Walk abouts in Midi Pyrenees!
Carcassonne in winter. What bliss t
o visit Carcassonne without all the Tourists clogging up the narrow streets. It was very windy on the ramparts and a grey day, but well worth it just to have the old city to ourselves!
Recently we visited the tiny village of Montolieu. It's situated in Les Montagnes Noires. It's a very beautiful area. To get there we drove through the forest, passing the half empty resevoir of Saint Ferreol and Saissac, a village with castle ruins on a rocky outcrop. From there you can see the ramparts of Carcassonne. We dived in and out of shops spending time browsing the shelves of antique books and found a local bar to grab some lunch!
Having been told about the cemetary in Toulouse we walked up to take a look one sunny afternoon. It's a huge cemetary with massive tombs and family graves set out like a city with winding roads and paths between them. I found it rather interesting and a very peaceful place with a great view of the city!! Some big tombs even had their own chapels and shrines inside them.
Talking of memorials we found this WW2 memorial in the Forêt de Bouconne.
It remembers François Verdier a member of the French Resistance who was held captive by the Gestapo before being shot in the forêt in 1944. In fact there were others of the Resistance who were killed not only here but also in the streets of Toulouse itsel
f. The forest is vast and you can easily wander away from other folk for all kinds of woodland wyrdness!
Having been out and about in the woods it was great to get up in the mountains with Joël recently! Woods are nice cosy places. Full of wise old trees and birds singing. Mountains are rugged but so fresh and the air is so clean! The feeling is of space and freedom...and the satisfaction of reaching the top of a climb is really exhilirating......
Starting out along the mountain track, at Orlu near Axe Les Thermes, Joël and I soon reach the snow line!
Passing through the trees using snow shoes in the deepening snow we soon hit a really steep slope! Climbing up here was quite eerie as our snow crunching sounds echoed on the rocks we passed. That and my pounding heart beat the only noise to be heard!!
Hooray!!!! It was really satisfying to get to the refuge! (1935m) Behind us under the snow lies a mountain lake! The air here was really cold and I was glad the refuge was open so we could eat lunch in the
warm! In fact we didn't stop long as it began to snow! The most haunting thing about being high on a mountain alone is the silence!! Going down wasn't so easy, I'm not sure what Joël put in the tea but I was sliding all over the place!!!
We had a wonderful site to greet us when we reached the river again. A herd of Izard! (click on image to enlarge!) In fact before we reached the carpark we saw at least 5 different herds! We spent some time watching them leap about before moving on. Before getting home we passed through Axe les Thermes. Its famous for its thermal baths. There is an open pool in the centre of town and we stopped to bathe our tired feet in the steaming sumphuric water....bliss!!!
More meandering news soon folks,
meanwhile I'm off to either cook up something tasty in the kitchen or have another horror type role in Oli's latest film project!!!!
o visit Carcassonne without all the Tourists clogging up the narrow streets. It was very windy on the ramparts and a grey day, but well worth it just to have the old city to ourselves!
Recently we visited the tiny village of Montolieu. It's situated in Les Montagnes Noires. It's a very beautiful area. To get there we drove through the forest, passing the half empty resevoir of Saint Ferreol and Saissac, a village with castle ruins on a rocky outcrop. From there you can see the ramparts of Carcassonne. We dived in and out of shops spending time browsing the shelves of antique books and found a local bar to grab some lunch!
Having been told about the cemetary in Toulouse we walked up to take a look one sunny afternoon. It's a huge cemetary with massive tombs and family graves set out like a city with winding roads and paths between them. I found it rather interesting and a very peaceful place with a great view of the city!! Some big tombs even had their own chapels and shrines inside them.
Talking of memorials we found this WW2 memorial in the Forêt de Bouconne.
It remembers François Verdier a member of the French Resistance who was held captive by the Gestapo before being shot in the forêt in 1944. In fact there were others of the Resistance who were killed not only here but also in the streets of Toulouse itsel
f. The forest is vast and you can easily wander away from other folk for all kinds of woodland wyrdness!
Having been out and about in the woods it was great to get up in the mountains with Joël recently! Woods are nice cosy places. Full of wise old trees and birds singing. Mountains are rugged but so fresh and the air is so clean! The feeling is of space and freedom...and the satisfaction of reaching the top of a climb is really exhilirating......
Starting out along the mountain track, at Orlu near Axe Les Thermes, Joël and I soon reach the snow line!
Hooray!!!! It was really satisfying to get to the refuge! (1935m) Behind us under the snow lies a mountain lake! The air here was really cold and I was glad the refuge was open so we could eat lunch in the
warm! In fact we didn't stop long as it began to snow! The most haunting thing about being high on a mountain alone is the silence!! Going down wasn't so easy, I'm not sure what Joël put in the tea but I was sliding all over the place!!!
We had a wonderful site to greet us when we reached the river again. A herd of Izard! (click on image to enlarge!) In fact before we reached the carpark we saw at least 5 different herds! We spent some time watching them leap about before moving on. Before getting home we passed through Axe les Thermes. Its famous for its thermal baths. There is an open pool in the centre of town and we stopped to bathe our tired feet in the steaming sumphuric water....bliss!!!More meandering news soon folks,
meanwhile I'm off to either cook up something tasty in the kitchen or have another horror type role in Oli's latest film project!!!!
posted by Lisa and Oli @ 5:57 PM
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