Following our "hot" night in Carcans, we were completely exhausted the next day as we drove up a bit along the Atlantic to the Île de Ré. It is a very small and manageable island, especially very flat - ideal for cycling. We chose a campsite at the top of the island, in Saint-Clément-des-Baleines, right by the lighthouse. Although it was the weekend, luckily it wasn't crowded (unlike weekends in France usually...). In the afternoon, we went straight to the lighthouse and looked around, which took barely 5 minutes on foot. The next day, we set off with our bikes to explore the island. We cycled through fields, vineyards, and salt gardens to Couarde-sur-Mer, where we met up with the two English people Tracey & Mark, whom we had previously met in Soulac. Unfortunately, the journey there was a bit chaotic because Oliver and I got separated on the way (of course, I had both cell phones with me...) and we waited for each other at two different places/beaches. But in the end, we somehow found each other and we had a very fun afternoon in Couarde and later on an oyster farm near Ars-en-Ré. At first, we thought it was a wine bar, but it was mandatory to order at least one portion of oysters... Oliver then volunteered and he really liked it - lucky him... ;-) In total, we cycled 40 km that day - yeah!
We extended our stay on the Île de Ré for one more night and went on another bike ride the following day. In Ars-en-Ré, we went to the beautiful market and did some shopping there (super fresh food and fabrics... :-) and also strolled through a small flea market that was taking place at the harbor. And then, at sultry temperatures, we continued by bike to the main town of the island, Saint-Martin-de-Ré. The route was also very beautiful, and we even went along a long stretch of the sea. There, we strolled through the alleys, had a glass of wine at the harbor (strengthening for the long way back...) and just let ourselves drift. When we arrived back at the campsite, we were quite exhausted - after all, we had cycled over 50 km that day.
From the Île de Ré, we drove along the coast for a while again. After so much effort (90 km by bike!), it was time for some beach & relaxation. In La Tranche-sur-Mer, we found a nice little campsite without any frills and settled there for 3 days. There were basically only fields around us, but we only had to cycle for 5 minutes and we were at a very nice beach. So we really enjoyed letting our souls dangle here, reading, and splashing in the sea. Wonderful!
After that, we slowly had to decide what else we wanted to do in the last remaining days. We knew that soon it would be very crowded everywhere on the Atlantic coast because the holidays would start in France the following weekend. But we couldn't and didn't want to say goodbye to the sea just yet. So once again, we spontaneously decided during the journey to at least visit one place in southern Brittany. It actually wasn't even up for debate anymore, we didn't want to drive that far, but we didn't like the stretch of coast between La Tranche and St. Nazaire at all. We had chosen two places, but the sea there wasn't nice and the whole beach was full of jellyfish and we simply couldn't find a campsite there that we liked. So off to Brittany - it's nice to be so spontaneous... that's exactly what vanlife is all about!
Our first stop (it turned out to be two in the end...) in Brittany was in Locmariaquer on the Gulf of Morbihan. There we found a nice and very simple place, basically a meadow behind a farm in the middle of the village. It took 5 minutes on foot to reach the water, the Bay of Morbihan. A little further on foot across the dune, and we were at the open Atlantic. Since we arrived quite late, we simply lay down by the sea and enjoyed the sunset.
The next day, we visited the famous megalithic alignments of Le Menec, Kerlescan, and Kermario near Carnac. The alignments are a kind of Stonehenge. We parked at the visitor center and walked the total of 4 km circular route (despite the heat...). It was actually very nice to do it all on foot, but unfortunately, a large part of the route was also along the road. In the middle of the route, there was a small café where you could strengthen yourself with tasty crepes and homemade cider. Of course, we did that too ;-) In the afternoon, we spontaneously drove to the Quiberon Peninsula and settled there on a campsite by the sea for the weekend. The beach was only about 5 minutes' walk away and really beautiful, with a choice of several small bays and the large main beach. It was really crowded because it was the weekend and the start of the holidays in France. The campsite was also very nice, but we were unlucky that a group (as often on weekends) spread out exactly opposite us and had a good party. But the next day, they all left with a hangover, and we had at least one quiet night by the Atlantic... ;-) On Saturdays, we cycled to Quiberon downtown to the market. Wow, it was really a huge market, we didn't expect that. You could buy pretty much everything from food to shoes, clothes, and knick-knacks. It's just fun to stroll through these markets, observe people, and buy everything fresh. We spent the afternoon (for the last time...) at the beach because we had to start moving towards home at some point.
So after a hearty birthday breakfast (because Oliver had his birthday on that Sunday), we reluctantly set off and said goodbye to the sea. We definitely wanted to spend a few more days in the Loire Valley. Somehow we accidentally came across a small campsite on the internet near Saumur (Campsite Terre D'Entente). On the way there, we realized that access was blocked everywhere because a retro bike tour was taking place. So we had to drive around the area for a few laps until all the roads were reopened at 3 pm and we could reach the campsite. Unfortunately, it was too late to see anything of the bike tour. What a shame, if we had known that beforehand, we would have loved it so much! Another time... ;-) The campsite was full of very old caravans from the 50s/60s, and of course, many also had their retro bikes with them. The tour passed right by the campsite. At first, there wasn't a free spot, but the owner (by the way, he looked exactly like Clueso...) told us to wait a bit, as everyone would leave in the evening. And lo and behold, in the evening we got a dream spot right by the Loire :-) We immediately liked it here, there was a little café with colorful mismatched furniture, delicious homemade food. The atmosphere was simply super nice. We had the Loire right in front of us with a small bathing beach - perfect. So we spent another 3 really relaxed days here. Of course, we also cycled to Saumur, it was about 10 km from the campsite, and we visited the city and the castle on a hill and did some shopping.
We could start the rest of our journey home quite relaxed. We drove through fields & meadows on country roads via Tours and Orléans. Despite the holidays, there was little traffic, a really relaxed and beautiful route. We chose a lake near Troyes as another stopover and spent the night in a free camper parking lot. It wasn't anything special, but okay for one night. We simply spent the evening by the lakeshore, made ourselves comfortable on a blanket and enjoyed the sunset.
The next day, we drove to Strasbourg, as it was practically on the way and we had a craving for Flammkuchen... in Kehl, on the German side of the Rhine, we found an affordable camper stop where we parked Miss Molly and then took the tram over to Strasbourg. We were lucky, rain was actually forecasted, but we were able to enjoy a beautiful sunny evening in the city. After some sightseeing, including the cathedral and the cute old town 'La Petite France' with half-timbered houses and canals, we sat down in a nice street café and enjoyed a perfect ending with Flammkuchen and local beer.
We drove a total of 9,600 km, and our Miss Molly held up without any major issues. We are mega happy!!
And now we've been back home for about a week... What can I say: on the one hand, it's really nice to see our family and friends again, on the other hand, you immediately start longing to travel again.... It was a really great and eventful journey. We gained so many impressions, if we hadn't written the blog, we could hardly remember everything we saw and did. And you simply realize how little you actually need. After all, it's the little things in life that matter ;-)
