Queyssel

So as the theme of the trip so far was badly thought out ideas that somehow managed to work out fine I decided it would be appropriate to end in the same way. To make a grand finale I picked a bad idea that I had when I was about 9 or 10 and decided to fulfil it. My Granddad has lived in the south of France, east of Bordeaux, since before I was born and as I child (well as a younger child) I used to watch the tour de France and want to ride my bike home from my Granddad's... so now seemed the perfect time to give it a shot. My intense preparations for this stupid task was visiting the gym 9 times to do 30 minutes on the static bike. After that how could I fail...

After flying into Paris I took the TGV to my Granddads to see him for the first time in over 3 years! I spent nearly 2 weeks down at my Granddads eating, drinking, reliving childhood memories and ruining any fitness I had picked up in New Zealand. 

Eventually I sorted out the gear I would need for the ride and drew a straight line on a one page map from Queyssel to Dieppe. I figured if a tourist map could get me and Pete through Vietnam then the same would work in France. Luckily the weather for the whole time I had been down there had been overcast and relatively cool, not great for a holiday but perfect for cycling. After one 25km bike ride to test out my fancy new cycling shoes I decided I was definitely ready to set off on a 1000km plus bike ride...