Sunday 12th October 2008 – Toulouse, France

Today is the day of the Big Match – Toulouse v Bath, the opening match in this season's Heineken European Cup. This will be the first live rugby match that we have seen since Bath played in Albi (close to here) last December. But kick-off wasn't until 16:00 so we had to to find something to do beforehand.
Being a Sunday, the buses back to the campsite finish at 19:00 and that would make it very tight to get back from the match in time. However, Marc at the campsite told us where we could park the motorhome near to a Metro station and we followed his advice. We started at the Place St. Sernin where there was a large flea market and we also took a look in the church of the same name but, as there was a service in progress, we only stayed briefly at the back. We then moved on to the intriguing Jacobin Monastery, with its very high ceilings and the tomb of Saint Thomas Aquinas, the 13th Italian philosopher. After an excellent lunch close to the Garonne River we crossed it and walked slowly along the banks towards the stadium. That is actually on an island in the middle of the river and we needed to walk over another bridge to get to it. We then discovered that there was no easy way up the very high flood-defence walls. After informing a group of Bath supporters on hired bicycles, that they were going to have a problem, we climbed up some steep emergency steps and over the top of the wall and down onto the pavement. When we arrived we bought tickets for €15 each (very reasonable compared to England) and we entered the enormous stadium. I can't quite understand why the stadium is a football stadium when rugby is much bigger than football in Toulouse. The stadium was nearly full by the time of the kick off and although there were quite a few Bath supporters, we were hugely outnumbered by a very enthusiastic and vocal crowd. I won't go into detail about the game but just to say it was very close, tense and Bath were winning with only three minutes to go. Toulouse won, kicking a penalty with the last kick of the match but Bath scored the only two tries.
After the match we met up with our good friends Paul and Louisa and other supporters would had made the journey to Toulouse. After a chat, we had to make our way back to Henrietta but we arranged to meet up again tomorrow.
Photos: A very large mirror in the Jacobin Monastery allows people to view the ceiling without breaking their necks but also allows interesting views of the people; The monastery ceiling; These people were very calm given that these flying saucers had just landed by the river; Bath pressing on the Toulouse try line – needless to say, both Bath tries were scored in the second half, as far away from us as possible at the other end; A group of Bath supporters.

Saturday 11th October 2008 – Toulouse, France

After a late start we travelled in to take a look at the city. A bus took us to a Metro station and we took a train into the centre. The Metro was very impressive – the driver-less trains were very frequent and it was a smooth and fast journey.
It turned out to be quite an eventful day. We stumbled across a celebration of Breton and Occitanian music. People here are very proud of their Occitan heritage with the Occitan language, once spoken in parts of southern France, northern Spain and northern Italy, is undergoing a revival. Many bagpipes were in evidence often very obviously made from a goat skin complete with four legs, the chanter attached to the neck and a wooden plug in the rear end. When we stood close to the players, the smell of goat was very noticeable, however the music was great except when they played 'Yellow Submarine'. We also watched a parade of marching bands and it became apparent that the Breton music was actually being played by groups based in the Occitan area.
We walked around the square where there was a local food fayre with many stalls selling honey, duck products, pates and truffles. I was tempted by the latter but was put off by the €590 (£480) per kilo price tag! I was not tempted by the 'Dressage de Chien Truffier' (Training of the truffle dog??????) for €16 – much cheaper but what is it? Something that smells of truffles so that you can train your dog how to recognise the scent?
As we left the Capitol Square where the music was based, we came across a protest drive by a large number of motorcyclists driving their bikes slowly through the streets blasting their horns and revving their engines. We never did discover why they were protesting.
Our last stop was at the Cathedral of Saint Etienne where we admired the stone and marble alter and the lovely wooden carvings of the choir stalls.
Photos: The bagpipe players with their bagpipes clearly made from goatskins – you will have to imagine the smell; There were some real characters playing; One of the bands marching in the parade.

