Taking the Wrong Path on Mont Aigoual

Part I: Steam Trains and Olive Oil

It was thanks to a non-refundable hotel booking that got my DB and me to patch things up the next day and agree to enjoy the rest of the weekend together. I had indulged in a mega lie-in until 10am (I'm normally up no later than 8.30 even at the weekend, 9 grand max), so had to get my skates on to shower, pack an overnight bag (which hadn't really been unpacked since the weekend before...) and whip up a picnic.

I picked him up at 11am, and we drove off towards Mont Aigoual. Just outside Le Vigan, we took a road we've never been on before, not even on the bike. It was a teeny road - single-car narrow - and bumpy, the D329, and although not 'green' (on the Michelin map), it went through some lovely fragrant woods and scenery. (I note that it joins up at Mandagout with the D170 which is similar, but green. Must try that one next time!) We stopped at a shady spot amongst delicious-smelling pines for our picnic, and enjoyed the excellent 'Tradition' bread with good ol' cheddar, Branston pickle and spring onions, and dipped cucumber and green pepper into the rest of the hummus.

Thus fortified, we drove on and arrived at L'Esperou via the Col de la Lusette which was open (natch). There were very many bikers about, several of whom were sprawled on the sledging slopes having a snooze. Otherwise, it was pretty calm and very different from the frenetic atmosphere of the ski season.

We drove up to the tourist office at the Col de la Serreyrède and had a look at the maps and books of walks, but decided not to buy anything, which of course turned out to be a mistake. The girl at the desk suggested we do an easy walk at Mont Aigoual called the Chemin des Botanistes, and told us where it was and what to look out for.

At the top of Mont Aigoual is an imposing castle that was built in the 19th century as a meteorological observatory. It still serves this purpose, and today, has the addition of a free meteorological exhibition and museum. We had a quick look at the shop because we like to do things the wrong way round, and I bought a book on local edible salad plants because you never know when times could be hard... The exhibition was extremely interesting. It's not at all hands-on, so my boys would whizz round it in 5 minutes to be found in the snack bar later scoffing chips (probably), but I enjoyed reading the panels about clouds, the weather, and watching videos. There is also a museum of old machines used to gather information and make forecasts, and panels describing how the castle was built. We found it very interesting.

Mont Aigoual Observatory

Then, being lazy, we drove down to the menhir below the castle to start the Chemin des Botanistes. We should have started from the castle, but saved ourselves the 200m or so... Without the map, we got lost. We asked people if we were on the right path, and rather than show ignorance, they said yes, even though it wasn't. It was a nice walk along a wide path, but it was not the Chemain des Botanistes! In the end, as we were going ever further down down down, we decided to stop and turn round. It was as we neared the top that we saw the start of the Chemin des Botanistes which goes around the top of the hill.

Menhir (left)

It was lovely and cool up there. The temperature hardly ever climbs over 15°C so it's the place to go if you can't stand the heat of the plain any longer. The wrong path took us through the forest where we saw some interesting forked trees, foxgloves (which I noted for future reference... just in case, and if you've read Agatha Christie you'll know what I mean...), and a keen botanist who was not on his chemin, but was taking a photo of a small pink flower. I asked him what it was and he told me it was wild version of some edible plant (whose name escapes me).

Foxgloves

Frankentree

Dead tree of many stumps

Forked tree (many looked like this)

By this time, the clouds had come down over the castle so there was no point climbing the tower to admire the view. We drove off, instead, to Meyrueis where we had booked our hotel. Meyrueis is a village set on the ancient trade and transhumance route between Auvergne and Bas-Languedoc. Today, it welcomes tourists in numerous hotels, camp sites, holiday cottages and B&Bs, but it isn't a tourist trap, for all that. We found it very charming despite having so many people milling around. Our hotel room overlooked a stream which burbled noisily below our window on the other side of the not-so-main road. We were staying at Hotel d'Europe which is a 2* place, and was basic but clean. It was July 13, so you might expect the hoteliers and serving staff to be a bit grumpy but everyone we came across in this village was warm and friendly. For France, that's saying something!

View from bedroom balcony of Meyrueis main street and stream

Narrow streets in Meyrueis

After reading my Kindle on the balcony while my DB had a snooze inside, we went to have dinner at one of the few remaining tables at the restaurant of the hotel next door (Hotel Family) as ours only did breakfast, and expected to be waiting all evening to be served, but this was not the case. We were served promptly, and ate very well. The fried aubergine, in particular, was so good, my DB asked for more, and got it with a smile. Even the pichet rosé wine was a pleasure to drink. It was a Saint Saturnin from down the road, near Montpeyroux, and was much better than a lot of the rubbish that gets put in a pichet, and excellent value at €5 for half a litre! It was great value at €19.90 for the menu.

We slept with a cool breeze floating in through the open window, and the sound of the stream which penetrated even through my ear plugs!