Gorges du Tarn and L'Ardeche and into Provence Post # 9

25.08

We finally left Lit-et-Mixe, ‘kicking and screaming’, we’ve had such an awesome time and met some incredible people!    

 

We headed east, inland through the pine forests and small hamlets
via Mont-De-Marsan, and into the Gers Department of rolling hills via Auch. 
 
 
 
 

Onwards to the Haute-Garonne and corn fields,  sunflowers, pretty villages and vineyards. 
 

We didn’t take advantage of the signs tempting us to sample Foie Gras (goose liver) or the Armagnac (brandy) produced in this region from small scale farmer distillers in their traditional wine cellars.  On to Toulouse passing the Canal du Midi.  Great memories here of last year and our fabulous bike ride along the Canal into Toulouse.  We’re heading in the direction of Albi, the birthplace of the famous painter Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, we also visited last year.  We’re following the River Tarn into an area known for it’s wines – Roses, light whites and rich reds.    It’s now raining and getting late, we’ve travelled 308 kms and have decided to stay in the ‘Aires’ in the little village of Lisle-sur-Tarn beside a small lake, 15 minutes drive from Albi.   

26.08                 

 

We moved the van so that we could enjoy a leisurely breakfast overlooking the lake.  It’s still raining so we’ve decided to stay another day!  Later the weather cleared and we went for a run/walk around the lake along with others exercising, strolling with dogs or fishing.

We explored the pretty little town and watched the sunset go down behind the lake.

 

 

 

 

27.08   

We’re heading 150 kms east initially to the Millau Bridge and then to the Gorges du Tarn, the region of Lozere.  A particularly nice drive through farming country via Albi and Requista  into the Averyon Department and through the forest of ‘The Parc Regional des Grandes Causses’ (Plateaux), the Southern part of the Massif Central.  Here the Rivers Tarn, Jonte and Dourbie have carved gorges through the ravines creating four plateaux.  A great region for biking and hiking and spectacular scenery with beautiful Medieval villages dotting the cliffs. 

 

 On to the valley of the Tarn here

we have our first glimpse of the

Pont de Millau bearing the A75 motorway. Designed in the 21st Century by Sir Norman Foster it carries 4.5 million vehicles each year. We drove down into the Valley for a look at Millau then back up to the Pont where we walked to the ‘view point’ for an ‘up close, spectacular’ view.  The Pont has only seven slim pylons supporting 2.5 kms of four-lane motorway, rising 343 metres it ranks among the tallest road bridges in the world.  An incredible sight and an incredible feat of engineering!   

After walking around the Museum at the base of the Pont we continued on through more dramatic scenery and hilltop Medieval villages to Le Rozier/Peyreleau and the beginning of the riverside road through the Gorges du Tarn.  We threw ourselves into the Tarn near one of the kayaks/canoes for hire outlets.  ‘Just what the doctor ordered’!

The Tarn originates from Mont Lozere and over time the river has carved and weathered the Gorges du Tarn.  It winds southwest for about 50 kms from the village of Ispagnac, 9kms northwest of Florac marking the boundary between two Plateaux, the Causse Mejean to the South and the Causse de Sauveterre to the North.

 

A spectacular drive following the river through the Gorge.  Very narrow in parts, we’re thankful we waited until the end of the holiday season before venturing here. In the height of summer over 2,500 vehicles grind their way through here every day!  It would be bedlam!  We stopped to explore St-Enimie, ranked one of the most beautiful villages in France dotting the Gorge and a favoured starting or finishing point for kayak/canoe descents of the Tarn.

Onwards to Ispagnac to visit Willy, Martine and Eloise, a lovely family we met at Lit-et-Mixe.  Willy and Eloise met us and directed us to a great ‘Aires’ and then to their home close by.  A BBQ and an awesome night catching up that continued on into the morning!

