Day 16 Monday Ste Enimie to Le Pont du Montvert 33 av 9.2
Yes, we're back here after 10???? years. Last time coming from the north following the RLS route. This time from Florac to the south. Left campsite at 9ish and breakfast in Ste Enimie. Beautiful ride the 20 odd miles to Florac up the top part of the Tarn gorge. Stunning and v little traffic being a mon morning. Back exercises and lunch in a park whereupon it proceeded to pour for next 2 hours. V lucky. Office de tourisme booked us into a logis in Le Pont du Montvert and we went for it thunder and all - 600 metres of climbing. But no problem. M churning away! Had virtually stopped raining , but cool ( and ideal climbing conditions ) and we had a good 2 hour ride up to this RLS visited spot and scene of horrific butchery in French Wars of Religion. Real old style lodging right on the river beside the pont, but more than adequate and treated ourselves to a good bottle of Chateauneuf du pape ( 2009 - Robin ) with a hikers style dinner - all fellow guests were on the Route de Stevenson i.e. plentiful portions.
Day 17 Tuesday.
Le Pont du Montvert to Villefort via the Col de Finials. 34 av 9.1
Up with the Route de Stevenson hikers ( masses of them in the village ) , breakfast in our v sparse but comfortable logis, coffee in the village summoning the strength for our 2,000 feet plus climb to the col at 1550 metres. Reached the closed and all shut up ski resort on the other side of the pass in time for our picnic lunch ( a long way to carry it up ) with bench a chairs in lee of wind but in warm sunshine. Then descent down to the sleepy ( was it even awake? ) village of Le Bleymard. Up a few hundred metres over our old friend the River Lot ( just a tiny stream now ) and to the Divide between water flowing to the Atlantic and the water flowing to the Mediterranean. 20 miles then of delightful downhill to Villefort. Campsite at top end of village and good dinner in v old and traditional style restaurant. High cuisine and good bottle of Gigondas. We had downloaded Travels with a Donkey in English on ipad and enjoyed enormously reading RLS' account of his Le Bleymard to Le Pont du Montvert. Modestine was troublesome on this stretch!
Can't resist an RLS quote
"For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go, I travel for travel's sake. And to write about it afterwards. (.......) But the great affair is to move, to feel the needs and hitches of life a little more early, to get down off this feather bed of civilisation and to find the globe granite underfoot and strewn with cutting flints."
Day 18 Wednesday. Villefort to Cavaillon ( by train ). Cavaillon to Maubec. 6 av 10.5
Managed to get tent up and all gear packed before the heavy rain which we expected came in at 8. V wet ride back into the village for coffee, double rations of pain de raisins and some major decisions. Forecast is rain for at least 3 days. We're high in the mountains and therefore chances of improvement that much less. I had picked up railway timetable the day before ( we didn't even know there was train line anywhere near here ! ), saw there was a train to Nimes at 10.21 and went for it - wet gear and all . Likelihood of rain also in Nimes as we understand it and a shame to be missing benefit if the substantial altitude we had attained ( notwithstanding the 20 miles of downhill yesterday ) .
V quick, warm and dry, not to say beautiful , train to Nimes and likely to try to make Arles tonight . That is the plan devised on train anyway.
Post script. Nimes gare hour and a half from Villefort. Not raining and much warmer. Things looking up. Got another train Nimes to Avignon and then another one Avignon to Cavaillon. All very easy and managed to get fully laden bikes on to trains with v little bother. Change from old days when you had to unload everything and bget panniers and tent separately from platform up to train.
Biked the 6 miles or so to the vieux village of Maubec and the campsite there had gite d'etape. Dormitory style accom but with largish living area and kitchen. Perfect for us with so much wet gear. Bliss to get everything clean and dry incl the soaking tent. Dinner at Bergerac restauraunt - as good as we've had anywhere and outside.
Mary was sure our only dormitory companion was a travelling nun, so we had a restful night.
Day 19. Thursday. Maubec to Gargas. 39 av 8.4
This turned out to be a longer day than expected thanks to a couple of navigational errors. A fine morning - and v satisfying as we looked north to black clouds and a mist covered Mt Ventoux. Took the dedicated cycle route through Oppede de Vieux, Minerbe, Lacoste, and Bonnieux ( steep climbs to all 4 ) where we had picnic in the cemetery at very top of the village with superb views north over the Luberon ( repeat of same spot with Butters' many years ago ? ). Fabulous cycling.
In trying to find our way to a spot we had found on that former trip, we took an unpaved road out of Bonnieux at top of village and had to retreat. Then found another road with a ' chemin barre' sign with apparently half Km of roadworks which we were not prepared to risk. Straight down then to Apt and the idea then was to find another gite d'etape in face of gathering clouds. After some navigational diffs, we found the place at about 6.45 only to find it full. Turned away! Settled for a hotel a km away which gave us bed and dinner. V comfortable but but not what we were looking for. Lucky to find that though.
Day 20 Friday. Gargas to Roussillon via Ste Saturnin-les-Apt
Leisurely departure from comfortable but inhospitable ( snooty ? ) hotel. Probably not the type of clientele they were looking for. Surprising since only 2 out of 30 rooms were occupied and we and one other couple only people for dinner the night before.
Back to village of Gargas for fresh pain aux amandes and coffee having declined breakfast at hotel. Went up to Les Mines de Bruoux ( 2 centuries of ochre quarrying ) but missed the hourly tour. Off then to the north of Gargas and the northern Luberon and reached chateau of lovely village of Saturnin-les-Apt with the ruins of another chateau at the top and an eglise above that. Picnic in village square where there is a moving memorial to 8 Resistance fighters shot by the SS against the wall right there in 1944.
Wind right behind us on the 10km to Roussillon and up there in time for the 30 minute walk - sentier des ochres at the top of the village. Down then the 2km to the campsite that we remembered so well from 10 years ago, showered , rested , and back up to the village for superb dinner at Le Bistrot de Roussillon. Best service as anywhere we've been to. Wine - Chateau la Canorgue - a Luberon rose from Bonnieux . Rode bikes to very top of village with stunning night views in 3 directions and easy and completely traffic free ride back to campsite by 11.
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