Wiques to Flechinelle

Mr Melezet
Jul 4, 2020
2 min read

Cows and rabbits

Awake with an alarm as breakfast at 8.30. Courgette jam on toast - very pleasant. No judgement offered on the coffee - Nuns are 'hors competition'. We learned a bit more about our hosts - it is a cloistered order and they do not leave the abbey except to see a doctor. It also means most of the place is closed to visitors like us, so no more pictures. A wet day in prospect which meant packing everything inside the bags. That was a real squeeze, reminiscent of Mr Creosote and the wafer-thin mint.

On our way at 10.30 into a drizzly grey day. The wind was mostly on our backs which was nice and we had a second breakfast at a bar in Hallines.

The day continued grey, drizzly, cold and windy. I suspect we will look back fondly on such days when it gets really hot.

We walked down into the valley of the river Aa, crossing by a watermill, then a gentle climb out of the valley and a long, long, open stretch before descending again to Therouanne on the river Lys. The cows here all look the same and some have 2 heads.

Therouanne isn't the most attractive place but it does have a lovely local museum that also has Francigena stamps. Hoorah.

Today's date: 4.7.20

Steps: 32,100

Distance: 24.48km

Climbing: 251m

Nowhere was open for food so we had lunch in the drizzle in Carrefour car park. All part of the adventure!

It rained all afternoon and I can't recall seeing the sun all day. There was one nice long stretch on a path between fields, but otherwise on very quiet roads most of the afternoon. Lots of rabbits, all of which were too fast to catch on camera.

La Ferme des Templiers

Arrived at 17.30 at today's stop. We have a tiny cottage that is linked to a larger hotel. The hotel seems to be an old manor house but I'm not sure they have many guests. Our little cottage seems targeted at walkers - it has all you need for an overnight stay.