Friday 10th October 2008 – Toulouse, France

In the campsite reception I had noticed a poster showing a town surrounded by a river running in a deep gorge. The town was Bozouls and I really wanted to see it. The receptionist saw that I was looking at it and explained that it was only a short distance away and we realised that it was on our route.
Fifteen minutes after setting off from Espalion we were turning off the main road into the town of Bozouls. I had identified a point on the edge of the gorge and we soon found a car park. This also had motorhome services and could have been used for an overnight stay. A couple of minutes walk brought us to the promenade with its wonderful view. The gorge, 4km long and 100m deep snakes its way through the limestone leaving a promontory on which the 12th century church of St. Fauste sits. It is a fantastic and dramatic sight, especially with the Autumn colours in the gorge. We walked along the promenade in both directions until we came across the tourist information office and the 'Terra Memoria' museum. We decided to visit the museum that is dedicated to geology. It started with the creation of the Earth and went on to explain the formation of the volcanic landscape and the Gorge of Dourdou at Bozouls. It was very well presented and the English audio guide was very good. We even got to experiment with trays of water and sand, trying to create a meandering river – we failed miserably!
Onwards then and soon we were descending on a series of long gradual slopes, leaving the volcanic area and the Massif Central behind us. We arrived in Toulouse and heading for the northern outskirts of the city, we found the Le Rupe campsite. Following the signs to the site, we past a very scruffy gypsy site but the campsite itself was very pleasant and we settled in to one of the large pitches. The temperature was about 22°C, the sun was strong and we chose to sit in the shade – the first time we have done that for a long time.
Photos: Two views of Bozouls and its deep gorge.

Thursday 9th October 2008 – Espalion, France

A grey morning but it wasn't raining and it hadn't rained much during the night. We were somewhat delayed in leaving as an Australian arrived at the van and asked us if we could change two one Euro coins for a two Euro coin – he was staying in a tent and needed to use the campsite tumble dryer. It turned out that he was a very keen cyclist and was on a journey from the south coast of France to the Ardeche before returning to Australia. However, this was the second part of his trip – he had just returned from America having cycled from Vancouver to New York! Apparently it took him 31 days and he only had one day of rain. It had been different in France! I asked how he had been able to take so much time off work and he explained that it is enshrined in Australian law that if you have worked for the same company for ten years, you are entitled to three months leave on full pay or up to six months leave on half pay. What an excellent idea! We were just finishing that long and interesting chat when a Swiss guy joined us and explained that, in his youth, he had cycled from Switzerland to Czechoslovakia and toured that country when it still under communist rule. Apparently the Czechs couldn't understand why he wanted to come to their 'Godforsaken country' from the free and beautiful Switzerland.
Eventually, we got on the road, passing the Rocher d'Aiguilhe and heading out of town. We climbed again to well over 1,000m and east towards St. Flour (patron saint of millers and bakers?????). Evidence of volcanic activity was everywhere and our first target was an interesting volcanic feature in the village of Chilhac. We had seen a picture of it in an exhibition at the Rocher d'Aiguilhe and found that it only required a short diversion from our intended route. We parked in a car park just below the village that was perched on a volcanic outcrop. It was clear that the village used to be walled and some 15th century towers were still visible. All of the buildings were built of dark volcanic rock and we had seen this often over the last two days whenever we passed an area where extinct volcanoes were located. This gave the village a rather ominous look and the gloomy feel was enhanced by the dull weather and the fact that the village seemed to be deserted. Of course it wasn't, but everyone seemed to be indoors. We investigated the town and eventually found a sign to the 'Orgues Basaltiques' (The Basalt Organ) leading down below the village. Here was a cliff formed of basalt that had cooled into tall hexagonal tessellated columns, in a similar way to the formation of the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. The stone had obviously been quarried and it was easy to spot hexagonal stones incorporated into the village buildings. The quarrying probably only stopped when it was likely to endanger the defensive walls above.
Our lunch consisted of very large and very tasty cakes bought at the Chilhac bakery and then we continued on our journey. The sat nav took us on a road that rose sharply into the low cloud and I was soon driving very slowly through thick fog on narrow roads. Fortunately, there was virtually no other traffic on the road and after about 15km we descended back under the cloud. We drove through St. Flour (lots of bakers but no millers) and headed south to Espalion through a varied landscape and evidence of more volcanic activity.
We found the very pleasant campsite in Espalion next to the river and set off to investigate the town. Espalion is a very pretty town with a small château and old bridge both in the centre of the town just five minutes walk from the campsite. We hadn't had Internet access for a week and this was top of our agenda. The tourist office was able to tell us of two cafe's with WiFi Internet and we headed to the closest. At €5 per hour, it wasn't cheap and we had to rush to achieve everything within the hour.
Photos: Chilhac sitting upon the volcanic basalt outcrop; The Orgues Basaltiques at Chilhac; Part of the Chilhac defensive walls and towers; A view of Espalion from near the campsite, showing the château and the old bridge.

