As my outline plan had already been to visit southern Brittany, the forecasts of a major heatwave to hit most of France except there, was very convenient. But as France is vast, and given my preference for all the advantages of driving on non-toll motorways, the Loire area offered itself as an attractive stopover and my first visit to the region, so I made my way to the municipal campsite L’Ile d’Or at Amboise.
View across Loire from L’Ile d’Or 
Amboise behind chateau 
But the heatwave was now here. I had been advised that the best way to survive it was the proverbial white cotton, clean, but essentially cold-water- wet hankie, on one’s head. Knotting was declined in this case. Spending just one afternoon and evening cycling around Amboise, I decided that it was too hot for me, and the rest of the area would be best explored from an air-conditioned cab driving along the river, via the Loire Atlantique coast at Pornic, Camping La Boutiniarde, paying for the location, but more importantly 4-star swimming pool the next day.
The drive along the Loire to Saumur and beyond is really worth doing; the river is indeed majestic, there are many viable dwellings built into some of the gorges, beautiful little towns and the bigger ones like Tours and Saumur; of course warrants a decent re-visit