Maurice Dufresne and Sleeping Beauty

About 6 km from Azay le Rideau there is one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen. From the street, the place looks completely underwhelming. Apart from a rusting old steam engine, there is very little else to encourage anyone passing by to take the time to venture inside.
The first time I was riding this route, back in 2013, we would have done exactly that. The problem was that it was starting to rain and we were looking for somewhere to shelter. You know what they say about "any port in a storm". On that occasion the Musee de Maurice Defresne became our unlikely port. It turned out to be a magnificent, although accidental discovery.
Situated in a vast old mill house, this museum contains the most amazing collection of machines, cars, weapons and just about everything else, you are ever likely to see in one place. Maurice deFresne was a blacksmith who spent a lifetime amassing this vast assemblage. The collection is so vast, that it is hard to imagine how it could be collected in multiple lifetimes, but here it is.
If you take the recommended walking route through the collection, you will be walking for over a kilometre, through one enormous space after another. The variety is staggering, and for many of the items there is a story attached describing the history of the object and how it was discovered. It really is a veritable Aladdin's Cave of unlikely treasures.
This year we had no rain to shelter from, but I did make sure that we stopped for a look inside. The only problem was that we arrived 30 minutes early and had to wait outside for the gates to open. It wasn't exactly a hardship. In the quiet, still morning air it really just felt good to be alive. Two hours later we emerged at the coffee shop and agreed that it really was an amazing place. I was a little surprised that even the women had enjoyed it so much. I had been worried that it was a more a man thing, b ut I was obviously mistaken.
After leaving the museum, it was about time for lunch and we found a very popular cafe by the bike path just a short distance further on. The fact that it was crowded with cyclists is always a good sign. When we received our food, we could quickly see the reason for the crowds. The food was excellent.
Our final stop for the day was the famous Chateau d'Usse. This beautiful castle is most commonly known as the Sleeping Beauty Castle, as it was the inspiration for the famous fairy tale. When you see the place, you can easily see why. It has fairy tale magic written into every stone.
The final few km into Chinon contained quite a few climbs and steep descents. Anyone who thinks that the Loire a Velo is always flat, thinks wrong. There are some real climbs along the way as the route sometimes detours far from the river.
Our home for the next two nights is the Hotel Diderot. This incredible building dates back to the 14th century, about 300 years older than the Clos d'Amboise. I guess that explains why there is no elevator. Manhandling my heavy luggage up the narrow, winding staircase very nearly brought on a medical emergency, but somehow I managed it. By the time I reached my room on the top floor, I was overdue for my afternoon nap. It didn't take long for my eyes to close.Read more