london to paris april 07

3 days, 224.48 miles (370km)

11.04.07
Langley to Portsmouth
73.88 miles
6:27'
Ferry overnight to Le Havre

12.04.07
Le Havre to Poses (Camping)
64.96 miles
6:03'

13.04.07
home to Paris
85.64 miles
7:28'




-Have a nice ride- says Andy,
and I’m off to Paris. It’s 8:25 in the morning,
clear skies, not too cold, nice.
Hey, what’s that noise?
is it the wheels?
weird…







I’ve been dreaming with this trip for a long time.
My girlfriend lives in Paris and I spend a lot of time in the city of lights,
I kind of live there now.
Everytime I’m on the plane, watching the coastline through the clouds,
I’m thinking of riding those roads, all the way home to Paris.
I’ve been planning the ride, getting the bike ready, for months.
I normally ride my Surly Crosscheck fixed for my commuting ride to work at Heathrow.
It’s the first time I ride a geared bike in years. I have 30 gears!
I’m not used to it.
And that noise… so annoying!
I think it comes from the pedals. It’s the shoe against the rubber seal on the Eggbeaters.
Oh well, ride on…
I downloaded my route itinerary and some maps from viamichelin.com (pretty cool
because you can specify you’re on a bicycle), but I could do with a proper map.
That sign says “Bucks Horn Oak” and according to Michelin I’m halfway to Portsmouth.




Lunch break in a forest. Beautiful trees, peaceful, away from the traffic.
A bit of butter from my sandwich on the seal of the pedals will hopefully do the job and get rid of the noise.
The sun is shining. I could do with another coffee.
The bike feels a bit funny with all the weight. Going uphill, all the way to Butser Hill, pass Petersfield. The view is just amazing from up here and I hope it’s all downhill from here to Portsmouth.
It’s 6:05 and I’m at the harbour. The ferry doesn’t leave until 11pm, so I have plenty of time to chill out, get some dinner and enjoy this feeling. 73:88 miles in 6 hours 27 minutes.
The guy on the Cannondale says –that Brooks saddle looks painfully new–

-Ladies and Gentlemen, we’ll soon be arriving at Le Havre…-
I didn’t sleep very well on the ferry. It’s 7:30 and I feel tired.
-Good luck- says the policeman and I’m out of the harbour.




-un café, s’il vous plait-
A cereal bar and a banana and I’m trying to find my way out of Le Havre. I eventually find Le Pont de Tancarville and it’s quite impressive. I wonder if that’s the Seine river.




The plan is to follow the river to Paris, but I don’t really have a set route plan. I bought a couple of maps in the shop in the harbour, and I want to stick to D roads, secondary roads with less traffic.
So I end up doing a bit of a silly loop to get to Pont Audemer at 12:25.
Normandy is beautiful.




I’m riding these little country lanes and I feel part of the landscape…
farm houses, trees, cows, … and another steep hill to Boughtherolde and then I’m riding a smooth road through a forest.
Now it’s the D313 to Elbeuf, and D321 to Pont de-l’Arche with a bit too much traffic.




I wish I had time to stop because this place looks very interesting, but it’s getting late and I still need to find somewhere to sleep tonight.
Sophie calls, she’s found me a camping site in Poses. It’s not too far.
64.96 miles later I’m pitching my tent. 6 hours on the saddle. I’m so glad I brought the sore-ass cream.

Birds singing everywhere.
I slept very well.
The sun is rising and I’m on my way home. Looking at the map it looks like a very long way. I reckon it must be at least 130 km to go, but I want to get home tonight. It’s friday night and Sophie is waiting for me. We’re doing the same trip on our tandem in May, but in 4 days.
Now, I’m doing it in 3 days, I hope.
28 miles later and I’m in Vernon, it’s hot and I’m running out of water, so lunch break it is!
The barman comes out and looks at my bike… -beau velo- and he offers cold water to refill my bottles. People are so nice around here; every cyclist on the road waves and says “bonjour”, even some people in cars! And this bloke on an old Peugeot who sees me looking confused at an intersection and comes to ask if I need help… -merci monsieur, bonne route!-
4 Euros 40 cents for a coffee and un sandwich de saucisson a l’huile and ride on…
from Vernon to La Roche Guyon, and then Vetheuil.




I couldn’t resist the ice cream.
I’m sitting on a bench in front of Le Mairie, enjoying my ice cream and looking at my bike:
I could have done without the mudguards… I’ve had some toe clearance issues.
I’m amazed I can carry so much stuff up and down these roads. I don’t have a lot of things in my front panniers but it helps balance the weight. My tent and the sleeping mat are on top of the rear panniers.
I haven’t had a single flat tyre, or any mechanical problems…
I feel I could just keep going, keep riding, on and on… Paris, and then the Pyrenees, and then the Spanish Mediterranean coast, all the way to Cadiz, my hometown, and then Africa, and then… I’m daydreaming again.
I find my way to Dracourt, then Sailly, and eventually Meulan. The landscape has changed, I’m getting closer to Paris. Now it’s the D190 all the way.
Lately, I’ve been doing quite a bit of riding around Paris on my fixed Steamroller, North; East and South, but I only got as far as Versailles West of Paris. After St-Germain-En-Laye, I’m trying to find Le Pecq. It took me a while but I’m on the right way now. Nanterre next. I can see La Defense in the distance. It’s straight on now, I think.




The N15 into Paris seems the only way unless I go back and find another route into the city.
But it’s late, it’s getting dark and my ass hurts, so I ride on the autoroute. Crazy. Too many cars, too fast… a few scary minutes later I’m in Paris, near the Bois de Bologne; I know my way home now. I see the Arc de Triomphe and the lights, and the city.
Bonjour Paris!
I feel so happy.
85.64 miles in 7 and a half hours and I’m home.
London to Paris in 3 days.
224.48 miles (361.41 km) in almost 20 hours riding.
Sophie has cooked a Spanish omelette a la Parisienne.