Sunday, April 14, 2024
End: Field West of Veules-les-Roses
Kilometers: 21.2
Total: 79.9
We woke up at the Ailly Lighthouse feeling well-rested. Our tent site was a good one. We picked up and got hiking at 9AM.
The itinerary for the day was a series of villages, the first being Saint-Marguerite-sur-Mer. We got down to the beach and the kids played on a playground for a few minutes. It was an overcast and windy morning, and we weren’t too keen on sticking around for long.
We immediately took a wrong turn and followed the GR 212 for a kilometer before I noticed. Returning to the beach, we left Saint-Marguerite-sur-Mer and walked over to Quiberville Beach, where the kids played on another playground for awhile.
Alex bought some food at a convenience store, then we left town and went out traversing the farm fields on our way to the next village.
On the way we came across an abandoned platform on wheels, presumably for farming. We climbed up there and I lay down to rest while Alex cooked lunch for the children. Daniel had been complaining more than usual, but he cheered up a bit after that.
Continuing on, we walked into Saint-Aubin-Sur-Mer, where I had hopes there would be a bakery, but there was not. The kids went down onto the beach and played for awhile while Alex and I rested. I didn’t let the break last too long, because I wanted to get to a bakery, and the next village definitely had one.
We were once again back in the farm fields, but not for too long. Soon we arrived in Sotheville-Sur-Mer, but Daniel was whining again, and things got worse when I realized that the bakery was closed because it was Sunday afternoon.
The weather had heated up. It had originally been forecast to be a cloudy day, but by noon the clouds had disappeared and I had to protect my sunburned neck with Alex’s jacket.
Leaving that village, we walked the farms again, and got to our final village of the day, Veules-les-Roses! I had been looking forward to this all day, because it is supposed to be the most beautiful village on the trail. It didn’t disappoint.
There were tourists everywhere, and we got to see the shortest river in France at 1 kilometer. The town was adorable, and best of all, we got to a bakery and a tiny convenience store. We were basically out of food at that point. So far we’ve been using snacks to keep the kids happy, and it’s been working well.
Alex wanted to get the spot to set up camp, as it was getting colder. We climbed up out of the beautiful Veules-les-Roses, and walked into the farm fields. We got to a small portion that was just a grass field, and that was the best spot we could find.
Alex cooked up a lot of food, I had an entire baguette with ham and shredded cheese, and the kids and Alex had spaghetti noodles. Satisfied, we listened to a light rain on the tent, and then went to bed.
The kids are always happy in the tent. Let’s hope they can keep that spirit while walking tomorrow.
