Day 307 – EU – France [Ambacourt to Epinal]

05/02/21

40km

  From Ambacourt (France) to Epinal (France)

Europe

A foggy run on quiet roads and muddy trails, arriving in the lovely little town of Epinal

Another dry run today. It was foggy as I left and the rain had just stopped. I did not sleep very well last night, I heard the rain on the roof side window all night long and a rooster started crowing way before the sun rose. I credit the quality of my sleep for the way I recover and start afresh every morning. Today I started a little bit on the tired side. It almost never happens!

Anyhow I started along the secondary roads towards Epinal and it was all very quiet. I did not pass many villages on the way, this part of France (the Vosges region) is mostly rural and not very densely populated. As I approached Epinal, I had to deal with a few muddy paths that were not quite suited for BoB the stroller. But the alternative was to run on the national road and I was not keen. So, I went very slow over a few muddy fields and made my way slightly later than planned.

I arrived in Epinal, a lovely little town by the river Moselle. I am staying on a beautiful place near the Basilique Saint-Maurice, nicely preserved since the middle-age. Epinal is mostly known in France for its “images” or “Epinal prints”. The printing house of Epinal, founded in 1796, used to produce very naive and vibrant prints (images in french). It has now become a saying in french “une image d’epinal” depicting something naive, traditional and overly optimistic.

Check my daily run GPS data on or

Here is the map of today’s run: