A


lthough a shorter day with a very welcome scenic


break riding along the banks of the river, I was pretty much on my last legs when I reached my hotel at the end of day three. The inevitable 5 mile hairpin bended climb out of the river valley did not, whilst doing it, seem too bad but, on top of nearly three hundred hard miles over the last three days it made the final twenty or so miles of that day seem endless.


D O


ay Four – Bertrix (B) to Mertesdorf (D) (140k)


ne observation I had made the previous night at the


hotel in Avesnelles was that I was probably the first English tourist that had been there for a while. The impression that I gained in Bertrix was that I was probably the first tourist of any description that had been there for a while!


M


y internet research re- vealed no other hotels in


the area and the Hotel du Com- merce was, therefore, Hobson‘s choice. With no web-site of its own and no English spoken when I booked, I did not know what to expect. Thirty three eu- ros for the night including break- fast payable in advance proba- bly says it all! However, nothing is all bad and an enormous din- ner in the hotel bar drinking dif- ferent varieties of Belgian beer with the locals practising their English on me went some way to make up for the cold, damp and basic room.


W 20


aking up next morning gave me the surprise


realisation that smoking had not yet been banned in public build- ings in Belgium. Just a few hours in the hotel bar had made my casual clothes reek of to- bacco. It is amazing to think that


this was the norm in the UK just over a year ago. Anyway, on- wards and up- wards to the next stop – Luxem- bourg


and,


you‘ve guessed it, lunch!


T


he second deadline of


my trip was to ensure that I ar- rived at the Hotel in Mertesdorf to meet up with my fellow Rotarians in time to be collected by our German hosts for the wine tasting and (more food) dinner that had been arranged for us. The choice of route through Luxem- bourg was either across country or through Luxembourg City. Never having been there, I chose to go through the city which I am sure was the right choice as it provided a break from the country miles even al- lowing for the road works and diversions which seem to be part of any large town or city.


C


onfident that the last part of the journey would be a


gradual descent into the Moselle valley with a dead flat ride once there, I allowed myself the lux- ury of a couple of glasses of Muscadet with the huge moules frites that was served up in the city centre restaurant where I appeared to be an object of curi- osity for the Luxemburg office workers whose local restaurant it evidently was.


M


ore expansive and com- mercial than the Meuse


valley, this section of the Moselle was also far busier with constant traffic on the roads along the river bank. Mertesdorf, where our hotel was, is just off the main valley to the north-east of Trier and the journey through


Trier was reminiscent of negoti- ating the Victoria Embankment in London‘s rush hour – not very cyclist friendly. Nevertheless, swift pro- gress was continued and I think that it was with some surprise that the rest of the crew saw me arrive at the Hotel Weiss clad in lycra shorts not only looking refreshed but EARLY!


T Reflections


he rest of the visit to our friends in Germany has


been amply covered elsewhere and I would just add that it was a wonderful way to round off my personal journey.


Just a few other random obser- vations:


 The £2.70 fare on the pas- senger ferry from Tilbury to Gravesend was nearly as much as my one way air fare of 5 eu- ros back to Stanstead. Admit- tedly, I had to pay another 25 euros to fly the bike back.


 No rain, punctures or me- chanical trouble at all.


 I know that they have less traffic on their roads but is this the only reason why the French and Belgian drivers are more considerate to other road users?


 Alone but never lonely. I took two books along but never had time to open either of them. Just like the front light and the shower gel (miniatures free in every hotel) – excess baggage.


 Despite three meals a day I lost about 4 pounds in weight. With no great publicity and as a last minute effort, I succeeded in raising nearly £500 for charity.


Gerry……...


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