Saturday 16th April. Across the sad Battlefields.

Rene had done us a nice breakfast, we refused (with thanks) his offer of a lift to a short cut location, and having given him a fond farewell (and a donation towards our board) we set off into Balaume, where the local market was just setting up, and bought two big tasty donut type buns for today's sustenance!! 
Soon we were amongst the war cemeteries again, particularly poignant to me, a mancunian - the Manchester cemetery.

We continued along quiet back roads, seeing in the distance a very unusual towers which turned out to be a church bell tower:

dodging the morning showers, the sun was soon back out warming my cold legs!! 

We eventually left the Pays de Calais region, entering Picardie.. and losing the yellow Via Francigena! Signs, in fact for lots of the day we had no signs to follow.. But '2 heads are better than one' so we kept on track!!
 
Passing the large French national cemetery,

the canal du Nord

 









Mid Afternoon we were caught in a tremendous thunderstorm... However a convenient mausoleum in a cemetery we were passing gave good shelter!! 

By 330 we were arriving at our destination - Peronne... and a nice hotel for the night 

I had a nice bath, managed to have a look around:

and I even managed mass in the centre of town!!

 


















Another long 25 kms today, but nearer to Rome!!