St.Mihiel France

Travelled:234km

Stay:Bourg et Comin: picnic area next to Aisne canal N49.3886 E3.6546

Visited:Toul wine route, St.Mihiel, Camp Attila

It was a very fresh stroll around the train station area of Toul. There were predominantly larger and stylish homes here and the station was huge. 

We then headed off along the Toul winery trail. We parked up in Bruley which is a typical Toulois village with its wine cellars and houses made from the stone. 

No boulangerie? No problem...mobile boulangerie will come to you.

Some old wine presses.

Flowers make everything look pretty

Even the water pump.

We walked up the church and hillside chapel. 

As we neared St.Mihiel we stopped in the forest to learn about the WWI battles that took place here.

 There were French and German front line trenches and a memorial cross.Paying our respects to the thousands who lost their lives here. 

German front line trench



French front line trench

I’m standing at the French trench and Mark at the German’s...not much between them

Not far away we went to have a look at St.Michel church built in 16thC.

A beautiful choir

Bullet holes..evidence of the war

 At the end of WWI in 1918 the Battle of St.Mihiel was fought here with American troops helping to liberate the town. 

100year anniversary on the 19th September

On our way to Reims we travelled along an ancient Roman road and stopped to have lunch at Camp Atilla, which is the site of the oldest Gallic fortifications in Northern Europe. Built in 80BC the legend is that the battle against the Huns took place here. 

Aerial view...thanks google

We now travelled through vast fields, many of them growing sweet beet used to supplement the demand for sugar. 

As we have visited Reims before, our sole purpose for this trip was to find a new mattress for Bluey. 

Unfortunately the mattress needs to be especially made and so we have made the required inquiries for next year. It was now time to drive to a spot for tonight and so we ventured towards a canal. As it turned out we parked on a point where 2 canals meet - Canal Lateral Aisne and Canal l’Oise a l’Aisne. The weather had changed again so we hunkered down in Bluey and called it a night.

Toul France

Travelled:67km

Stay:Toul- motorhome parking €7/24hrs, free service point N48.6766 E5.8850

We started the day with a walk through Liverdun medieval quarter, set up above the Moselle River, offering some nice views. 

We then drove to a Narbonne Accessories store in search of a few motorhome parts. Next was a Decathlon store to buy a game of Palet from Brittany. 

We had no luck at Leroy Merlin trying to find a ladder and a water tank tap, so we filled up on a few food supplies and headed off to Toul. This town is situated along the Moselle River and was fortified by Vauban. 

We park up near one of the gateways and next to the port where pleasure boats are moored.

 We had lunch and did a few chores while it rained. 

A man’s job is never done...cleanest toilet ever.

Later we walked through the fortifications via a passage way and veered towards St.Etienne Cathedral with its twin towers high above the town’s rooftops.

 It’s facade is a masterpiece of flamboyant Gothic architecture. Unfortunately most of the statues were missing.

 Inside was huge and undergoing some restoration works with the central roof having been done along with some of the stained glass windows. 

There were some interesting gargoyles in the large cloister and a great view of the cathedral. 

We also popped in to have a look at St.Gengoult. We were then lucky enough to get a look at the free museum before it closed for the day. It had quite extensive exhibits on the local history. 

A few tapestries

Some religious robes

A couple of rooms on war.

Beautiful ceramic tile heaters

There was a great ceramic display 





Farming equipment

And some nice paintings

Then it was time to call it a day and we returned to Bluey. 

Not far from Paris now...counting down the days to the end of this years adventures.