Another long day on the canals. It was overcast all day, but fortunately the rain stayed away.
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| No, not the canal. The football field at Diou was showing the effects of yesterday's rain. Probably not much football played there today. |
After a quick stop at the boulangerie/ pâtisserie for today's baguette and tarts, we left Diou via the Voie Verte, a paved foot/cycle path which followed the canals. After a couple of hours we ducked into a bar at Coulanges for our morning coffee.
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| Yes, this one is the canal - still the Canal Latéral à la Loire. |
There was a bit more activity along the way today. We saw several recreational cyclists, a handful of cycle tourists, a couple of dog-walkers with their dogs, lots of fishermen, a lock keeper, a few walkers, a horse, a pony, and a jogger. On the canal there were a couple of pleasure boats and a barge.
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| A barge about to enter a lock. |
Of particular note was this example of a public toilet. Not a common sight on our trip so far.
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| A very rare example of a public toilet |
At the canal bridge at Digoin we bade farewell to both the Loire River and the Canal Latéral à la Loire. The bridge takes the canal over the river.
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| The canal bridge at Digoin. Not as long or as stylish as the one at Briare, but impressive just the same. |
At Digoin the Canal Latéral à la Loire gives way to the Canal du Centre, and we stayed on the Voie Verte following this new canal for about 14 kilometres. On the way we had a combined fruit/pastry stop.
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| We had these healthy-looking pastries for afternoon tea. |
There was a lot more action on this stretch of the Canal du Centre than there had been on the other canals we had followed. There were cyclists and fishermen aplenty the whole way from Digoin to Paray-le-Monial.
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| About to pass some fishermen on the Canal du Centre |
Distance: 38.53km
Walking time: 7hrs 27mins
Elevation gain: 366 metres
Cumulative distance: 723.02 km
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