 

28.08

After a cold shower (to clear the cobwebs) and not a lot of sleep, Willy met us for a 25 km hike across the Plateau, starting at Florac, 4 kms away where we saw many walkers, some with donkeys, following the 232km route Robert Louis Stevenson and his donkey ‘Modestine’ took through the Cevennes in 1878 ( Now called the GR70).  Starts south east of Puy-en-Velay to St Jean du Gard west of Arles.

 A stunning day with spectacular scenery overlooking Florac and Mont Lozere, Jack rabbits, falcons, vultures and wild flowers.  After two and a half hours we were on top of Montgarjon Plateau, 1200 metres high and a well earned picnic.  A total 5 hour hike - a magic day! 

 

 

29.08

 

A 100 kms lovely drive (and also a great bike ride), following the N106 through The Parc National Des Cevannes and the Circuit des Vallees Cevenoles and into the Department du Gard.  We had a picnic in a pretty spot by a lake along the way.

 

We reached Sampzon and settled into our mainly Dutch Camp (as we discovered), ‘La Bastide en Ardeche’ (16 euros, low season rate) complete with swimming pool, cafe/restaurant, grocery and entertainment and situated on the Ardeche River.  We swam in the river and then relaxed with a beer on the cafe verandah, entertained by a female French singer with a great voice!

 

30.08 

We made an early start biking a circuit starting before Sampzon which would take us to the Gorges De L’Ardeche and it’s environs.  Through vineyards and following the Ardeche in parts crossing over bridges to the pretty town of Vallon Pont d’Arc on the D579. 
From here we found the D4 turn off and had a steep climb to the top of the Razal Plateau.  Dramatic scenery and a panorama of the valleys and small towns below.  Mount Sampzon dominates in the distance.  Onwards to the little village of St Remeze where we see the first signs of the lavender fields, unfortunately we’ve missed their brilliant purple blooms (peak in July).  There is also a Lavender Museum here.  Spectacular but barren landscape where patches of fertile earth is cultivated with vineyards and lavender. 
 

The winding D490 follows the ‘Route des Gorges’ leading down to the ‘Belvedere’, a spectacular panorama of the Gorges.  We continued down to the bottom of the valley and the ‘Le Pont d’Arc’, a stunning natural stone bridge created by the river’s torrents.  A well deserved swim under the ‘stone bridge’!!  50 kms later, back to camp for another swim. 
   
 31.08

We followed part of the route we biked yesterday via Vallon Pont d’Arc, the steep climb to Razal Plateau through St Remeze and scrub lands and olive trees into the Cote du Rhone and the ‘Route des Vins’.  Following the Rhone River with it’s orchards and rows of vineyards with ‘degustation’ chateaux (wine tasting) dotting the region. 

 

 

 

Into Vaucluse and the Luberon Region epitomising Provence.  The Luberon is named after its mountain range, which is split in the centre by the Combe de Lourmarin, a narrow river valley.  Rolling hills and beautiful hill top Medieval villages, vineyards and striking Cypress trees, we can see the stunning hill top village of Gordes in the distance, described as ‘one of the most beautiful villages in France’.  Our GPS then decided to take us up a narrow, bumpy but scenic road  to  our Camp, 1km from Gordes; 

 

‘Camping des Sources’ (16 euros), a terraced camp with panoramic views of the mountains.  We met up with Jean-Michel and Arlette who are renting a mobile home here for the week.  We had a catch up session over Rose and Pernod and dinner on their deck. 

 

 

 

Awesome to see them again and a great evening!

 

 

 

01.09

We went to the Farmers’ market

(fruit and veges) near Gordes via a spectacular panorama of the environs then on to Roussillon, another beautiful hilltop village. The village is in the valley between the Plateau de Vaucluse and the Luberon Range. 

 

Amazing, the entire village is built of red stone from the ochre outcrop it perches on.  We enjoyed the 45 minute walk along the ‘Sentier des Ocres’ through the forest of chestnuts, pines and scrub and the yellows, reds and oranges of the different ochre formations. 

