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France and Germany 2024

April - May 2024
A 32-day adventure by First Kyushu, Then... Read more
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  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    111
    Day 10

    St Chely to Saint-Come-d'Olt

    April 28 in France ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    As we went up the hill leaving St Chely I took a photo back down over the village, thinking "Yep. Great shot. That should be first on the blog." Now we are in Saint-Come-d'Olt and I am not so sure. This is Brigadoon in France - the village time forgot. The Lot River valley has (I am told) some of France's prettiest villages, and this one tops the pops. Street names are in French and Occitan.

    We had packed our one bag to the gunnels again, left it for collection and went to breakfast, which was different: two coffee machines, pots for tea, muesli and granola, but no cheese (but otherwise as usual). We left around 8:30, over an apparently famous pilgrim's bridge, up a long, steep hill with amazing views back over the village, and off through farmland. It was lime green, since trees already had new leaves, and it was noisier with birds. We wore ponchos as we assumed that, being overcast, it would rain, but it didn't , and we were sweaty, so off they came. There were a few steep ups and downs, and often rocky paths, but nothing very hard. We went through one hamlet, but alongside numerous old farmhouses and barns, often with enormous piles of straw and cow dung ready to be spread back over the paddocks.

    We arrived at St-Come-d'Olt around 1:15, and as we stopped to look around a young woman asked if we needed anything, then told us about the shops being closed and the few bars etc that were open. She had an apron from a cafe (Cafe La Pause), so we went there later. The village has a few 11th C features, a church with a twisted spire (design or bad builder? no-one knows) and looks untouched. It might need a section to itself, particularly as the hotel tonight is a convent.

    Overall, it is so far, so good physically. Weary feet, but nothing worse than aches and end-of-day tiredness.

    27,785 steps, 22.0km and 51 flights. Tomorrow is a short day - only 7km to a large town    Read more

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    11
    Day 10

    Saint-Come-d'Olt and the Convent

    April 28 in France ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    Saint-Come-d’Olt is good enough to have its own page.

    It is rated as one of France's most picturesque villages, and that would be hard to argue with that. It is apparently an official designation. The few people we met were also extremely pleasant.

    We are staying in a convent in a town that has had pilgrims for perhaps a thousand years. Perhaps it’s a ritual everywhere, but people are sitting in the convent garden soaking their feet in buckets of water.

    The convent is in an Ursuline convent about 0.75 km out of town. The room counts as austere, but the building has a great library and amazing wooden staircase that is as it was in the 1200s (allegedly). It is not cold: quite the opposite: we opened the window after dinner to cool the room down.

    Anne went to Vespers at 6:30pm and sang along in French with around 15 French hikers and 8 or 10 octogenarian sisters, then we both went to dinner. It was cooked and served boarding school style - fair enough, as it is staffed by volunteers.

    One (our guide as we arrived, and Anne's Vespers music book and singing partner) made us all form a queue at the kitchen door, and pointed to the trays. We were passed a bowl of soup (potato based, we decided) by another, given a plate with rice, red-capsicum mix and fried chicken, collected our own caramel log from the next section, then collected a glass, bread and cutlery, and went to sit in the cavernous but light-coloured hall. The tables had carafes of water and red wine. We sat with two Australian women (Lane Cove and Lavender Bay) who used to be special-needs teachers in remote NSW. We had seen them over the last few days, but they are staying another night here. At the end one packed one’s own tray and put it in a large trolley of shelves - like an airline, but 3x higher.

    The room was fine. It had a largish bathroom, but no walls around the shower, so you had to use the rubber scraper to dry down the floor. The bed was fine.

    Breakfast in the morning ran on the same basis: cornflakes, limitless bread, an urn of coffee and one of hot water, lots of jam, orange juice and yoghurt. All cheerful. As we left, a younger Ursuline sister farewelled us (in good English) at the convent door.    Read more

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    2
    22
    Day 10

    Inside Churches: Le Puy to St Chely

    April 28 in France ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C

    Every village has a church… with some having been recorded nearly 1000 years ago. Here is the first week's worth.

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    1212
    Day 11

    St-Come to Espalion

    April 29 in France ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Today was a short walk - 7km from one scenic village to the next. It was even shorter after we read Rosie's advice on alternative routes, and Anne's Vespers partner suggested going via the secondary road since it was cloudy and raining.

    We left the convent around 8:45 and were in Espalion around 10am. It was a flat walk beside a river that seemed twice as big as yesterday. Some rain, perhaps, or a release from one of the upstream hydro-electric dams?

