4 July 2025 (cloudy start, then sunny and hot) 16km

Well, it's Independence day in America and I'll bet with the wally who is president at the moment, half of the population, or thereabouts, will be wishing they were still under British rule.  So....good luck America.

Our nice little shaded spot. We're the only tent here. Most people are staying in the cabin tents, below.

Haven't seen this kind of start to a day for a long while. We actually had cloud cover. Thought we might even get some rain, but not to be.  Today we are having a rest day. A good chance to charge the power banks and phones as well as get some bigger items washed.

Trying to get power's a nightmare. In some places they tell you where you can leave your phone, but in others you're hunting around and plugging in the toilet blocks or kitchens, if they have a kitchen. 

The lake is fortunately just down the road. Great for a cool down. Unlike yesterday, when we were there twice, midday today saw virtually no one around.

So rest day today and I still got Julia up at 5.30am. (Ju: My fault entirely. When I said we could have a bit of a sleep in, I should have specified I actually wanted an extra couple of hours, not a measly 30 minutes).  She was sleeping last night when I was listening to a crowd of Man Utd supporters...yes you heard it, singing very loudly and aggressively.  We believe they may well have been attending a music festival, just down the road from camp, at the Chateau.  Somewhere in France, there is a music fest coming to a town near you. !!  And somewhere there are Man Utd supporters, looking for a decent team to follow. 

Water was lovely after a hot ride of only three minutes, with a nice breeze up to keep things manageable.  We are still undecided which way to go and have to decide today if we want to head into the mountains or detour to Lucerne.

The main consideration is cycling on smaller or country roads, if no trails are available.  The last thing we want is to be slogging up huge inclines with trucks and coaches flashing by within inches.  Combine that with the intense heat and making sure that there is a campground at the end of the ride, to at least have an availability of cooler water to soak under and we have a few things to consider. 

Freecamping never used to be an issue for us, but most countries, except Scandinavia, have now made it illegal.

It's now 7.30 pm and 29 degrees. As we speak Julia is having another cold shower. I will leave my last one until just before bed.

We have decided after lengthy discussions that we will make for Lucerne, then Andermatt. Some serious climbing, but we hope less time on main roads.

Looks like maybe some rain during the coming week, but not much respite from the intense heat.  Julia ate some gluten today and is paying the price with stomach pains.  Hopefully all go tomorrow.  Ate a lovely meal for dinner which was gluten free.  Sorry about lack of photos today.

One reason we stayed was because we heard Thonon-les-Bains was a nice city.  At 6am this morning we cycled in to find mass amounts of tenements and a city in need of a pick-me-up.

So uninspiring after Yvoire yesterday that we couldn't find much enthusiasm to get the cameras out.  We did find evidence of the festival at the Chateau however.

Some nice football pitches border the campground.

So off to bed at 9.30pm, hoping for a more adventurous day tomorrow.