A New Adventure in France

We enjoy the days when we move on to a new camp site and get to see the wonderful scenery on the way. We’re not pressed for time so we usually choose a route that avoids motorways and tolls and we get to enjoy France’s generally traffic free back roads and marvel at some of the dead straight Roman roads that go on for miles. We have an ACSI card that gives us special low rates for out of season camping and we use their app to select our next stop – it might be a bit hit and miss but we seem to have been fortunate with the majority of our selections.

For the route to our next base we selected the appropriate route on sat nav and set off. We’ve found that the sat nav has a habit of changing the route as it goes along, probably based on traffic predictions. We’ve also been intrigued by the recent very ‘woke’ and seemingly ‘gender-fluid’ nature of the sat nav which now changes from a male to female voice and back from one direction to the next, whenever it feels like it! Shortly into the journey east we were directed (in a stern male voice – we don’t like him much) down a fairly small road with a warning sign about a lack of passing spaces. Not really what you want to see when you’re towing a trailer and there are no turning round points. What followed was a bit of a white-knuckle, bottom-clenching 30 kms on a beautiful but inappropriate road, with a height restriction sign only just before a small tunnel cut into the rock. Fortunately we squeezed through, breathing in and heads down, as you do. Full marks to Joe for masterful driving, our camper van performed well in tough terrain, and we were very lucky not to meet another vehicle until we emerged from this rollercoaster onto the main road.

By way of recompense, the rest of the route from Mont-Louis to Villefranche de Conflent was one of the most spectacular, dramatic and stunning roads we’ve driven. Sweeping bends, a steep downhill gradient and views over the mountains at every turn. We were happy for that one to go on and on. The road brought us to our next destination of Fuilla in the Rotja valley – Fuilla du Milieu to be precise as there is a Fuilla du Bas and Fuilla du Haut. This beautiful valley, in the Pyrénées Orientales is overlooked by the Massif du Canigou with the Pic du Canigou at 2,784 metres and is the closest of the Pyrenean ranges to the Mediterranean.

Being in a valley means we had to travel to one end or the other to get to other places. From the camp site we were able to cycle in one direction to the impressive Villefranche de Conflent, a UNESCO heritage site and listed as one of the most beautiful villages in France, which sits at the confluence of the Têt, Rotja and Cady rivers. Although it’s history dates back to at least the 11th century, the village is best known for the fortifications carried out by Vauban in the 17th century and for the Fort Libéria that sits above the village, also constructed by Vauban in 1681 and reinforced in the 19th century under Napoleon III. Vauban was a French military engineer who worked under Louis XIV and is generally considered the greatest engineer of his time and one of the most important in Western military history. The village is pretty much intact with double walled ramparts. This is Catalan country so signs are shown in French and Catalan, the Catalan yellow and red striped flag appears everywhere and the colours dominate, similar to the red and white of the Basque Country. Villefranche is also one of the main stations for Le Petit Train Jaune, a tourist train that runs along the plateau. The train is closed during the whole of October for maintenance but we may try and get back for it when it reopens.

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When we have a choice of mode of transport the motorbike is great for getting out on the smaller roads and has been ideally suited for local rides out in this region with sunny days. Our first ride took us to the other end of the valley to Py and Mantet. The village of Mantet was so isolated, even on a nice day, that you wonder how they manage throughout the winter months when they must be pretty much cut off. A second ride took us to Fillols, Taurinya and back via Vernet-Les-Bains, the largest nearby town and a another thermal centre. Less dramatic scenery but great views and roads.

We ventured back up the spectacular road we travelled in on, this time on the motorbike – lucky Joe – and with walking shorts on under our bike gear to Thuès entre Valls and the start of a walk in the tucked away Gorges de la Carança. The start of the walk gives you no idea of what to expect along the way, apart from signs warning of danger, falls and death. That’s it from the Health & Safety point of view, then you’re on your own. There are various durations of walk, some involving overnight stays in a refuge, but the most basic is a circular walk that goes up one side of the gorge and back down the other. Various reviews suggest whether it’s better to go up one side or the other first but we soon found ourselves committed to the ‘route des passerelles’ which started with an uphill climb on rock paths through the trees and with views to the cliffs on the other side and behind. The path then emerged on to the ‘corniche’, a narrow path cut into the side of the cliff,with a metal rope on on side and a sheer drop on the other. This path was apparently cut in the 1940s for the workforce working on a tunnel to feed water to the hydroelectric works at Thuès. Although we’ve become averse to touching handrails and the like, I figured the risk of catching Covid, with hand sanitiser available in my rucksack, was less likely than falling off, so clung on tightly. The path led on to a wobbly overhead metal grille bridge, accessed by a free-hanging ladder, and after more ‘corniche’ paths, a final rope bridge before reaching the path to come back down the other side.

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The way back was trickier in some respects with steep uneven rocky paths, but Joe tackled it like a little mountain goat, we had plenty of time to do it and were pleased we got to discover this beautiful walk. We think it must be Spanish school holiday time as nearly all of the people we met were Spanish, so lots of ‘Hola’ and ‘Bon dia’ exchanged on the way.