    There were cars and people, but it is Monday and most shops are shut. That includes clothes shops, so our plans to buy waterproof pants were foiled. Espalion is much larger than the last two villages, but the centre is as old and as pretty. There are some old 20 houses built side-by-side along the river that used to be tanneries, and they still have the stone steps down to the water.

    We expected the hotel to be closed until 3pm, but we came in with our dripping ponchos after walking around the town. Reception was empty, so we sat for a while, then Anne found a notice saying reception was closed from 12-5pm, but if you arrived during that time you should look up your room number in the hotel's room register and take your own key...so we did. We were in our room around 1pm. Our one solitary bag had been in reception, waiting.

    Dinner at the hotel. Very cheerful staff, and no choices: a bacon, egg, pork ad mustard salad, great bread, aligot and a local sausage, and then a pear tart. The first two courses were fantastic. There was heavier rain as we sat in the restaurant looking out at the street, but we are hoping for a long break in the drizzle tomorrow.

    17,565 steps, 13.9 km and 1 flight    Read more

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    1621113
    Day 12

    Espalion to Golinhac - visiting a castle

    April 30 in France ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    We had breakfast at the same table as at dinner, looking out on the street and hoping the drizzle would hold off. It was a larger offering than at the convent, with teapots there for tea. It is strange that breakfast can be so important when you have no control over what it might be.

    We started at 8:10 along the Lot river. It was overcast, so Anne had her poncho, but I thought I would be too hot with it. After 5km we were at a lovely old chapel (St Pierre) , followed by a steep 180m hill - up and down in a lot of mud. There was almost a rivulet in the middle of the path coming down. Landed at another old chapel and chateau ( Verrieres) before another 150m hill, then down to Estaing (think Giscard d’Estaing) with its 1,000 year old castle/ chateau and church. We were there around 11:15.

    St Come was stunning, but so were St Chely, Espalion and now Estaing. We toured the chateau, looked in the church, took too many photos, bought a baguette and set off for Golinhac as the church bell rang 12.

    The first 8km from Estaing were all uphill. There was a steady 350m rise as we went along the dammed river (hydro-electric) then up... through a forest, over farmland, more forests and occasional roads, then slowly down 100m and up the same 100m to Golinhac, which is on top of a ridge with spectacular views from W to N to E.

    We were both pretty weary by the time we reached our small hotel around 3:30. It was easy to find as it is the only hotel in a very small hamlet. The cleaner/ waitress/ receptionist showed us to the accommodation (maybe 7 rooms) which meant going outside and back in, and when we came in WE HAD TWO BAGS! La Malle Postale must have learned from and modernised the Yam, (although the Celts rather than the Mongols used to be here). Bliss is a second pair of shoes and clean clothes, plus wet-weather gear, gloves and poles.

    Golinhac has a population of 355, so walking around it later did not take long, but it is old, neat and has amazing views. Our interesting fact for the day was that town names ending in -hac or -ac indicate a Celtic past.

    Hotel Auberge de Golinhac: 1 Wifi very erratic. 2 No tea or coffee. 3 Bed okay. 4 Dinner was good - great cheese salad. 5 Basic breakfast. 6 Great view.

    40,600 steps, 32.6km and 157 flights. Maybe 1,000 steps less than the longest day in Japan, but 110 extra flights of stairs. Knees and ankles confirm it.    Read more

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    211
    Day 13

    Golinhac to Conques: rain, mud, hills

    May 1 in France ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    It was raining lightly when we left around 8:15, and it only got heavier. The views were misty rather than panoramic, but always over green countryside, with cows sometimes lined up by the trail to watch us walk by. Sadly, it was a day of many narrow, steep paths, which were sometimes rivers of mud. But what the heck: we had two bags, and more clean socks and another pair of shoes each awaited us in Conques.

    Conques was a revelation. We knew the path to it went down steeply, so we assumed it would be a typical village/ town spread out beside a river. The last 1.5 km was an overgrown and steep Kokoda- style mudslide, and we could not see where the land flattened out. We were perhaps not concentrating on that too much: it was very cold and very wet, our fingers were numb, and we kept going around corners that lead not to vistas but to more of the same, and we were still on the upper half of a large hill. Then one slight turn and we were in a stony street with old houses way above the river. Then another, and we ran smack bang into an enormous abbey church. It was like expecting Nyngan but finding a miniature Oxford.

    Work started on Conques' church in the 11th C, and is apparently still on-going. It is now more a cathedral than a church, and the houses and hotels etc are packed in lines beside and around it. It all sits on a flattish area quite a bit higher than the river. It is old and pretty enough to have its own page... see below.

