This was one of the prettiest camp sites to date and certainly the most friendly. We were parked up right alongside the Ardeche River and decided to stay two nights, notwithstanding the mosquitoes. Thank goodness we had Avon’s Skin So Soft, the most effective midge repellent by far.
Not a bad view to wake up to…
The camp site restaurant was not doing food but the owner reserved us a table at the “La Maison Restaurant” and very nice it was too with Vanya and I both going for Saint Jacques et Crevette followed by the largest Creme Brulees.
Scallops & Prawns…
… really good!
The next day was about chilling around the pool and enjoying some beers Vanya had found in the local supermarket.
We spent the weekend at the Yelloh in Montclar and had a most relaxing time although by Sunday night all the good beer had gone. That was not all my doing – there was a birthday party on the Saturday night and the attendees pretty much finished the draught beer off.
We were off to Limoux early on the Monday morning for a wine tour. Vanya had been able to organise another tour with Guinot Wine for 10.30 am. It was really informative and of course the actual tasting was enjoyable.
Back again…
Our guide was named Eltonjean (he told us his father was a great fan of Elton John) and over about an hour and a half he introduced us to Guinot’s whole range of wines (and very good they are too). An hour and a half is not a lot of time to “Sacrifice” at a wine tasting and you could tell I didn’t drink a great deal because “I’m Still Standing”. In any event, I “Believe” I could have managed a great deal more and “I Guess That’s Why They Call This The Blues” that I’m now suffering from. This is utter nonsense and I should stop this and apologise but “Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word”. Bloody hell, seems like I could go on forever. Truly sorry. Just a bit of fun.
We came away from Guinot much more knowledgeable regarding Cremant and Blanquette wines. All the Guinot wines are made using the traditional method (i.e. by hand) using Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and, peculiar to this region, the Mauzac grape varieties. Their Rose also has a little Pinot Noir. It is the mix of these grapes which tell the Cremant and Blanquette apart with Blanquette being predominantly Mauzac and the Cremant using considerably less. If I understood Eltonjean correctly, Cremant comes in at 12% and will keep a good 5 years. This is a feature of a good Cremant; like most Champagnes it will last (until such time as you open the bottle).
We came away too with a mixed case which included two bottles of their best wine and, yes, it is the same wine as the one we had been gifted by the owner last Saturday (i.e. the Cremant Imperial Tendre Boise). Sounds fanciful this but Vanya and I each consider it to be at least on a par with the Louis Roederer Crystal that we drank at Rohan’s graduation last year and at a fraction of the price. It could have been the atmosphere in the cellars that made us feel this way but we can put it to the test again when we return to the UK. Ironically and I discovered this much later, Guinot’s Cremant Imperial Tendre Boise and Louis Roederer Crystal were both favourites of Czar Nicholas II and both companies mention the Czar in their marketing. Not many people know that.
We had a good wander around Limoux before moving on…
This was a busy day. Finishing brunch at the Gruissan Marina, we set off for Limoux for a pre-arranged wine tour with Guinot Wine. Vanya had booked it over the Internet with the Limoux Tourist Office.
Having allowed plenty of time for our journey, Limoux is only an hour and a half away from Gruissan, we decided to call in on the UNESCO World Heritage site of Carcassonne. Almost fully restored during the 19th century by Eugene Viollet le Duc, Carcassonne is one of the most impressive walled cities in France. It has an almost fairy-tale appearance with it’s watch towers, imposing double walled fortifications and labyrinth of narrow winding passageways. It also has a fair share of history with the Romans having built fortifications here as early as 100BC. The city is perhaps best known however as a primary city of the Cathars until it was captured in 1209, during the Albigensian Crusades, by Simon de Montfort.
The downside of Carcassonne is, unless you choose both to visit during Winter and stay well away from the place at lunchtimes, you’ll more than likely find it packed with tourists. Because of the significant crowds we didn’t stay long but, if you haven’t seen the place (as was the case with Vanya), it is always worth a visit.
Typical Summer scene…
… Typical Winter scene
We arrived at Guinot Wine with 5 minutes to spare only to learn that no tours take place at weekends because of the Corona issue. By chance the owner of Guinot Wine turned up at his office with a Finnish client as we arrived and it was he who gave us the bad news. The Tourist Office were remiss in booking us on a Saturday tour. He was very apologetic but said he could do nothing for us until Monday. Having said that, he gave us a bottle of his very best Cremant – seriously good it is too!
