Decided to get up early before sunrise in order to pack the tent and then get on the bike whilst the air temperature was still cool. Was pleased to find that the 10mph wind was coming from the north and this helped with progress towards Nantes and it also had a cooling effect.

I stopped in a nice patisserie in the small town of Blain, after that the route was mostly along the early nineteenth century Nantes-Brest canal. Generally it was very quiet along the canal but as the first signage for Eurovelo 1 became visible I noticed an increasing amount of other cycle tourists. Tall trees provided quite a lot of shade on the canal path, and elsewhere there were some small sections of pine forest, open farmland and some nice long straight descents.

Upon reaching the outskirts of Nantes I found excellent cycleways alongside the road and these extended right in to the city centre. Thus far I have been fortunate to find that campsites had a place available without booking, however the Nantes campsite that I was hoping to stay in was full. Decided to stay in a hotel in the old town of Nantes which upon first impressions looks like a beautiful city.

Distance: 63 miles

Maximum temperature: 32 degrees C

Nantes-Brest canal

Signage for Eurovelo 1 started appearing on the canal path