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Today’s plan is to cross the wide Oise river at Creil.
08:11: Sitting up half-dressed. There was an extended period during the night when I lay awake with my heart thumping as hefty mammals crunched through the dry branches and leaf litter, grunting and coughing. One shook its head nearby, ears snapping against its hairy head. I couldn’t tell if they were deer, boar or badgers. They were too big and deep-throated to be foxes. I’m pretty sure I saw one teardrop-shaped body moving nearby. At one stage, as I thought the animals were moving away, one made a startled bark and dashed up the hill towards me. My heart was thumping in my ribcage. I wanted to let them do their natural nighttime foraging work, but if they encroached on me, I was going to let them know I was there. Anyway apart from that, I slept very well.
I’ve woken to a dry, chilly, bright morning. For the first time, the sun shone in my eyes as it rose. I’m going to get up now, pack away and have some breakfast.
08:49: I’ve decided to move on without breakfast and have it somewhere else on the way.
09:12: No breakfast, no teeth, no sock wash. Heading back to the road.
10:00: Mackerel sky. Still no opportunity to cook breakfast. It’s breezy among the fields. I’ve passed Le Tillet, the town where no-one returns a greeting.
10:07: Found a spot to have breakfast at the side of the road next to a field of oilseed rape.
10:46: Fruit and nut porridge with chocolate and honey. The sun’s coming out. I’ll be able to start shedding layers soon. Breakfast made, washup done and everything packed away. Ready to move on.
10:58: Socks washed too. The mackerel sky has evaporated, leaving wispy not-quite-cumulus and blue sky. My mood is excellent. The heart-thumping nighttime foraging noises have disapeared into the past.
11:15: Toothbrushing stop, while I still have water.
11:33: Entering Maysel village.
11:49: Exiting Maysel village.
12:02: Entering Cramoisy village. Steep-sided, densely wooded river valley. Crossed Le Thérain river.
12:25: Exiting Cramoisy, heading to Montataire in search of lunch. I’m expecting a more suburban/urban stretch for the next 5km or so.
12:35: I entered Magenta at the moment I exited Cramoisy. Exited Magenta.
13:08: The last village, Maysel, had a propserous feel to it. Cramoisy is a good bit grungier, with a large proportion of north and sub-Saharan Africans. Very incongruously, there are two social-housing tower blocks near the western edge of the town centre. The weekly market was just wrapping up on the main square and the boulangerie was open, so I bought 100g of garlic olives, six plump mandarins and a baguette — decorated, at least — with grains. The info board I passed on the way in indicates there’s an Aldi near one of the bridge crossings. It’s not far out of my way to stroll past and see if it’s open. I’d like to buy butter at least, perhaps something else to put on the bread. Oh Christ, maybe cheese again. I still have a bit left. The Aldi is on Rue Lénine.
I’ve decided to get lunch in a kebab shop. My food’s just arrived. Four long Merguez sausages which smell amazing, a simple salad, a pile of bulgar, a load of chips and bread on the side. Cheap town. €9.00 for lunch, including a bottle of water, 50c for the olives and €1.40 for the baguette. Walking to Rue Lénine now. The extra 4kg of water refill I asked for in the kebab shop is the difference between an easy stroll and packhorse mode.
14:21: Aldi’s closed, unsurprisingly. There’s a green patch outside where I’m sitting, about to eat a millefeuille. There are four kids buzzing about on two tiny petrol-powered quad bikes. They’re full of smiles and it’s just the annoying sound that’s bugging me.
14:42: At the outskirts of the town now, near the junction of some major roads. MacDonald’s, Les Marches de l’Oise, QG Training. Some bad public art in the middle of the roundabout. I could be anywhere. I chucked away the 4kg of water I got in the kebab shop. It’s too early in the day to be carrying it. I can get more in any bar. I have ages to walk between these two towns yet — the one I’m in and the one where the bridge over the Oise is.
15:52: Plodding up the hill out of Creil after crossing the Oise. I ask a guy if there’s a café or a bar ahead of me. He indicates there’s a tower around the corner with everything I need. I get to the top of the hill, turn right, and there’s a huge social housing tower block with a grim little shopping arcade beneath, most shops closed. One of the shops that’s open is a grocery, so I head in and buy two 1.5l bottles of water for (I think) €1.50. One of the friendly staff, who greeted me warmly as I entered, asks, “Where are you going?” There’s genuine warm surprise and delight when I tell them I’m walking to Istanbul. Open faces beaming with delight. “Bon courage!” they wish me over and over again. Soon everyone in the vicinity has heard the story and they’re looking at me with surprise, some with disbelief. It’s a great feeling.
16:16: Exiting Creil. Grass and oilseed rape fields ahead. It’s cooler. The cumulus overhead hae agglommerated into one cloud, almost from horizon to horizon. I’m going well. Fleurines is the next town worthy of the name.
16:40: IGN, the entity whose maps I’m using to navigate across France, have the nerve to put a trap street around the headquarters of their aeronautical section. By pure coincidence I specified a route along it. So I’m standing, misdirected on my map, outide the HQ of the very agency which created it.
Exited Mont La Ville.
18:00: I’m not remotely hungry, but my legs are getting tired. Let’s power on for another couple of hours. Sunset is at 20:39. My feet feel great.
18:22: Fleurines town boundary.
18:31: Through the town crossroads.
19:15: A bit early, but I think I’ve found the perfect spot in the corner of a field, on untilled ground, not visible from the road or any farmhouse and not in amongst the mammal wildlife in the wood. No farmer could object to me pitching up here. I’m going to have a small bit of dinner and then set up. Almost an hour and a half until sunset. I’m about 2km short of Villers-St-Frambourg. I didn’t follow a track here, I just walked up the side of the field. I still hear shotgun fire, but it’s so frequent I think it’s at a shooting range.
19:26: The sun’s setting behind the wood, which means I’ll get the sun on the basha in the morning. Nice to wake up to, but I’ll have to scarper quickly so I don’t get spotted.
20:34: All set up. The only bogus thing is low wind, which means lots of insects, but they don’t seem to bite. Dinner of crispy bread, cheese, garlic olives and citrus fruit will probably all help. I’ve texted my position to Aisling. This is one of the setups so far that I feel most comfortable about in terms of protection from people and animals. And yet it was so simple and quick to find. No cars passed me as I walked throuh the field. So — the light’s fading — I’m going to get into the sackand hopefully sleep like a log. Today was a good one! 
