It's been a while since I posted a summary of my travels. On the 24th of September I took the Euro Tunnel, also known as the Channel Tunnel or Chunnel. This was a lot of fun and a great way to get across the channel From England to France. Bikes get on last and off last. The cars get on, then move towards the front. Then the bikes get on, and we all hang out talking in the last car. Everyone stays with their vehicle. You can go to the lounge, but with the trip only lasting 35 minutes or so, why bother. My plan had been to get off the train and head south, between the coast and Paris, eventually getting to southern France.
Well, plans change. In the train, a biker couple recommended a B&B in Belgium that they said was nice and had a great bar within a short walk. I did not have a lot of reason to go there, but what they heck.
Loading the train.
A bunch of wet bikers travelling under the channel. 
And magically we are in France. 
Quite a few of these around. Fitting since it was a French Design. 
These guys were in one of the Air BnBs I was in. I just liked them. 
So, without a plan, I left the train. Since I was going by Dunkirk, I decided to see the museum. Pretty good museum all in all. Gave me a chance to dry out too, since it was raining. The city itself was just another city, and we all know how I love cities.
From there I went into Belgium. I was not impressed. I assumed it was just the area I came in on, but it did not get any better. The B&B was nice, but because the season was over, the nearby bar was closed and the B & B was, empty except for me. A good place to stay, but I should have chosen one on a different route.
From the time I hit the continent I tried to stay on as rural roads as possible and avoid the highways. That was not new. In this part of the continent, that meant rolling hills, somewhat curvy roads and small villages. In Belgium the villages were dirty, and had porn stores and clubs all over. Crossing the border back into France, everything got nice again. The villages were clean, and looked like places I would like to stop for the night.
The riding was very nice the entire time there. On the first day heading into France, I had picked an Air BnB that looked like it was rural and in a fairly central location. It was not until I was getting close and I started seeing signs for Verdun that I realized what kind of area I was heading for. Verdun was the location of one of the worst battles of WW-I. Sometimes referred to as 300 days and 300,000 lives. I was glad I had stopped there for two nights. There was a lot to see. I will write that story up later.
Since my plans got changed, how unusual, I decided I would do more than just hit the edge of Luxembourg. I stopped at the cemetery where Patton is buried, then up some great valleys to the Vianden castle before heading into Belgium again.
When I saw Bastogne on the map, well, I had to go. For those of you who slept through history class, maybe you remember this area as where the Battle of the Bulge happened. If you still are fuzzy, think of the show "Band of Brothers". Yup, some history here. I will write that up sometime in the future too.
I already wrote up the story of the Air BnB fun there.
After that, it was meandering back and forth on country roads heading south. Beautiful scenery and nice roads, but nothing dramatic. I picked my next Air BnB based on the fact that it was far enough away to make a decent day and it was in the right direction. And the price was right. It was a great little apartment.
Then as I got close, the view changed.
No more rolling hills and farmland. 
I was back in me element. THIS is what I like most. I had not realized that I had booked a place just inside the Rhone-Alpes. This was some seriously dramatic scenery. And lots of spaghetti roads. I added a third night to my booking. I spent a few days riding around this area. It's hard to find a bad road. Unfortunately, there was some rain and weather spoiling the view in spots. Also, since this is the slow time of year for them, they do a lot of construction. They just close a road and you have to go many miles to get around.
Yet more incredible scenery along with spaghetti roads. 
WINTER IS COMING ! ! ! 