There was nothing to do but find somewhere nice to stay – we settled on a Yelloh Campsite some 20 minutes away in the countryside at a place called Montcalm. Very nice that was too. We stayed for two days taking advantage of the hot weather and Yelloh’s swimming pool – it has both a slide and a bouncy castle!! The wine tour could wait until Monday and we’re already behind schedule for Greece – so what?!?
I think I could live here. It seems to have everything – not that we stayed long enough to check everything out but, certainly, this is a place I would visit again and next time I would be taking a closer look at property prices..
I was getting tired after the journey from L’Escala not least because on top of the drive we had spent a few hours wandering around the stores in La Jonquera and so, instead of continuing to our target destination near Montpelier, we decided to overnight in Gruissan. Not sure as to why we picked this particular place but pleased we did.
Gruissan is an old fishing village, now a small town, situated on the Languedoc coast less than 10 miles from Narbonne and 70 miles from the Spanish border. It is full of contrasts comprising as it does the old circular village of Gruissan (Languedoc has a few of these circulades mostly dating from the 12th or 13th century) with its narrow little streets overlooked by the Barberousse Tower and; a newer area of apartments, restaurants and cafes built around a 1960’s marina which I am told can accommodate 1300 boats and; a number of fine sandy beaches of which the Plage de Chalets is perhaps the most original.
That’s not my photo above but it conveys how Gruissan is structured. You can see the old circular village in the foreground almost encircled by the lagoon. The grey smudge in the centre of the circulade is the Barberousse Tower. Top left of the photo is part of the 1960’s marina. There are actually two basins in the marina. The straight line along the top of the photo is the Plage de Chalets. As mentioned above, the Plage des Chalets is a most original and I should have added “picturesque” beach made up as it is of more than 1,300 old fashioned colourful holiday chalets, almost all of them built on stilts.
The place where we camped doesn’t feature in the photo. We were parked a few kilometres further up the beach at Les Ayguades Gruisson. That wasn’t to stop me heading for Gruissan “propre” that first afternoon/evening and I set off on Shanks’ Pony immediately after the Van was settled.
That’s the Van settled (Lol)… Now, I’m off to explore Gruissan
It was a fair walk in and very hot but there was a good cycle path that I used for most of the way and I reached the town in about 1.5 hours. I breezed through the marinas (promising to myself that I would bring Vanya in the next morning – she likes boats) and then around a large part of the lagoon (looking for potential photo opportunities) and finally on to my primary target – the old town and it’s tower.
Part of the marina…
… and some of its restaurantsThe footbridge leads to the old town…… around the lagoon looking for photo opportunities – perhaps later
Wandering around the old town was quite an experience. There were a surprising amount of people around and I was so totally immersed in watching them go about their daily business that I lost all track of time. I must have sat for quite a while musing over how little life has changed over the centuries in this place.
Eventually, I started towards the centre of the old town, easy when it is a circulade, and quickly found both the church (the 13th century Church of the Notre Dame of the Assumption) and right next to it the entrance to the ruin that is the Barberousse Tower.
The entrance to the church with the tower behindInside the church…
There’s little left of the Barberousse Tower to look at but the views from the hill on which it sits are fine. The tower is all that remains of a 10th century castle built to help protect Narbonne (then a coastal town) from Moorish pirates. It was dismantled in the 16th Century on the orders of Cardinal Richelieu.
Barberousse Tower…… and a view from the tower
Finding a place in the centre of a circulade is easy; you simply keep going in. Finding your way out at the correct point of the circle is nowhere near as easy. I came out at the opposite side of the circle to the one I wanted and it took me more than half an hour to correct that mistake but I figured there was just enough time to get to the other side of the lagoon for a couple more photos…
Running very late, I had to jog most of the way back and it was after 8pm when I finally arrived back at the Van. Gosh I needed a drink!
Next morning we drove to the marina for something to eat. We enjoyed brunch in the sunshine and then walked a while; exercising the dogs before we retraced our steps west to visit the town of Limoux. Vanya wanted to find out more about Cremant wine. I admit I was looking forward to that too.
