France/Benelux - Day 2

Villefranche sur Saone > Ardeche

Dep 0745

Arrive 1515

Daily mileage 150

Total mileage 720

It's not called "Samedi noir" on the roads for nothing. Weekends are known as "chasses-croisses" (l"comings and going" or, in this context, "massive traffic jams") and the one at the start of August is the worst as those coming home from holiday (the juillettistes) "cross" and "chase" those starting (the aoutiens). The result was an average speed of around 20mph over seven and a half hours without a stop. The previous day I had managed over three times the distance from Calais to Villefranche in half an hour less with two stops. Thank goodness for air con and my back catalogue of Radio 4 comedy shows! There was even gridlock on the national road having abandoned that on the motorway south of Lyon.