes will hopefully cut down on the number of punctures.

Fitting the rack.

Preparing the new tyres.

And a tough and chunky Tubus Cosmo rack to replace the feeble Blackburn Explorer that lasted only two weeks of fully-laden touring. At more than twice the price, hopefully it will last much more than twice the distance...

Sparkling new rack and tyre.

Adjusting the rack.

The not so old Blackburn rack showing cracked welding.

As for replacing the broken gear wheel, we've decided to leave that one to the experts. 

And while Neil was peacefully tinkering (no joke, barely a swear word the whole time !) in the garden with his bike, I was bottling up a batch of elderflower cordial that had been left to develop it's flavour overnight.

Picking the choicest heads - or at least the ones I could reach.

Tiny, yet pungent.

Right after I shook down a whole branch of insects.

Lemons, an orange, and loads of sugar.

Mixing it all up.

Not having any muslin with which to strain the finished cordial, I decided to use the coffee drip filter. I probably wouldn't bother doing it that way again. It strained out every last imperfection but took absolutely ages - it was hours before the whole lot was ready to bottle.

Straining.

Bottling.

Voila !

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words by Gabby, images by Neil and Gabby

Home Sweet Home

Afternoon cock crow,
tractor's buzz in the distance -
drowsy in the sun.

It has been a lovely lazy week for us - enjoying the luxury of sleeping in a bed, not having to pack up our life every morning and unpack it again in the evening.

Spring has turned quite summerish, every day in the garden a new variety of flower emerges. No chance of mushrooms in the forest - everything is too warm and dry. There has been no rain to speak of here for more than a month.

We have had a couple of morning sessions on the rocks, taking it slowly so Neil can ease his reconstructed shoulder back into climbing. It is great to be back in the forest again and fun to be riding our unloaded bikes along the sandy tracks, feeling so light as we pedal.

Generally we detest shopping malls but one day we made a trip (40km round cycle) to a nearby hypermarket and sports store to replace a few bits and pieces. The hypermarket is so huge staff wear roller skates to get around ! Our local supermarket (only a 4km ride away) is much smaller but still has everything we need and there is a small shop to buy bread and essentials in the next village only 2km away.

The only lack was reading material, us both having finished the novels with which we left Ireland. That was soon remedied by ordering roughly 3500 pages of books online. Happily they arrived yesterday. Hopefully they'll last us a while, supplementing our French texts and non fiction reading.

Here's a few photos of our home for the next couple of months:

Our front door - entered through the courtyard

Downstairs, living area.

Window to the street out front.

Old bedroom furniture and lovely stone walls.

Awesome old ceiling beams.

Lunch - asparagus risotto cakes.

Sadly, no hats to hang.

Over here the horseshoe is hung the other way.

Lunch, al fresco. We tried cider in Normandy and really liked it - nothing like Strongbow or Bulmers, more like a poor man's champagne.

Old stone steps to a grange.

Grape vine, mint and pansies.

Plenty of irises around in various shades.

??? but it looks interesting.

Climbing rose flowering just outside our bedroom window.

One of five different roses in our little garden.

Peonies and tulips.

Scrofulous looking chook in the backyard. Neil believes they're fledgling skeksis.

Healthier looking - we keep expecting the big white one at the back to turn around and say 'boy, ah say, boy', it looks so much like Foghorn Leghorn.

And ducks too !

Neil the breadwinner - there's croissants and pain au chocolats hidden in that pannier too !

That's our place to the right of the gate - the one with the bike against the wall.

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words by Gabby, images by Neil and Gabby

From there to here

Avian chorus,
the forest awakes early -
the sun's not up yet !

One thousand and forty one kilometers on from Dublin and we have finally arrived in the Fontainebleau Forest.

Not bad, considering that Neil has covered the last 700km without the use of his several lowest gears. The first leg of our journey is over and here (Noisy-sur-École) we will stay for the next two months, sampling the delights of the forest. Hopefully literally - we have our mushrooming knives at the ready.

But also climbing - up, over and around the sandstone boulders that dot the forest in profusion. Then there's walking and cycling along the myriad trails that criss-cross the area.

We arrived on Saturday after a pretty laid-back week of cycling. Shorter distances to help our tiring legs, lots of lazing in pleasant surroundings. Even a night in a hotel so I could treat my tired knees to a hot soak in a tub.

The countryside was becoming more familiar to us - more forest, more horses, fields of flowering canola alternating with young green wheat, the occasional boulder by the road, more pine trees and poplars.

Neil with the kettle on, Condé-sur-Vesgre.

Peaceful campground, Condé-sur-Vesgre.

Rambouillet château.

Relaxing in the parkland surrounding Rambouillet château.

Not far to go - Noisy-sur-École is just 4km further than Milly-la-Forêt.

Clearing skies, Courdimanche-sur-Essonne.

At last, rocky bits ! Trois Pignons, Fontainebleau Forest.

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Words by Gabby, Images by Neil and Gabby