At the risk of sounding like Princess Diana, I often feel there are three of us in this marriage. There’s me, Dave and Davy. Davy appears most often when Dave is having a shower, cooking, washing up or performing some other menial task. Fortunately he stays away when we are out shopping or in a pub or restaurant. He must be Dave’s alter ego. This is not to say that Dave is schizophrenic, just sad. Davy joined him in the shower the other day. I listened in on their conversation, it went like this:-
“Ouch, too hot. Now, turn it off. Okay. Alter the temperature. Put it back on, ahh, good, good, perfect. Oh, put that there. Lovely jubbly Davy. I should probably open that window but I have had problems with it. That was nice. Lovely jubbly. Good. Finally, nothing wrong with that shower, Van” (starts singing Feeling Groovy).
I shall carry on eavesdropping on Dave and Davy as we continue with our tour but in the meantime, coming to a good shop near you very soon – “The Best of Dave and Davy’s Shower Songs”.
We headed to Saint John de Pied Port and our first sight of the Pyrenees. I really don’t like heights and so mountains do little for me but it was still quite exciting. Dave definitely thought so. After bridges, mountains are his next favourite thing. Quite where the kids and I fit in the ranking I am not so sure. The town is very pretty with medieval buildings and cobbled streets but very touristy and very busy. We had a walk around and then moved on to Hendaye which is the most South Western town on the border of France/Spain. This was our first sighting of the Atlantic which was great (the sea is my equivalent of Dave’s passion for bridges, well, nearly anyway). We couldn’t take the dogs onto the beach, probably a good thing as Beanie is far too young to see all those topless bathers. We were very obviously in the south of France. The nicest thing about Hendaye is you can see Spain from the seafront and for 2 Euros each we did in fact take a 10 minute boat ride across to the Spanish town of Hondarribia. We had a nice lunch and meandered around the old town for a few hours. As this was Spain’s lunch/siesta time it was very quiet and we happily tried to fill our iphone memories with pictures. Both days we were in Hendaye we walked a minimum of 8 kms. Poor Beanie’s legs must have been aching and, as for mine…..
Saint Jean Pied de Port
On the ferry boat to Spain
Looking back at Hendaye
Hondarribia
Hondarribia
This was our last port of call in France for a few days as we were heading over the Pyrenees into Spain. This was most definitely not part of Dave’s initial itinerary but, what’s that got to do with anything?
Vanya made it clear that she would like us to head for the coast and she had set her mind on Hendaye – a sprawling town of more than 15,000 people located at the most southwestern tip of France on the border with Spain. She wanted to rest up on the coast and swim and who was I to argue? Hendaye is only 50 miles away from Saint Jean Pied de Port and with Labastide-Marnac not proving to be the chill event we had hoped for, it made sense.
Everywhere we have travelled in France has taken almost twice as long as the predicted Google Map journey time. This is more a reflection as to the amount of time we spend in the Leclerc, Lidl and Carrefour stores than my driving speeds but, the journey to Hendaye was no different. No matter, we arrived early afternoon and there was still enough time left in the day to walk down into the town, along the beach and back – an 8 kms round trip.
Hendaye is really about it’s beach and water sports. It’s a stunning long sandy beach; 3 kms between the River Bidassoa at one end and Les Deux Jumeaux (Two Twins) at the other. Sheltered from the wind and big swells (the waves are on average half the size of the more exposed spots just to the north) the area has become a training area for surfing so much so that swimmers are precluded from certain parts of the beach. So what, the beach is big enough for all. Having checked out the town centre we were content for the most part to sit at a beach cafe and just chill. There’d be time later for further exploration.
Happy to be beside the seaside
Lovely long beach
That’s Spain, Hondarribia, just over the River Bidassoa
In this area it is the River Bidassoa that forms the border between France and Spain. Hendaye in France and Hondarribia in Spain sit opposite each other on the river. The two towns are quite different. Hondarribia has an old quarter which reflects its quaint medieval Basque heritage while Hendaye, having been completely destroyed by the Spanish way back in 1793,has been totally rebuilt and is comparatively modern. They actually complement each other quite well inasmuch that Hendaye has the beach, water sports and nightlife while Hondarribia has a sleepier feel and all the historical interest you could want. We stayed in the area for the best part of 3 days and took time to explore both towns.
One place well worth visiting in Hendaye is the Chateau d’Abbadia. It is set in extensive grounds on a promontory to the north of the town and it has fine views all around. It was built in the 1870’s at the behest of Antoine d’Abbadie, a Dublin born eccentric scholar, linguist, astrologer, anthropologist, explorer and cartographer (he was the first to map Ethiopia) who travelled the world with his wife Virginie.
