Woo hoo. I got Bartlett on a boat today, a catamaran sailboat at that.

We’ve now left the Champagne region (we drank them dry) and have travelled south east to Lac Du Der. It’s the largest man made lake in Europe so there’s plenty of room for sailing, although not too much wind which is a bit disappointing. Anyway, it was great weather for Dave to learn and he was very impressive on his first outing.

We’ve had a particularly enjoyable day today; in addition to sailing we’ve eaten plenty of crepes and have treated ourselves to one night in a mobile home/log cabin type thing just so we have some space, warmth and a good shower for a day! I’d forgotten that camping involves the most annoying showers ever – they’re generally grubby, lukewarm, powerless and require you to push an ‘on’ button every 5 seconds. So our cabin shower is much appreciated tonight :o)

This area is beautiful and again highly recommended. The only thing I would say is come in July and August. Almost everything is closed outside those months, which we’re finding hard to believe. There is a great cycle track around the lake but all the bike hire places have shut up shop for the ‘winter’; it’s such a shame.

No more grumbling though. We’re having a lovely time and are about to sit down to dinner with cheap beer and champagne, and plan our route to Switzerland.

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