Monday, August 8 took place without inconvenience in landscapes that were always sublime. I bivouacked at waypoint 254.
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Tuesday, August 9 nothing in particular progression according to the road book. I found a bivouac on a large space at the exit of Cabanas. As we will see it was an excellent choice.
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Wednesday, August 10, my 82nd birthday, began with a very unpleasant event. Truck won't start, dead batteries! It is true that for a few days the start required an effort with extinction of the lighting of the counters. My location at the exit of Cabanas, fortuitous or choice of providence! In a few minutes a 4x4 passed which I hailed and it came to meet me explaining by gestures the lack of battery. The driver parked his vehicle and I took out the ad hoc cables. My vehicle started instantly attesting to the battery fault. What could have done with a bivouac on the track without passing a vehicle? Another event happened; the road book passed through the Banyuls pass, the roadway of which is blocked by large rocks and guarded by the army. Of course no indicative sign mentioned it and on the spot no information from the authorities present nor any help to operate a U-turn. The soldiers stared at me without saying a word! I interrupted my route of the road book to go to Perpignan in search of the Mercedes-Benz garage not mentioned by the GPS. Finally by information from close to close I arrived there shortly before noon. Warm welcome from the hostess who, after explaining my situation, took charge of changing the batteries, which was done shortly before 6:00 p.m. I parked in the Intermarché Super car park in Perpignan.
Thursday August 11, as in all Intermarché supermarkets, there is a laundry. As soon as it opened at 8:30 a.m. I started the process; the payment center only accepts fiduciary money. Bingo, there's a bank nearby. A few days beforehand I had reserved a pitch in a campsite in the hinterland because by the sea everything is complete. Basic campsite in Saint-Paul de Fenouillet, I decided to stay there for three nights before going through the two road books of the Cathar country.