    Our hotel is just back from the church and is about 1 room wide. It has 4 rooms per floor. It is also several centuries old. We arrived at 2pm, seconds before out bags, but the 3pm rule was mentioned, so we looked in the abbey, the tourist office, and some of the shops, talked with a chatty young Englishman who had a tiny souvenir shop, then collected a key and started drying out.

    We met St Craig and Liz to return the borrowed overpants. They had arrived in Conques yesterday (having not had the short days with St-Come) and were in the other open hotel, but we took them to dinner in this one. The restaurant is usually closed on Wednesdays, but they were open on 1 May as it was a holiday and they hoped it might be busy. It was. Very good dinner: more aligot and local pork sausage for me, and the best beef ragout ever for Anne. Plus local red wine. We learned that Craig and Liz have a speech therapist daughter in Dubbo, and that we all shared a little trepidation about the very steep and muddy path that goes back up at the start of the walk tomorrow.

    Hotel was the Auberge St Jacques. 1 Wifi erratic. 2 No tea/ coffee. 3 Good bed. 4 Dark and winding stairs. 5 Fantastic dinner. 6. Okay breakfast - although I prefer to serve myself. 7. Family operated, and they were friendly

    31,250 steps, 25.2km, 76flights    Read more

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    2
    211
    Day 13

    Conques-en- Rouergue

    May 1 in France ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

    Conques: suddenly we were there, and even in the rain and cold it was impressive.

    The hotel was a bit Hogwartsy, but the family running it were nice, and the meals were good.

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    21211
    Day 14

    Conques to Decazeville: cold mud

    May 2 in France ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    We left Conques at 8:15 along with everyone we knew - the Australians and the Americans - but stopped at the Englishman's stall. He reassured us the climb up was not too bad. Just 15m down the street (made of schist, not cobblestones or tar) one could look up and see the cross of the Chapelle-St- Foy, which was a tiny church almost at the top, and it was not too far away. It had a bell that people rang to show they had made it.

    Despite the nearness, it was a tough climb in the light rain. The path was mostly chiselled in solid rock, so the water was running down rather than creating bogs, and it is easier to avoid rivulets than it is the step through mud.. We reached the chapel in about 25-30 mins, and the end of the long till after 50 mins. The rest of the day was mainly across gentle slopes and farmlands, but the light rain did not ease up until midday, and it was accompanied by a cold gale. Sometimes we looked forward to a climb because it meant being protected, and getting feeling back in all 10 fingers again.

    Ignoring the weather, it was green all around, with the occasional herd of cows watching us walk by. There were good views sometimes when the clouds broke, but the challenge was underfoot: the path was either roads (which were hard but fine) or squelchy mud. It was usually possible to walk around the edges of the boggy sections, but it was slow, and annoying to have to look down so much. In the afternoon we met a few people who walked the last half of the 20 or so km down the road, saying there was no joy in sloshing through mud with numb hands and wet clothes.

    There will be a textile one day that solves the issue, but most people have ponchos covering themselves and backpack, waterproof jackets and separate waterproof backpack covers. They all keep the rain out, but going up long hills, even in sleet, makes you hot and sweaty, and under all the waterproofing, nothing evaporates. Having said that, I was glad we were not doing some of the hills in 30 degrees and laden down by extra litres of water.

    We arrived in Decazeville around 1:30. It is a large and definitely not thriving industrial town (ie featureless and bland, like the outskirts of cities all over the world) that is spread out along the river. The hotel was almost on the trail, so we found it very quickly. The manager (part of the family running it, who spoke great English having once done 4 months in hotels in NZ), let us in after several minutes of consternation about us not having a booking. That was resolved when he realised they were all looking at reservations on the wrong day. Much laughter.

    Our bags had not arrived, so we went up, took off the rain gear and set forth to find lunch. Somewhere along the trail we clearly offended a French spirit, because every boulangerie within a km of the hotel was shut, either permanently or because it was Thursday, or just because. There were numerous beauty shops, vaping shops, real estate agents and the odd tattoo parlour, but no food stores… go figure. We gave up the hunt when we found a table-less Carrefours. Baguettes and cheese in hand, plus something for the 31km walk tomorrow, we went back to the hotel. Our bags had arrived, so warm showers, dry clothes and lunch, with the benefit of Nico's Swiss knife (which had naturally been in the bag that was checked in and therefore not around until the last two days).

    The Hotel Malpel is okay. 1. Bright room and good wifi. 2. View is a bit run-down industrial. 3. Lugging bags up two flights of stairs (but two bags to lug, so no complaining). 4. Good dinner 5. Friendly staff. 6 Controllable heater, but no coffee/tea.6. Grim bathroom, with a hint of mould

    32,173 steps, 25.9km, 124 flights    Read more

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    12
    Day 15

    Decazeville to Figeac: mostly sunny!

