Our last morning in Fontet started out foggy, but it had cleared by 0900h and so we said a sad farewell to Fontet and headed east to Fourques.

Along the way, the secateurs we bought at the Fontet Vide Grenier got a good workout as Rita did some pruning on some branches that were overhanging the centre of the canal (this is why we bought them).

We saw another farmhouse with an enclosed porch, which was also an inspiration for the new house at Taggerty.

As we moved through Pont des Sables, we heard a call from the towpath and recognised Donna and Dale from NZ cycling along. Since we were almost at our destination at Fourques, we invited them to follow us and join us for lunch at the canalside cafe in Fourques. However, when we got there, the cafe was closed for the day, and so we invited them to join us for coffee and apple crumble (which luckily Rita had already baked). We had a nice chat and learned about their involvement in the Manuka Honey business in NZ, and found out that the jar I had bought in Australia before I came away may well have been made with honey from their 500 hives. Small world!

After lunch, we got ready to head across to Terrie and Phil’s house in Coussan, since Terrie had agreed to use her sewing machine to do a bit of stitching on our wheelhouse cover vinyl. However, as we prepared, we realised that the roll of vinyl was too large for us to manage on our bikes. So we rang Terrie and asked for a lift, which she graciously provided. When she saw the size of the roll of vinyl, I think she was a bit surprised, but on arriving at their house she settled down and got to work attaching the velcro to the folded edges (where we had previously been thinking of using glue), with Phil, Rita and I giving a helping hand.

Within a couple of hours, all four sides had been done, although we were still a bit unsure about the corners (we’ll wait and see how the cover fits on the wheelhouse roof). To repay their kindness, we invited them to dinner, and they suggested a restaurant they knew and frequented in nearby Le Mas d’Agenais. The main courses were delicious, but the desserts left something to be desired (my Creme Brulee only scored 2/10).