clairedavieswriter

Tiny Buffières had some charming details, and some substantial properties that looked lovely in the evening light

Sadly, despite signs to the contrary, what it didn’t have was a boulangerie, but fortunately my Mary Poppins panniers supplied me with a yoghurt, a cereal bar, and a banana for breakfast. No need for talking umbrellas, but a coffee would have been nice – I didn’t find anywhere to give me one until midday. The sun was shining at 9am but those clouds soon cooled things down.

Which was helpful, since my first task was to climb up to the village of Suin:

Which as the ‘Mont’ suggests was up a pig of a hill. Though actually what the village specialises in is goats. Sadly I’m missing the opportunity to taste free goat-based victuals:

As always, the views were my reward for the climb – this was on the way up. From the top, I felt I could see the whole of France laid out below me, but it was impossible to capture in a photo.

We found quite a few more (mostly gentle) hills, and plenty of the Charolais cattle that are so integral to the region…

… that they are considered part of its cultural landscape – so much so that the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Charolles seems to want this recognised by UNESCO

This sign caught Bernard’s eye:

It turns out that Bernard T was a two-time winner of the Tour de France, and something of a local hero – as long as you’re not fussed about the doping that he subsequently owned up to.

For the last 20k I called on the services of Hugo headphones. I mean, really Guillaume, you need your algorithms examined: why would you choose a main road over this, the virtually traffic-free valley of the meandering Arconce?

This was our lunch spot du jour:

And this was the most surprising sight.

The last couple of miles to Paray, we joined EuroVélo 6 – aka The Rivers Route. Had we turned the other way and kept going, we would eventually have reached the Black Sea. Another day perhaps.

And then, after so few miles it felt almost like cheating, we reached our destination, with its impressive Basilica..

Imposing town hall..

Lovely old Post Office:

And medieval ‘pan de bois’ houses.

My room has a fine view – as I write, the bells are ringing to mark the beginning of the Ascension weekend – which also means that the entire town is closed. Luckily, the hotel has a restaurant.

Meanwhile Bernard is tucked up in a garage with some surprising features. I hope he doesn’t spend the night wondering ‘Does my rear rack look big in this?’’