    May 3 in France ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    Today was one of the long days - somehwere between 28 and 31 km, depending on which source you believed. We took our bags downstairs, had breakfast (serve your own coffee , which was a good change after 2 days, but jam and bread) and left around 8:10. There was a lot of fog, but it wasn't raining, and a farmer we walked past early on assured us that there would not be any rain.

    A long hill out, then forests and a little too much mud until we went down to a small town on a swollen river. After that there was a good 10km of roads and dry paths through fields and woods. When we crossed the river again we met a NZ couple, who walked at around our pace and therefore spent most of the day with us. They were carrying their own gear, and are hardened hikers. Canterbury to Rome - the Via Francigena? No worries, done that.

    After a little village called St Michel we headed on while others stopped...and hit a little more mire. It was mostly on long, flattish sections, often beside fields. To balance it out, there were grand panoramas as the fog lifted, and often blue skies.

    We stopped for lunch at a little church in a village called St Felix, which was about 21km along the way. After the break we met the NZers again (they had taken the road) and walked with them pretty much to Figeac. There was a heavy shower about 30 mins out, but then we were dry when we arrived, and our hotel was right at the short bridge at the old entrance to the town.

    We might have been very lucky with the choice of hotel (the trip organiser's) and the decision to spend two nights here (ours). Figeac looks amazing! It has a very old, almost medieval village surrounded by the rest of the town, with two large churches and lots of alleys and narrow, cobbled streets. We arrived at the hotel around 3:15, feeling pretty good: there have been shorter days in worse weather that felt much harder - and the hotel is excellent. We beat the luggage, but started off by washing muddy clothes, and then planning a trip to a laundromat once the bags and dirty clothes came (which was around 4:15).

    The laundromat was a short walk into the old city, and while things were being washed we wandered through some of the old streets and one of the enormous churches. It really is a great town: Conques might be more spectacular, but Figeac has more, and far more character. That might be for tomorrow.

    We are having dinner with 5 American women tonight, plus a few add-ons. The five have been doing the walk as a group, and had been in the hotel in Le Puy with us on the first day. The youngest is probably 70, the oldest close to 80, and they all get along art their own pace, although most days we are at the hotel several hours earlier than the first of them. They have been at the same hotels most nights for the last 10 days (same tour organiser). They are an interesting lot. They have their own mini-dramas because of the weather (not what they expected), the disparate group (they all knew someone in common, but not necessarily each other) and the different walking speeds. Some of them are fun, but some are also a bit depressed that they have come to France for some unspectacular weather and rough trails. Let's see if today cheered them up.

    Hotel (Pont d'Or) scores extremely well. 1. Great wifi. 2 Tea and coffee in room. 3. Temperature controllable (sort of). 4. Good size room with shelves. 5. Great bed. 6 Great breakfast. 7. Good dinners. 8 A boot-cleaner. 9. Lift

    42,408 steps, 34 km, 115 flights    Read more

  • TravelerFrance and Germany 2024
    121
    Day 16

    Figeac

    May 4 in France ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    Figeac is special.

    Bonus one is that we have a very pleasant hotel. Curiously, a Best Western, but easily the best so far (subject to Aumont-Aubrac's extra points for the manager who resolved Air France).

    Bonus two is that we are here two nights.

    Bonus three is that Figeac is a beautiful old town. It is as if the buildings have remained the same for at least 200 years. The old area, which is quite large and has lots of alleys and twisting, narrow streets. All the houses are stone, often with blue-shuttered windows, wooden framework visible from outside and old, tiled rooves.... and no (or almost no) obviously new buildings anywhere. There are two huge churches, both different but also spectacular.

    The man who deciphered the Rosetta Stone was born here, and there is a massive replica of the Stone in a courtyard near his old house. The Knights Templar had a castle in the 13th-15th C. The oldest house was started in the 10th C, small mansions and places are around every corner, and there are rose bushes along the streets.

    We spent the day walking around the tourist office trail, with 30 stops marked on the map, all for good reason, then the churches again, the river, the fair ground (1-5 May is Figeac Fair), a few different sorts of shops, the sports field, the non-old town ( still very old on the edges) and everything in between. There were dodgem cars, carousel and other side-shows in the main street all day, as well as in a park on the top of the hill, and in the evening a rag-tag brass band played what seemed to be the same tune over and over, but with unstoppable gusto. A good place to spend two nights!

    21,519 steps, 16.2km, 24 flights.    Read more

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