We worked out that it was as easy and near the same cost as driving to get the train to Dover, and then the ferry across with the bikes (£200 for the two of us).
We left New Mills just after 9:00 and arrived 19:00 in Dunkerque. We rode then along the coast to Bray Dunes where the French Divide route starts.
Our vague plan was to follow the FD route South then either reverse our route or head further South and get a train back for the ferry home.
We rode for a couple of hours and just before dark we put up our tents in the corner of a field and had a good night's sleep.
This was the first time we'd ridden the bikes any distance and my first job of the following day at 6:30 was to lift my saddle a few mm. I raised the saddle. I must have overtightened the seat clamp's bolt as the head sheared off.
This was a major problem especially as I had a seat pack that was to be attached to the saddle.
We'd brought some cable ties and with a few wrapped around the seatpost it temporarily stopped the saddle sliding down. Though it didn't stop the seat swaying from side to side.
The nearest reasonable size town was Ypres, and we headed there hoping for a solution to my problem.
It was Sunday, and in Belgium, bike shops are not open, but just maybe we'd have some luck.
We rode around the town with no success. Tom spotted a place called the Biking Bar which seemed like a good place to ask for advice.
The customers and the lady who worked there were all very helpful, and whilst there was definitely no bike shop open in the vicinity, they told us of a nearby hardware shop that sold "everything".
Some 3km out of Ypres and we found the hardware shop. It was massive, and it took the two of us a while to search out some possible solution.
A bit of lateral thinking and we seemed to have a fix. Two clips to try and crimp the seat tube, and a 3rd smaller one to grip onto the seat post. It seemed to work, but we bought another set just in case.
We'd sort of resigned ourselves to having to wait for a bike shop to open on Monday, so this was a win, though we were mindful we'd lost several hours of riding time. It seemed right that we should just enjoy the riding for the rest of the day without any particular urgency.
Below we stopped to buy some apples from the fresh produce vending machine.
We rejoined the French Divide route for a while, and the sun came out.
We ended the day on the Arenberg and camped nearby. We'd managed 130 km over the course of the day, which was more than we hoped for given my earlier misfortune.
Next morning we decided we'd head East rather than continue South for no other reason than we could.
Some busyish roads then a canal for several km. Most of which was into a headwind.
Come mid-afternoon my patience with the wind had lapsed and we headed back onto quiet roads which took us to a campsite for that night.
The weather the next day was grim, and we didn't have much wet weather gear, so we spent the day dodging rain showers and hanging out in cafes.
The weather improved in the evening, and we took advantage to eat our supper out in the open.
Next day we continued towards the sea.
A quick look at the beach turned into an exploration of the coastline. The wide and windy sandy beach went on for miles.
So much fun.
We didn't exactly retrace our steps which was in hindsight a mistake, as instead, we encountered a load of gloopy estuary sediment.
A super fun day, which was only slightly tempered by us both getting a bit of sunburn.
The next couple of days we did as much sightseeing as we did riding.
Staying close to the coast.
On our last full days riding we headed back towards Dunkerque.
It was an absolute scorcher.
We covered around 700 Km over the week. Originally the plan was to do nearer twice that, but we settled for having a holiday where we rode our bikes a bit.