Wednesday 8th October 2008 – Le-Puy-en-Velay, France

The major feature of today was rain. It started last evening at about 19:00 and continued all night, often heavy and with very few breaks. It was raining when we left La Bastide Puylaurent and it continued for the whole of our journey. We were continuing across the Massif Central and we hardly dropped lower than 800m reaching over 1,400m at one point. The scenery was pretty but it was rather spoiled by the rain and we felt no desire to stop and explore.
We were heading for Le-Puy-en-Velay and had found a camperstop in our 2007 edition of Camperstop Europe. I had entered the GPS coordinates into the sat nav and it showed the location near the centre of the town. However the GPS coordinates in the book have been unreliable, in fact they issued an addendum to correct many of those in France but this was not one of them. Following the coordinates, we arrived at a car park in the centre of the town with no indication of a camperstop nor was it near a campsite as the text suggested. We stopped and used the address rather than the GPS coordinates and this took us to the correct place. The camperstop was however heaving with very large RV motorhomes associated, we think, with the very large roadworks on the ring road. We decided to go to the Camping Le-Puy-en-Velay site next door. Unfortunately, the site was close not open until 13:00 so, with 45 minutes to wait, we camped in their drive and had an early lunch. Soon after 13:00 we were let in and were soon walking into the town ..... in the rain!
Le-Puy-en-Velay is in an intriguing area of the Massif Central as it is a large volcanic area with many thermal springs and large volcanic rock outcrops. Two such outcrops dominate the town, one Rocher Corneille standing 130m above the town is topped by a massive statue of the Virgin and Child. It was made from 213 guns captured at Sebastopol and is, rather surprisingly, painted red. The other volcanic pinnacle, Rocher d'Aiguilhe 82m above the town, was once the home to a Roman temple, probably to Mercury, but in the 10th century a church was built to St. Michael and this was extended in the 12th century. We walked up the 265 steps to the chapel and we were incredibly lucky – it wasn't raining. We admired the views of the city in the dry before going into the chapel. Needless to say, it was raining when we emerged again and walked down the 265 steps to the exhibition in a house at the bottom of the hill.
We walked on to the cathedral, a few hundred metres away and were impressed with the statue of a black Mary and Jesus, a replica of the original that was destroyed during the French Revolution. There is a connection here to our visit to Spain in January as the cathedral is a starting point for French pilgrims on their way to Santiago (or Saint Jacques, as the French call it) de Compostela. We continued our walk though the narrow alleys of the old town and around the Rocher Corneille hill but decided not to climb it given that the rain was now heavier.
As I write this at 20:30 it is still raining – over 24 hours with hardly a break and Jane has been told by the campsite staff that rain is forecast for tomorrow.
Photos: The view of Rocher d'Aiguilhe from the campsite; The statue of the Virgin and Child on Rocher Corneille; An example of fitting a house into the available space – a very thin dwelling in the Le-Puy-en-Velay old town; A close-up view of Saint Michael's church on Rocher d'Aiguilhe.

