Cycle Touring in France: Along the Loire to Orleans

Our overnight stay at the lock house was very peaceful as there were no other buildings nearby and the only noise was birdsong. This picture was taken from our bedroom window on the top floor and shows where boats from the canal crossed the Loire to canals on the other side.

Looking back towards the lock as we left.

We set out that morning across to the north side of the river and headed for Briare where the Pont Canal designed by Gustav Eiffel takes the Lateral canal over the Loire. We watched a few boats cross and then cycled over ourselves.

Later in the day we approached Briare and took our lunch stop on the south side of the river where there was a great view of the town. We normally buy fruit, pastries and sandwiches in the morning, eat the fruit and pastries around 11am and have lunch a couple of hours later. There is always somewhere pleasant to stop and we enjoy eating outside.

The day's end was at Sully-sur-Loire, where there is a famous castle (lots of them in these parts!) and after we checked in and had our showers we toured the grounds and castle itself. There were lots of fish in the moat, mainly catfish, and we saw another water vole like creature.