As you see from the map and the header image, I paid a small sum (as I remember it) to take the ferry across from Royan to Le-Verdon-sur-Mer. I know there was a little, mad bit of me thinking "is this cheating?" and saying that the ferry across the channel was necessary: there was no way to cycle that bit of the journey but here I could have gone inland and along the eastern bank of the Charente. However, common sense prevailed and I reminded myself that it was no means certain that I would make it to Compostella if I didn't move on pretty steadily and that I did want to see the Atlantic coast!
So here is proto-Toto waiting for the ferry.
We would be heading into nature reserves and were promised that nature would provide its own spectacles but that I could have see it free, guided or even on artistic tours. The other sign seemed to say that anyone could take the ferry except bikes. I decided that I would take the pedestrian route. I can't remember if I was correct or not but we got aboard and crossed. We actually crossed with the sister ship on the way and the estuary is actually impressively wide.
On the other side we were into very different terrain: sand or sandy soil and pine trees.
And from time to time we'd see the Atlantic again. In fact, I later discovered that that first stretch along the coast is full of 1960s blocks of flats that are having to be abandoned as the sea encroaches.
I think this was the later beach and where I found some lunch. Oops, no, GPS marker tells me it was the early beach stretch that I have marked on the map above.
But the day finished with my finding this.
Very fitting! (I don't remember if it was lovely or just very cheap, French and drinkable. I'm still no oenophile!) Enough for today.
Added 29.viii.26.