Tuesday 7th October 2008 – La Bastide Puylaurent, France

The morning was not cold but a thick mist lay all around us and we could only see a few metres over the lake. By the time that we had left, the mist was clearing and we could see the bank on the other side. We descended from the lake and were soon in the wide Isere Valley with a very high cliff on our left. We followed this cliff, the boundary of the mountains, and the river for many miles. Thousands of walnut trees lined both sides of the road and there were many signs advertising direct sales of 'Noix' (walnuts) and 'Huille de Noix' (walnut oil) from the farms. The weather was getting warmed and warmer and soon it was up to 20°C, a temperature we hadn't encountered for some while. We were heading for the south and the weather was getting better!
As we approached Valance, where the Isere joins the huge Rhone, we joined a dual carriageway that joined two sections of motorway. Here we passed a nuclear convoy with the nuclear material carried in a container on a small lorry accompanied by three police minibuses and two police motorbikes. The minibuses each had a number of armed police in them ready for any incident. France produces over three quarters of its electricity from nuclear reactors and there must be many such convoys on French roads. It was good to see them taken security so seriously.
We followed the Rhone south briefly before heading up a valley to Privas. We climbed quickly up into the park of the 'Ardeche Mountains'. We had lunch overlooking this valley before driving on to Lablachere close to the campsite, Le Ch'Ti Franoi, of our friends Steve and Audrey. We had hoped to pop on to see them but their season had just finished and they were enjoying a well-deserved holiday in England. We picked up some excellent Cotes de l'Ardeche wine from the cooperative in Lablachere before continuing on the D4 past Steve and Audrey's campsite. Steve had told us that the scenery on this road was worth seeing but we hadn't taken that route last time. We weren't prepared for what we found we drove up through chestnut woods and kept going up and up. We thought that we would start our descent soon but it went on and on. The scenery was stunning - although it was hazy we could see for a long way. We had in fact climbed on to the Massif Central and we were soon at over 1,000m. The scenery was now bleak with rock outcrops everywhere, some looking for all the world like Greek Cyclopean Walls, and farmhouses and hamlets built of stone that blended into the landscape. After many miles we did start to descend – 10km of 8% slope, the signs warned. We arrived, after many hair-pin bends, at the small spa resort of Saint-Laurent-Les-Bains and a lovely municipal campsite in the valley bottom. Driving through the resort and out the other side, we found ourselves climbing once again to well over 1,100m. Shortly afterwards we descended to La Bastide Puylaurent, still at 980m where we found the camperstop behind the office of tourism. We had taken the D4 all the way from Lablachere to La Bastide and it was one of the most dramatic and beautiful journeys that we had made on the Odyssey. With the caveat that the road is steep, narrow, twisty and is not good for the fuel consumption, I would highly recommend this trip particularly in good weather when the views are clear.
Photos: Mist lays over the lake d'Aiguebelette; A rocky hillside with those natural Cyclopean Walls; The valley near Saint-Laurent-Les-Bains – the campsite is at the bottom of the valley.

Monday 6th October 2008 – Lac d'Aiguebelette, France

It was much warmer when we woke up and that suggested cloud. Sure enough, it was very cloudy and it was soon raining. After a minimal breakfast, we set off down the open pretty valley but as we approached Thonon-Les-Bains, the valley closed into a very steep, extremely pretty gorge.
After negotiating Thonon-Les-Bains we headed south, once again keeping off the motorways. All the way to Chambery we had views of the snow-covered Alps on our left. At Chambery we joined the motorway briefly in order to use a 3km tunnel that saved us a long diversion on steep, windy roads. We left the motorway immediately after the tunnel and headed round the small lake of d'Aiguebelette. Here we found our destination of the Les Peupliers campsite, right on the edge of the lake. Jane wanted to use the washing machine and dryer and was told to get the washing in quickly as the machines were being removed that afternoon. Within 10 minutes of starting the washing, the van arrived to collect them. We were able to complete the washing but weren't able to use the dryer. Fortunately the sun had come out and it turned into a beautiful day. The washing was hung on an improvised washing line in the sunshine and dried quite well before we had to take it in.
Our pitch, right on the shoreline, gave us a wonderful view over the lake and it is a really peaceful location.
Photos: A view over Lake d'Aiguebelette from our campsite pitch.