It had rained the day before the trip start, the only non-walking day I've had over the past two weeks, and the only rains as well. But as is customary in Provence after a rainy day, the chilly Mistral winds kick in, and our first day of walking was at 15°C, a veritable temperature nosedive after walking in 30° weather all last week. But the Mistral winds always bring clear views and make for beautiful photographs. Below, we are on the crest of one of the "Dentelles", a set of three limestone teeth hovering high above the Rhône Valley.
Sitting above the village of Gigondas, the foothills of the Dentelles chain are laden with famed vineyards, planted on terraces carved into the steep slopes. In the backdrop of the picture and in the clouds is Mont Ventoux, Provence's highest mountain.
But best of all in the Dentelles mountains is the Florets hotel, nestled in the vines, and in the heart of the appellation of Gigondas. We stayed there two nights. Their food is to die for, and one of the many perks of being a mountain guide...
And we can walk off those fabulous meals the following day! Leaving Gigondas after our second night at the hotel, we find tracks that wind through the vineyards and into the plains, where we enter the olive groves of Beaumes de Venise.
After our pushup contest (which I handily lost), Christina relishes in her victory...
Walking along the Carpentras canal on our way to the centre of Beaumes de Venise:
A bakery in the village of Lourmarin, on the southern slope of the Luberon:
And just before arriving in Lourmarin, Christina makes a friend:
Our base for the 2nd part of the trip: the Auberge des Seguins hotel deep in the Luberon:
Merope at the hotel, just before dinner:
Our picnic lunches prepared by the Auberge des Seguins. Yum!
Diane preparing herself for the secret staircase to leave the Fort de Buoux:
And here's Cindy making her way down the vertiginous limestone steps, carved into the rock 3000 years ago.
Neville displaying the finer points of the game of Pétanque while brother Darryl watches. Sorry boys, you were up 12-3 but we came back to win 13-12 (just though I'd remind you...)
The photo below isn't great but captures what I've never seen from the summit of the Luberon mountains (where the shot was taken): the Ecrins mountains -- the snowy peaks in the background -- about 200 kilometers away and culminating at over 4000m in altitude.
But Neville has better things to do on the ridge of the Luberon: a Provençal sieste!
After the Luberon we took a short transfer to Saint Rémy, at the foot of the Alpilles mountains.
My favourite place to eat in Saint Rémy: the Mirabeau restaurant with its XL salads, the one below complete with an entire camembert cheese. At the expense of having to leave some of the garnishes, the camembert was finished...
Darryl nearing a summit of the Alpilles mountains, above St. Rémy. The windswept crest offers fantastic views of the Rhône Valley below, flat as a pancake.
Mother and daughter both taking a picture from atop the Alpilles of the medieval village of Les Baux de Provence, the end point of our last walk.
A sign of the times.
In Les Baux de Provence, a riverboat tourist -- in her 70s --using her iPad to take pictures of the medieval buildings.
In Les Baux de Provence, a riverboat tourist -- in her 70s --using her iPad to take pictures of the medieval buildings.
My group outside a café in Les Baux de Provence, a building held by the same family for 400 years:
A short taxi transfer took us to the Roman city of Arles, where we spent the last night of our holiday. Here we are exploring the labyrinth of streets in the centre of town.
The whole group outside the Auberge des Seguins: thank you to Merope, Neville, Donna, Darryl, Christine, Cindy, and Diane for a great week!!
Up towards the coliseum in Arles:
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