Comté from the Fromagerie de Fontain Village, a hardware store, and a bike tour through the high plateau

We didn't quite grasp the experience of rain like we did in the last two years. On our way to Barcelona, we had two rainy days, one of which hit us hard on the Rhône. However, now that we were thoroughly soaked, we needed a different solution. For days, we puzzled over how to modify our struts so we could travel under a 3.50m height with a tarp. In Dole, we had worked out the solution and planned to acquire the material in a hardware store in Besançon.

Since a visit to a cheese factory was also planned, we could connect the two trips. We found the hardware store in Saône, in the industrial area, from where it was just 9 kilometers to Fontain.

Our experience with the “very steep inclines” led us to take the highway instead. Thus, we arrived at the high plateau via RD 571 and continued toward Saône. At first, I was puzzled that the road suddenly became a 4-lane highway, but soon all the drivers recognized us and honked kindly. Something was off.

We could only resolve the problem by exiting the N57 at the next junction. Subsequently, we discovered that a N... on a red sign denotes a fast road, which is probably not meant for cyclists.

In the hardware store, we found everything necessary for the conversion of our canopy, and in the Super U next door, we completed our essential shopping. Next, we headed to Fontain to the cheese factory, or Fromagerie as the French say. The Fromagerie de Fontain Village is a small but fine cheese factory with a factory sale, which customers from the surrounding area actively use.

We stocked up on a kilo of Comté and two other varieties of cheese to taste. The absolute highlight is the 24-month-old Comté.

On the way back, our navigation system led us astray once again, which was still somewhat acceptable for me, but my first officer's eyes widened so much that she didn't recognize the bad road and had to push downhill.

After Google has already sent us into the wilderness or up steps several times outside of larger towns, we will therefore stick more to the highway in the future.

The result of our visit to the hardware store can be seen in the pictures, even though Mr. Schmitt wouldn't agree with our execution, the roof is now sealed, and I have sun protection even in nice weather.