Patti: We took yesterday as a bit of down day as we had just ridden a 100 km ride the previous day. It was all on flat land along the north sea coast of Belgium and then into the northern part of France. Aside from losing our way in a couple of towns and with the help of locals offering directions (AGAIN!) we found our way to a place called Gravelines without incident. It was a quick overnight camp before we carried on to Calais, which was just a short ride so we arrived early in the afternoon. It was early enough to watch some kitesurfers along the amazing shores here that seem to go on forever. One of the reasons we decided to find our way to Calais is because it has the shortest ferry crossing to England. So we took advantage of that and with an internet booking, it was only 6 euros each for us to get a return ticket with our bikes to Dover. The bikes have been great for quick day trips into cities as most of the historical areas are not very big so we get to see the highlights in a day. We saw the white cliffs of Dover and spent the rest of the day at Dover Castle. It has a pretty amazing history going back to the 12th century. It also played a major role in WW II strategy evacuations of Dunkirk, France. These last few days have been very focused on the history of both World Wars and we have been getting quite the education. It certainly reminds us of how lucky we are to live in Canada. We ended our day thre with a supper of fish and chips.
I am missing being home but enjoying lots of the experiences here. I'm a little sad about our timing being here on the coast as the beaches are the most amazing I have seen and the weather just isn't warm enough to take advantage of them ( it's sunny but only about 17 ° c). On the other hand, if it was prime season I'm sure we would be overun with other tourists so it's probably all for the best. We are heading for Dieppe next which should take us 2 or 3 days of riding.
