Camino Day 5 – Amiens to Beauvais

Our journey today took us from the drainage basin of the Somme to that of the Seine. That meant we had to go up and over a ridge. We followed the course of a gradually reducing stream, Le Poncelet, going south of Amiens.Running parallel to us for most of the day was an old railway line which is now a walking path. We checked out the Coulée Verte but it was too rough for our road bikes. This railway line was very important in WW1 for bringing up men and materiel to the Somme battlefield but was shut down many years ago.Our road was very quiet and mostly an excellent road surface. Beryl is getting much used to 7% gradients.We arrived at Beauvais having travelled the last part through a large water sports area. Beauvais has the highest roofed Gothic cathedral but was never finished. The builders pushed their construction techniques to the limit but unfortunately the roof and tower collapsed after a few years. The chancel was re-roofed and a new transept added but the nave was never started. It is still an amazing building with such a high ceiling.The building today is protected with large structural members inside and out.Our chambre d’hote for this evening is a lovely restored charcuterie.Looking for somewhere to eat this evening I found the nearest restaurant was a fine dining one. We just had to try the tasting menu.