A Tour Around Nord De La France – Tony Budd
It was General Eisenhower who famously quoted, “plans are worthless but planning is everything”. He used this often referenced quote in connection with Northern France. So when Debbie and I had a notion for a tour around Nord de la France I knew that I had to dust of my planning skills and come up with a plan. However, the lesser known Helmuth von Moltke the Elder is equally paraphrased with the much quoted, “No plan survives contact with the enemy”.
Now, not that we had any notion to invade northern France in the literal sense of the term but nevertheless my carefully constructed plan certainly failed to survive its first contact with continental roads. But more of that unhappy outcome later.
Our trip was for ten days of riding through Belgium and Northern France on my 2014 Road King Classic, with the aim of reaching Alsace Lorraine close to the German border. On the way we had arranged to meet friends at the historic town of Metz. Regarding “plans” we prefer having a start point and an end point and let the schedule sort itself out as the holiday unfolds. We are not fans of having hotels booked for each night, much better to roll up in whatever town is on your route at tea time. We have never had any problems finding the ideal hotel, but we always make sure we don’t clash with continental school holidays. We had though booked the first two nights hotel stop in beautiful Ghent in southern Belgium.
There is also an eventful backdrop to this. The day we were travelling on the ferry happened to be the day of the most important sporting event in England for forty years – a quarter final world cup match versus Sweden. So the planning principle kicked in big time, I calculated with diligent use of Google maps that I could be at our hotel with an hour to spare before kick-off. I was certain I could find a nearby bar televising the game. So we left home at 4.30 in the morning in time to board the 7.30 ferry crossing from Dover. All went to schedule, our invasion was going perfectly. We hit the Belgian motorway system and after a couple of hours Google maps said that we were fifteen minutes from the hotel. But that sinking feeling we’ve all had when the bike doesn’t feel right hit me and very quickly it was un-rideable, we had a flat rear tyre. The upshot is that I managed to watch the last thirty minutes of the game on my smartphone in a service station, I can confirm that a five inch screen doesn’t quite do it for an event of this magnitude.
Carol Nash were brilliant and got me to the local Harley dealership inside three hours. I was at the dealer’s mercy and our holiday was in their hands, they told me that their workshop was booked solid for six weeks! But we eventually got the bike back four days later after hassling them every day. I still hold the view though that 635 Euros is a bit steep for a tyre, inner tube and wheel bearing. The owner though was a charming and shapely lady attired in a vest top and very short denim shorts – it beats anything I’ve seen at SHD, perhaps our esteemed dealer principle Lloyd should consider revising his personal dress code?
Debbie in the meantime had called our hotel only to be told that we had been booked in to an alternative hotel. This turned out to be a former monastery that was still home to several monks who were very visible during our stay. It was a very welcome adjustment. We had 4 enjoyable days visiting Bruges, Ghent and Bruxelles on public transport. Once we were back on 2 wheels we headed east and at our first café stop in the middle or rural France were joined by four German bikers heading west. We exchanged stories for thirty minutes, sadly for them they weren’t Harley riders so my musings about my throbbing V-Twin didn’t seem to hit the spot. We said our auf wiedersehens and pressed on, stopping for lunch at the charming town of Dinant on the banks of the River Meuse. In the afternoon we soon crossed in to France and had a lovely ride through the Parc Naturel Regional des Ardennes before arriving at Charleville Mezieres with its beautiful historic square. It was late afternoon so we decided to stop here for the night. One of the joys of riding in Europe is the fabulous town centres. Often on our tours the best opportunity to experience a town and sample it’s ambience is the evening meal and then breakfast in the morning, so we make sure to pick our spot carefully. It’s always enjoyable and rewarding. We make a point of staying in a town centre hotel as this gives us the maximum opportunity to use the limited time.
After a lovely breakfast in the square we rode purposefully on to Metz. This is a historic city and we spent two nights here which allowed us to fully explore its streets, restaurants and cafes. Our battle plan went awry again however as the Saturday was Bastille Day and every single restaurant table was booked. I did use the line that we were English and could they make a special case for us, but to no avail! We ended up with baguettes by the river, not quite what we had in mind.
In the morning we headed west conscious of our ferry booking in a couple of days, although we know from experience that it’s easy to change your booking on arrival. We rode through Verdun but decided not to stop at the war memorial there but did stop for a great continental breakfast. Then on in to Reims town centre for some lunch and some great riding through the glorious country roads that never seem to have any cars on them. We were beginning to notice a little more traffic the further west we rode, but nothing to compare with the overcrowded English roads. We visited the very impressive WW1 memorial at Thiepval and spent a couple of hours there in a very reflective mood. Google maps couldn’t direct us to the actual memorial and we ended up a narrow lane surrounded by corn fields. Unexpectedly we came across a small war memorial and a path through the corn which Debbie followed that lead to a very moving large field of war graves.
We headed on to Amiens for our last nights in France. We found a hotel and as it was the World Cup Final with France competing we thought we would watch some of the game in a bar and join in with the locals. But getting a viewing spot was impossible, every bar was packed solid and even the outdoor screens were hard to see. So we decided instead to have dinner by a canal opposite one of the screens. The French were in full voice and it was great fun just to be an outsider looking in. At the final whistle the youngsters invaded the canal, but we were very close to our waiter when he was hit in the face by a rocket from across the canal. A worrying development. After dinner we headed off to watch a fabulous laser show which happens every night on the front façade of the very impressive cathedral, it had been highly recommended to us. It was quite something and very unique, with all the hundreds of stone figures being lit up with their own individual colours.
The next day, Sunday, was our final day and a blast to Calais town centre for lunch and then to the ferry for our final leg home.
Despite our unplanned events we had a thoroughly enjoyable tour. In some respects it was a demanding ten days, but always stimulating. We saw some beautiful, historic Belgian and French towns and enjoyed care free riding through endless continental countryside with only the merest hint of traffic for most of the time. Touring on the continent is always an adventure, this year it’s off to Lisbon for the HOG rally, a very different continental experience and immersion into a major Harley event. Can’t wait! Let’s hope it goes to plan!
