From Sens to the Loire, Day 10

Thursday, July 27, 2023, Day 10, we left our very nice vacation apartment early and were on our bikes at 9:00 am. Today, the weather was better in the sense that we didn't get caught in a proper rain shower, but we did have strong headwinds again. It wore us down once more. We felt the positive effects of the rest day, our bottoms didn't hurt as much, our legs were refreshed, we had more energy, and we were better motivated. We once again cycled through very beautiful landscapes, the frequency of small towns with cafes and shops increased, which we liked because it made logistics much easier for us. We cycled on partly lonely country roads and field paths where we were all alone, but also on busy country roads where reckless trucks whizzed past us at 100 km/h and we had to resist the suction. In the early afternoon, we usually take a break for a meal, and this time Andrea bought two very tasty chicken legs at the market. In case you're wondering why we sometimes cycle stages of 70 km and sometimes only 40 km: we determine the length of our stages based on elevation and weather, but much more on accommodation options. And so far, we have been cycling through structurally poor regions where accommodation options were limited. Today was no different. That's why we absolutely had to make it to the Loire. However, over 80 km was too long for us, so we decided to take the suburban train in Nogent sur Vernisson and comfortably cover the remaining 15 km by train. It was supposed to depart at 3:21 pm, so we pedaled the last 20 km before Nogent like crazy against the wind because the next suburban train would have departed 3 hours later. And we made it and arrived at the train station at 3:15 pm, only to realize that the train was delayed by 1 hour, then it was delayed by 2 hours, then it was delayed by two and a half hours, and finally, it arrived at 6:11 pm. So we sat on the platform in Nogent for almost 3 hours because we didn't want to ride the last kilometers by bike anymore. The reason for the delay was very sad: the train had collided with a person who had jumped in front of it with suicidal intent. So the passengers on the train were also trapped for 3 hours and their mood was no better than ours. Thank God we were able to bring our bicycles on the train and accordingly arrived at our destination, albeit late, but very elegantly. At the end of the day, we arrived in Gien, a small, beautiful town on the Loire, where we, of course, settled into a very nice hotel with a view of the river after having a large draft beer in the local brasserie.