‘Just’ 65 miles / 105 km today but felt as I was getting somewhere as for the first time I saw the roads signs indicating the through routes to the South! Specifically on the D352 to Marcigny which is signposted ‘BIS VALENCE / MONTPELLIER’.
There was no major difficulty until I reached the outskirts of Roanne where it become very hard to avoid the motorway. The route I eventually found can be seen from the photos I took, which I managed to geotag properly today.
However this was not before climbing for a good 50 minutes before meeting an elderly farmer, fixing his fence. He very kindly refilled my water bottles and then told me that the way I was going was impassable for my cycle and that I should go all the way back down the hill and take the ‘old route’ to St. Etienne! Below is a video of I took about 15 minutes into my climb!
Eventually arrived in Feurs and stayed at a typically French hotel which was very cycle friendly. Surprisingly pleasant dinner in their garden next to the railway tracks on Feurs Station. Welcomed into dinner by a charming hostess and served by a formally dressed waiter! Just a shame I was unable to reciprocate, having only jeans and a tee-shirt in my panniers. A further sign I was getting seriously south was the fact that at 9pm was dining outside and it was still very balmy.
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