Day 3 Wednesday 22nd June - mileage 742 - woods 10 miles east Nancy

Up at about 8am and just as I as about to set off it started raining. it didn't seem to be too strong so I de decided to continue. The weather just got worse and soon I was getting cold and wet in a cold wet miserable mood.

Stopped at a McDonalds for breakfast, and warmed myself up,and decided to wait and see if the rain abates!

Two hours in McDonalds and one Big Mac and two coffees later it had stopped raining (enough) to venture out. McDonalds is free wifi so caught up on all my emails etc.

Chosen route was towards Verdon and then towards Strasbourg. On the way I passed about five huge cemeteries from the first world war. They were for French soldiers, and the one in the picture I calculated had about 5000 graves! Very moving, each one with names of the soldier.






My Tomtom has refused to charge today and so I went into a large hypermarche to try and get some wire wool or something similar to clean up the contacts again. At the entrance there was one of those key cutting / cobbler type stalls and so I engaged the man in poor French,and then drawings to ask if he had anything that would scrub the contacts. In the end got quite a crowd around me trying to understand what I needed. eventually he produced a plastic scrubbing pad (the type that clean dishes) and he cut off a small piece for me. I thought this would work well so I then went and bought a couple of pads because I think that I may well have to keep cleaning these contacts. I should never have used the piece oh sandpaper that Emma gave me as I think this will have taken off the gold plating on the contacts and now they will keep oxidising.

Bought provisions for a camping meal from the hypermarche (onions, tinned tomatoes, pasta, Italian sauce, mushrooms, beer) in case I decided to camp and set off again towards Strasbourg.

Weather improved and so kept look out for a camping site. No luck and so when I passed a forest area I decided to take a logging track into the woods and camp rough.















So far all is ok, not heard any wild bears (although just as I typed that there was a crack of a broken stick from somewhere off to my left.

As I cooked the meal I could hear a cuckoo calling somewhere in the woods.

It is now 9:30 and dusk is just starting to creep over the woods.

As I went to get the camera to import today's pictures I noticed a deer on the roadway about 100 metres away. Tried to take a photo but it comes out too dark.

If I post again you will know that I survived through the night.

More later
TOR


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