The E2 in Lorraine follows the GR5. Although not the most dramatic or historic part of either trail there are some scenic moments, such as the view over the Moselle at Liverdun. Villages such as Vic-sur-Sielle also have historic buildings if you look for them. Metz, a large city of ancient foundation and great interest is an outlier on the Lorraine GR5, most of the trail is through woodland, farmland and small villages. Enjoyable rather than exceptional walking.
Lack of accommodation can be an issue and forward planning is needed on this section of the route. Nevertheless by camping and walking some long days I only had to resort to wild camping once, which was on the southward section from Metz. Wild camping and days of over 30 kilometres could have been avoided by the use of public transport or maybe following the variant GR5F. Not all the accommodation is on booking websites, so phoning Chambre d'Hotes may be needed, or to avoid language issues, e-mailing them in good time. Email allows the use of Apps like Google Translate to write the message in French. I could possibly have investigated the use of Gite d'Etapes, which I have slept in on previous trips elsewhere in France.
Food was a little disappointing. Although French cuisine is famous, most of the food available (if any) was Italian (i.e. pizza or pasta), burgers or kebabs. One really good French source of sustenance were the boulangerie - patisseries with an excellent variety of bread, pastries, quiches and sandwiches. Usually they had a small coffee machine (serving Italian sized cups). In some places there was no-where to eat or buy food in walking distance and it is wise to plan ahead to ensure you are carrying enough provisions.
Waymarking (the French white stripe above a red one) was generally good with a number of deviations from the route in my guidebook (dating from 2017) and the GPX files I had downloaded. A map, paper or digital, is needed for when you miss a waymark.
Link to start of blog is here.
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