I hadn’t
expected to like Les Sables. It’s a long sprawl of development along the coastline.
But tiny compared to Surfers’, for example, and the beach is nice. The old
centres of these towns are almost always attractive and it had the added
pleasure of a little ferry ride across the harbour. I always get a kick out of
putting my bike on a ferry that allows only pedestrians and bikes. It only took
a few minutes and cost one euro, but saved me quite a few kilometres. And best
of all there was a boulangerie just
in the right place on the other side.
The other
worry about big towns is the difficulty of getting through them on a bike, but
mostly it’s a breeze. So much space has been created for walkers and bikers;
often they have priority over cars, or cars go one way only and the rest of the
road is shared by cyclists and pedestrians. Nelson City Council could learn a
few lessons here!
Lots more
lovely coastal scenery today, some forest trails and some gorgeous little
towns. No one around. I haven’t spoken to anyone except shopkeepers and
hoteliers for days, well two. Quite a few French tourists in lovely little La
Tranche-sur-Mer but plenty of room for cyclists in its centre. It was hot. I bought
an icecream (two scoops: salted caramel and chocolate) from a glacier. He offered me the shade of one
of his restaurant tables to eat it. I didn’t need much persuading. 
My hotel for the night was pretty. They went to great lengths to lock my bike in a garage across the road specially kept for the purpose. I had a drink in the hotel garden (a bit dilapidated) while the sun glinted through the trees at 8.30 pm and the birds were still singing at nine. Then I ate in the restaurant. There were only two other people. The salmon was good and there were even some vegetables.
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