Chateau d’Abbadia
The Chateau’s very impressive entrance
With it’s extensive views
The Chateau, with its novel and extravagant architecture very much reflects the extraordinary personality of it’s owner. Instead of the usual gargoyles that tend to adorn such structures there is a menagerie – crocodiles, snakes, snails, frogs and elephants to name but a few…
The inside of the building is as unpredictable as the outside…
The great man’s study
The Chapel where the couple are interred
Given the remarkable personality of Antoine d’Abbadie it comes as no surprise to learn that upon his death he left the chateau to the Academie des Sciences and it became and still remains an astronomy observatory.
The area around the Chateau is beautiful cliff walking country and after my visit I did just that. The views were spectacular…
View from cliffs towards Hendaye
Les Deux Jumeaux
One final thing before we visit Hondarribia. Hendaye also has some historical significance. It was at Hendaye’s Railway Station that Hitler and Franco met on 23 October 1940 discuss Spain joining the war against what remained of the British Empire…Not many people know that.
Good to be back on the move again and it showed in the mileage we completed today. From Labastide-Marnac we made our way south west to Ascarat just outside of Saint Jean Pied-de-Port; a journey of some 254 miles. SJPP has long been on my wish-list of places to visit and I couldn’t wait to get into the town.
Ascarat
We arrived in Ascarat late afternoon and after walking the dogs, Vanya elected to stay with the dogs and chill while I immediately set off on the 30 minute walk into Saint Jean Pied-de-Port or Donibane Garazi as the Basques refer to the town. We are well into French Basque territory here.
As well as being one of “Les Plus Beaux Villages de France”, SJPP is a popular waypoint for pilgrims and/or adventurers on the pilgrim trails to Santiago de Compostella and it came as no surprise to see the place so busy during the late afternoon and early evening. It is both the finishing point for Le Puy Camino (which begins in Le Puy en Velay and is sometimes known as the Via Podiensis) and the starting point for the Camino Frances (which finishes in Santiago de Compostella and is often referred to as the Camino Way). It has long been my intention to complete these two walks which together total about 1,000 miles. Maybe next year.
Evidence everywhere of the pilgrim trails. The photo above right, with the open door, is the entrance to the pilgrim office in SJPP which hands out maps, advice and “pilgrim passports” which I have been told you need should you want to stay in the refuges (albergues) along the way.
Via Podiensis
Camino de Santiago (The French way)
Enough about the pilgrim trails. All things being equal you will hear more about them next year.
St Jean Pied de Port is a small, walled town on the banks of the River Nive. It was founded in the 12th century after Richard the Lionheart destroyed the nearby town of Saint Jean le Vieux (1177). There is really only one street to the town, La Rue de Citadelle, and it leads from the Porte St Jacques down into the centre of the town to the Church of Notre Dame du Bout de Pont, across the bridge and then up to the Mendiguren Citadel which is now a school.
A church service was underway as I passed the Eglise Notre Dame du Bout du Pont and the singing was so good it drew me in. It is a very impressive church with an equally impressive congregation.
A glimpse inside the Mendiguren
The Bishop’s Prison – now a Museum
I listened to some of the service and then continued up the hill to the Citadelle de Mendiguren passing the Prison des Eveques (Bishop’s Prison) on the way. The museum was closed at the time but I would be returning to the town in the morning with Vanya.
The Citadelle itself is closed to the public (it is now a school) but it was enough to walk the grounds and take in the views.
The Citadelle de Mendiguren
View from the Citadelle
Bridges …
We like St Jean Pied de Port so much so we spent almost two full days here and failed to take in other villages in the area that also deserve a visit (e.g. Espelette the home of red hot chillies and Sare and Ainhoa both plus beaux villages de France) but there’s always next year or the year after that. They’ve been here a long time. Vanya wants to get to the coast.
Only downside to SJPP – the awful tourist train and the number of shops selling fridge magnets – Ugh!
I said once before (while doing my 4-5 month tour of the Balkans) that driving around in a motor-home or camper-van, call it what you will, is not so much an extended holiday (although it may appear as such) as a long series of Saturdays. The fact is certain chores need to be completed from time to time and it was this that brought us to an AirBandB in Labistide-Marnhac for two days and nights. This was that “Saturday” when we had to catch up with our chores. Vanya wanted her hair done. I needed to start catching up with my Website entries although I’m so far behind it will not happen in the one go. The Boomobile needs a bloody good clean too but that one will have to wait. It is after all a Saturday and not a work day.
