Orléans and further northwest

I thought Orléans was a bustling city, loud, dirty and not for cyclists. The opposite was the case, it was totally relaxed, very clean and so beautiful that I ended up getting a room so that I wouldn't have to cycle until the next day. The cathedral really impressed me with its size and it was simply beautiful to walk through the streets and along the banks of the Loire. At the Joan of Arc statue I met two Belgians from the campsite again and we drank a glass of wine together in the sun.

The next day, strengthened with a pain au chocolat, I continued north-west, which meant that I had to leave the Eurovelo 6. As the stage was mostly along the road, I wanted to take the train to Chartres, but that would have taken just as long as it took me on the bike. So I cycled and failed miserably when I tried to avoid field tracks. In the end I had to push my bike a few kilometers through muddy paths and meadows to get back onto a rideable path. As the stage was not on a long-distance cycle path, I didn't meet any other cyclists that day. It was also just through endless fields, so I'm looking forward to being on the véloscénie (Paris - le Mont-st-michel) from tomorrow.