 

Ice creams in the pretty village then onto ‘Village des Bories’, 4 kms southwest of Gordes (6 euros each).  These huts, built in the Stone Age, are made of the limestone in the area without the use of cement or mortar.  They were used as homes, workshops, wine cellars,  breeding silk worms and stock pens.  The village contains 20 bories.  More interesting than what we first thought, we went exploring!   Aperitifs and dinner with Jean-Michel and Arlette.

02.09

It’s a beautiful day with a stunning sunrise!  This morning we decided to tackle Mont Ventoux (1911 metres), nicknamed ‘le geant de Provence’ (Provence’s giant) and on par with Le Tours Alpe d’Hues when it comes to epic leg breaking cycling ascents.  It’s 25.1 kms of relentless gradients and a minimum of two hours uphill climbing starting in beautiful shaded pine forest with great vantage points to watch the Tour.  As the gradient increases, the lovely tree cover abruptly stops giving way to broken white stone with about 6 kms to go.  Passing the Memorial to Tommy Simpson, a British cyclist who died of exhaustion and heart failure in 1967, we reached the summit!  Next time we might try it by bike!!  

 

A spectacular panorama from the

summit where vistas extend to the Alps and on a clear day to the Camargue.  

Down the mountain and on to Vaison-la-Romaine situated in a valley surrounded by hills.  The lovely Medieval City is perched

on one of the hill tops and dominates as we enter the village down below.  We explored the pretty town then crossed over the Roman bridge (over the River Ouveze) for a close up view of the Medieval City and back at the town.      
 

03.09

Another stunning day – we walked the pretty pathway from the camp into Gordes.  The path is lined with ‘borie style walls’, amazing and effective!

Gordes is a beautiful tiered village situated over the Rivers Sorgue and Clavon and sits on the

Vaucluse Plateau. From the high

vantage point, we have a stunning panorama across the valley with the Luberon mountains providing a dramatic background frame.  We can see the many terraces overlooking swimming pools and people sitting in the cafes – an affluent area!  It’s market day today and there are still a lot of people here, we’re pleased we didn’t come in the high season when the majority of tourists visit.  We went exploring!

 

 

 

In the afternoon we visited the pretty little village of Fontaine de Vaucluse where Frances’s most powerful spring gushes out here as the River Sorgue, the water is crystal clear.  1.5 million tourists visit here every year. 

 

 

 

 

After a beer overlooking the River

we continued on to the ‘Venice of Provence’, L’Isle-sur-La-Sorgue, another pretty village bursting with antique shops.  Restaurants and cafes line the River Sorgue.     

 

 
Back to camp for a swim, then aperitifs with Jean-Michel and Arlette in the cafe overlooking the pool and a panorama of the valley and Luberon Mountains.

      

 

 04.09  

A pretty route through the vineyards, olive groves and orchards via St Remy and into the rolling Alpilles hills. In the distance we can see the Chateaux des Baux spectacularly perched above the hills dominating the surrounding countryside.  We continued North just passed the Chateau and it’s perched village, Les Baux de Provence, to the huge quarries to see the ‘Carrieres de Lumieres’.  The quarries were dug out over the years to extract the bauxite and limestone used to build the Chateau and village.  Inside, the quarries’ are immense and cooler, pleased we bought some warm gear.  We enjoyed an extraordinary show, ‘the painters voyage around the Mediterranean’, showing the works of famous painters including Monet, Renoir, Matisse and Chagall projected onto 7,000 square metres of the quarries’ huge walls, pillars and floor.  Impressionism through to contemporary art.  This ‘spectacular’ is unique in the world!  (9.50 euros each). 
 

Back to Les Baux de Provence, a
favourite of Van Gogh, for an
explore and a beautifully-presented lunch (13 euros each).It’s 32 degrees, we hit the pool back at camp.  A ‘gitan (gypsy) duo’ are warming up for this evening’s Jazz entertainment.