There was only one Road; it was like a great river: its springs were at every doorstep, and every path was its tributary.
- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings
I chose today's quote for three reasons: firstly and most obviously, because I have spent the day following a great river, the Somme; secondly, because my path, the Gran Randonnée de Pays Bataille de la Somme, is a tributary taking me back to the Via Francigena, into which it flows; and thirdly, because J.R.R. Tolkien himself fought in the Battle of the Somme, on the very same battlefields as my great-grandfather.
The protagonist of today's stage was no longer the battlefields and cemeteries but the River Somme itself, and especially the Canal de la Somme beside it.
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| The locks at Froissy |
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| My lodgings above the crêperie in Froissy |
The 156 kilometre long Canal de la Somme was built between 1770 and 1843 for shipping purposes, but is now used only by pleasure boats. The section downstream of Péronne has silted up and has been closed to navigation since 2005. On this May 1 labour day holiday it was mainly being used by fishermen, some of whom appeared to be camping out by the canal for the weekend.
Most of today's walk was along the bicycle path beside the canal, with the river beyond it on the other side, visible occasionally through the trees. I did not make the detour to climb up to the viewpoint at Frise as the morning was misty and I didn't think I would be able to see very far; besides, I had only just come back down to the canal after leaving it at Cappy to walk on a grassy path through the fields, soaking my boots and the bottom of my trousers with dew!
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| Typical Picardy house with decorative brickwork in Cappy |
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| Cappy |
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| Old school with separate boys' and girls' entrances |
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| Field of rapeseed outside Cappy |
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| Misty morning, wet boots |
The path alternated between following the canal and cutting through the fields all the way to Péronne, where I left the canal at a small harbour, crossed the canal - which becomes part of the Canal du Nord here - and walked past the gardens along the bank of the river to my hostel in the ramparts of the old town, the Auberge des Remparts. After taking a shower and a break, washing my hiking clothes and hanging them up to dry in the wind and sunshine of the open window of my room, I ventured out to see the town.
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| The road into Péronne |
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| The town hall in the Grande Place |
Few towns have been destroyed and rebuilt as many times as Péronne, a city epitomising key events in the history of France. Burned and pillaged in the time of the Normans, it was gravely damaged under Spanish occupation, devastated by the Germans during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871, totally destroyed in 1917 and rebuilt after the war only to be bombarded and burned by the German airforce in May 1940. The city of Péronne has been awarded two Croix de Guerre and the Légion d'honneur for all its troubles!
Outside the church is a monument to Marie Foure, a local heroine who led the town's defence against Charles V of Austria in 1536, saving it from destruction at least on that occasion!
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| The castle, with sections destroyed in WW I bricked in |
But most remarkably of all, Péronne is home to a Carrefour supermarket that is open on May 1st! In the afternoon, no less! So I purchased some ready-made cannelloni and all the ingredients to make the remaining half of yesterday's head of lettuce into a gigantic salad: an avocado, beetroot, and eggs to hard-boil for tonight and for tomorrow's lunch. As well as fruit and pudding! Back at the Auberge des Remparts, I devoured my meal with no competition for the use of the kitchen. It's a sort of ghost hostel: nobody seems to be here. Not even at the reception desk - check-in is fully automated. I received an email with a code to open the front door and the number of a locker in the reception area in which I would find my room key card. Lights eerily switch on and off with a life of their own as I proceed along the hallway, and no-one is in the common room or the kitchen. I'm sure I'll sleep well, it's so quiet! I just hope that someone will be there to make my breakfast in the morning!
Today's accommodations: Auberge des Remparts
Froissy - Péronne 26 km
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