The place we selected, an Equestrian Centre (the owner trains horses but, it seems, more for Eventing and in particular Dressage than racing) is very quiet and seriously remote. It took us a while to get to the place and not for the first time I had to reverse the Van out of lanes that I should not have contemplated going down in the first place.
It was clean and it comfortable and it served it’s purpose but, bloody hell, I do not want to go through another two days like it again. Nala, bless her, was suffering badly from sickness and diarrhoea. She woke me up constantly to go outside and, well, to cut a long horrible story short, I didn’t always wake up in time and nor did I bring any slippers on this tour. Add to this that while Vanya and I were cleaning up, Beanie would go walkabouts outside in the dark and… you can imagine!
That’s the place and there’s the Van in the background
Still, it is over now and we are back on the road. We had to spend our last morning cleaning up the gite and I had to substitute a door mat with one of my own from the Van (Fortunately, Lidl door mats are the same the world over!!) but like I said we are back on the road.
I love Lidl mats. What chance that the one in the Van would match the one in the gite – a miracle!
Cahors is cracking; even on a typical French Sunday when, except for the occasional local market, just about everything shuts. Almost enfolded by a loop of the River Lot (a bit like the Isle of Dogs in London) it is a very compact town easily explored on foot. We stopped off here for a brief look and some lunch on our way to our chill out gite in Labastide-Marnhac and we saw pretty much everything within just a few hours. Having said that, the place is worth revisiting again and again.
A confession before I carry on. Vanya is correct; I do have a thing about bridges. Not all bridges but, bridges with history and/or character and you only need a glimpse of La Pont Valentre (aker Pont du Diable – see my footnote below) with its three towers to know that Cahors has an absolute cracker of a bridge…
Built during the period 1308 to 1380 and restored in the 19th century it was the first medieval fortified bridge in France and it is a great example of medieval defensive design with its crenellated parapets, battlements and pointed arches. More photos I hear you say…
I have plenty more photos of La Pont Valentre but Cahors is not just about its bridges. It is another of those lovely French towns with an old quarter of narrow cobbled streets and timber framed buildings packed with quaint bars and restaurants. Cahors old quarter is dominated by the Cathedrale St Etienne which I’m reliably informed was the first cathedral in the country to have cupolas giving it a Romanesque – Byzantine feel…
Lunch was a shared platter – easy and very tasty…
… and I cannot forget to mention Cahors wine, where the focus is on the Malbec grape (and of course I purchased a few bottles) but, the final word goes to the town’s landmark bridge…
… how the PONT DU DIABLE gained it’s name: Le Pont du Diable took more than 70 years to be built and it is said that the builder responsible for the final stages was so far behind that he did a deal with the devil so as to complete within the terms of his contract. He traded his soul in exchange for the devil’s help but then cheated the devil. He gave the devil a sieve with which to carry water for the final batch of mortar and, as the water kept draining away, the final stone was never laid. The builder thereby saved his soul because technically the bridge was never finished.
Because of impending poor weather in the west (according to the met but they’ve hardly been right since we set off) we are heading back east to an AirB&B in Labastide-Marnhac for a couple of days. This will give us a chance to catch up on some chores (i.e. Vanya’s hair and my website, both of which have been neglected of late – only joking Van).
On the way to Labastide-Marnhac we decided to overnight at a small camp site within walking distance of both Pujols and Villeneuve-sur-Lot, thus giving us the opportunity to visit both places – Pujols for lunch and Villeneuve-sur-Lot in the evening.
Pujols is a small fortified town perched on a 180 metre hill overlooking the valleys of the Lot and the Mail. What it lacks in size it more than makes up for in charm and it came as no surprise to learn that it is now listed amongt ‘Les plus beaux villages de France’. It is a truly charming little village with narrow flower bedecked streets all enclosed within old castle walls which provide lovely views across the surrounding countryside. I’ll let the photos do the talking:-
As for Villeneuve-sur-Lot, even allowing for the fact that it was Sunday (and Sundays are generally quiet across France), it was awful. We walked some 3 kms into the place with the dogs, hoping to find somewhere to eat. A further 2 kms walking around the place persuaded us to settle for cheese and biscuits back at the Boomobile. Awful, truly awful.
