Planes, Trains and Automobiles

September 4th

As we started our 28 mile round trip ride along the Greenway near Epinac, on Le Voie Verte Autunoise, we were surprised by the incredibly smooth surface of this former railway track.  Up until now we had not experienced any rail trails in France but now that we know they exist we will be searching them out.  Another advantage to this section of the trail is that it is mostly shaded and on a hot day it was a welcome treat.  The trail is a little out of the way so we didn't see many people and only the occasional car as we crossed roads to stay on the route.  At one point we were near a train track when the TGV came blasting by which startled us a little.  Jay looked up the speeds and some go 320km/hr or 199 miles/hr.  Once the train passed by we returned to our quiet, serene ride when all of a sudden a loud noise out of nowhere shocked us enough to make Jay a little nauseous and hurt both of our ears.  We quickly realized it was a military jet buzzing overhead but it must have been very low. This happened twice but the entire rest of the ride we were on pins and needles wondering if they would be coming back.  Because the trail is so nice we will give it another chance at some point I'm sure.

The old train station has the name of Epinac Les Mines because the Hottinguer Coal Mine was located just behind the station.  It was constructed in 1863 and was the deepest mine in France at the time.

Dinner was at Le Fleury, not really memorable so probably won't return.  The highlight of the evening was on the walk back. The Basilique Notre-Dame de Beaune had an amazing light show projected on the exterior...truly amazing!