 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Villers to Etaples and towards Samer |
|
|
|
|
|
We reached Etaples around 10.30 am - the last stop on flat terrain, and an opportunity for a strong coffee before tackling the hills that lay ahead. Etaples lies a few miles inland from Le Touquet and retains the air of a seaside resort but minus beach and sea!
A concert was to be held that evening and the stage was being prepared in the main square (not that we would be attending...).
More on Etaples here |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Main square, Etaples ( preparing for a concert) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
After a little difficulty locating the right exit, we were on our way and the road began its climb almost immediately, added to which we were experiencing the inevitable opposing wind. A slow and grinding crawl ensued. |
|
|
|
|
|
It doesn't seem to matter how much training and preparation a cyclist cares to undertake, there is always one part of the anatomy that suffers without fail - the derriere!!
The legs certainly ache a little but nothing really unbearable. Lungs may initially rasp. Both these discomforts tend to disappear as the journey progresses and the body adapts to demands being made to generate more oxygen for leg muscles and for lungs to adopt a new pattern of breathing. |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Leaving Etaples - the painful hills begin... |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The backside, however, never seems to want to share the same spirit adopted by the rest of the body. Every rotation of the pedals finds itself accompanied by an unwelcome burning between the cheeks (and I don't mean the facial ones!).
No matter how far and how often we cycle, this is the one constant, Even after a good night's rest, 'saddling-up' next morning the old posterior will immediately seek to remind you of its tender state, a veiled warning that ' no, pal, it ain't gonna get any better!!' |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Strange, a flat bit - don't remember that...! |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Noon came and went. Lunch seemed a long way off. Then 1.00 pm passed as well and still we were following a long, steady, and upward gradient.
At one point a tractor pulling a trailer full of hay passed by (it seemed we couldn't even beat one of these today!). I noticed a length of chain swinging enticingly from the rear. It didn't seem to be going so fast, that I felt I could, possibly, even allowing for the weight of the panniers, stay with it and maybe hitch a ride.
The legs surprisingly felt the same way. I managed to get within a few inches of the chain, and, thanks to the effect of the slipstream, stay there. Grabbing the chain was another matter. It was a real 'should I/shouldn't I' moment. Removing one hand from the bar and stretching forward produced an unnerving wobble. I reasoned hard that, as soon as I had hold of the chain, balance would stabilise. I reached, I grabbed, I secured - I wobbled much, much, much, much more (I mean a lot!) |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Pain! - and I don't mean bread! |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
More loaves than we asked for! |
|
|
|
|
|
After what seemed like several minutes, but what was in reality no more than half-a-second, I let go. Balance returned. A sigh, a glance. The tractor was already too far ahead to contemplate a second attempt. The chain waved me back a firm farewell! |
|
|
|
|
|
Advance to the next page on our route |
|
|
|
Return to Map page |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|