F & S Day 15 14/09/11 Rain and Long Roads

It was raining as we headed out this morning - so it was Sealskinz on and raincoats as we descended down the rest of the valley and onto the road towards Thiers.

Because of our plan to lop a day or two off the end of the trip we were going faster routes when and where we could. Today it was possible to stick to the A-roads and have a faster and longer day as a result.

There were a fair few hills in the first part of the route, but it soon flattened out and the rain cleared after a few hours; leaving us to ramp up the speed and do a bit of team time trialling down a few very straight sections of road.

After lunch we were onto quieter roads, despite still being A-roads, and we quickly passed through the hillside town of Thiers where we had planned to camp.

Now in warm sunlight we continued riding until about 1830, clocking in at over 50km passed Thiers by the time we set up camp in some woodland beside a river.

After a quick dinner of Chilli and Rice, we washed ourselves and sweaty kit in the secluded river, before settling down in the shady campsite for an early night after what had been a very long day.

More of the same is expected for tomorrow - hopefully without the rain!