La vie est Belle

A bike ride along the river Belle, Deux-Sèvres

La Vie est Belle

 

September, how could you, my birth month, have been so disappointing weatherwise this year? I have vivid memories of September 2004, our first full month in France, where temperatures regularly topped 30º, breakfasts, lunches and dinners were eaten outside, and it seemed summers in France would go on forever.

Looking back on twenty years of photos, sunny days, hot bike rides, touristy days out under blue skies, and sultry vistas of our orchard looking crisp and dry at the end of the season are far more common than the low-hung grey skies, vivid greens of soggy water-logged land and the stormy days you have showered on us this year.

Had we been blessed with a summer of endless sunny days a moist September might have come as a welcome relief. As it was, summer had hardly seemed to get going as August drew to a close, and I was eagerly anticipating a September where foggy mornings gave way to hot afternoons, where despite the shortening of the days, evenings were still warm enough to be outdoor events. The disappointment of a September that has been so far from my expectations has been hard to accept.

Terra Aventura parcours, Exireuil, Deux-Sèvres

As October arrives, so does the ominous date of the 14^th, marking exactly one year since the weather turned, becoming wet and unsettled following a gorgeous six-week period of late summer heat. This year, I think I’d be hard pushed to count six decent, hot days in the last six weeks, but I do know we have made the most of them, often following the routes and answering the questions on the Terra Aventura geocaching app. This has seen us clambering over boulders in the river gorge, as we explored les puits d’enfer (hell’s wells) in Exireuil, alongside the military town of Saint-Maixent-l’Ecole in the Deux-Sèvres, as well as discovering hidden gems in Civray and Charroux in the Vienne.

A September sunset ride

The Bromptons continue to be our faithful companions, whether to and from work, enjoying rarely glimpsed sunsets after work, or the glowing autumnal colours of Chef-Boutonne on market day. We also discovered the Belle valley, less than thirty kilometres from home, where lavoirs, lost lanes and fairy bridges hidden in the trees reminded us that la vie est belle, life is beautiful (whatever the weather).

Sunshine in Charmé, Charente

I have yet to cycle my traditional 100km in a day birthday bike ride, something I have been doing since September 2015, although we did manage a fabulous 93km on the 20^th September. Our route took us through the Charente vineyards ripe with fruit, past Romanesque churches, lavoirs and fields of sunflowers with drooping seed heads, awaiting harvest. In Mansle, on the banks of the Charente River, we enjoyed a coup de soleil from a local patisserie. This new to us delight had a base of an apricot clafoutis with a lightly whipped topping of crème patisserie and Chantilly cream and was a real burst of sunshine in our mouths. Sadly, with storm clouds and thunder rolling in around us, we didn’t risk adding on the required seven kilometres to hit the 100. Ten days later and it seems the stormy showers and high winds, although interspersed with sunny spells, are still with us. I’ve had enough. Like the lizards I watch soaking up the heat on the steps of the château, I need to recharge my solar panels before winter arrives.

I can only hope that October gives us some respite from the cold and damp before winter truly sets in. 

  

Advent postcards, Matha, Charente-Maritime

 

Advent postcard, Matha, Charente-Maritime

Advent day twenty-one

Today’s cycling advent-ures postcard is from Matha in the Charente-Maritime, where we spent an interesting few hours on the return from our cycle tour to Saintes in July.

 

Matha isn’t too far from home, so is somewhere we have driven through many times over the years, and also passed through with the bikes but had never had the opportunity to discover it properly.  Thanks must again go to the Terra Aventura treasure hunt that had us exploring all manner of hidden gems. Our first discovery was the artworks and sculptures in the international peace garden. Enclosed within a walled park, the Peace Garden is home to works of art donated to Matha from all over the world, on a theme of peace and human rights. It was thought provoking, calming and inspiring, and somewhere I will return to.

 

We then discovered the church of St Barthelemy de St Herie with its mismatch of architectural styles. Having just been on an historical architecture training day for work, it was so cool (for me at least) to see both the Romanesque and Gothic styles living side by side in harmony for centuries, and now with the addition of contemporary stained-glass windows dating from 2002.

 

The icing on the cake for me however was stumbling upon the park with the Renaissance towers, that are the only remains of the Château de Matha. Much like at Javarzay, only a small part of the original château remains, but what a Renaissance beauty it is. Imagine my delight when I discovered it is linked to the fabulous Jacquette de Montbron, heroine from yesterday’s postcard from Bourdeilles. She was heir to the château, but history is unclear as to whether she also had a hand in the design as she had at Bourdeilles. She is definitely a woman whose story I want to learn more about.

 

 

Advent postcards, Bourdeilles, Dordogne

Advent postcard, Bourdeilles, Dordogne

Advent day twenty

Today’s cycling advent-ures postcard is from Bourdeilles in the Dordogne, an afternoon stopover on our October cycling tour to Perigueux.

 

Situated on the Dronne River, a short cycle ride from Brântome, we were there to tackle a Terra Aventura challenge that took us to all the best viewpoints of the magnificent château. The medieval fortified château dates from the 13^th and 14^th centuries, but neatly tucked away inside the courtyard is an equally impressive Renaissance château dating from the 16^th century. Whether we were looking towards it from the gardens behind the church, marvelling at the fortified château entrance or looking down from the narrow lanes of the village, the views were stunning. However, the most impressive view had to be from river level, craning our necks and looking up at the Renaissance walls towering above the rocks and caves they were built on. That was some engineering feat. My Michelin Green Guide tells me that the planning for the Renaissance château was the work of Jacquette de Montbrun, wife of André de Bourdeilles, who had an “active and informed interest in geometry and architecture” – I do love the tale of a remarkable women from the past who left her mark on the world.

 

Bourdeilles is a real gem of a village that I would happily detour to again, especially as we didn’t have time to visit the château on this trip.

 

Advent postcards, Tumulus de Bougon, Deux-Sèvres

 

Advent postcard, Tumulus de Bougon, Deux-Sèvres

Advent day nineteen

Today’s cycling advent-ures postcard comes from the Tumulus de Bougon museum in the Deux-Sevres where we spent a hot Sunday at the beginning of July.

 

Our visit had been timed to take full advantage of the FREE museum entry on the 1^st Sunday of each month, saving 6€ each, and was part of my 2023 plan to visit as many local museums as I could fit in around work. The only tourist information point in Chef-Boutonne is us at the Château and rather than just hand out leaflets, I wanted to be better able to recommend other places for our visitors. I quickly developed museum envy. Rather than our tiny museum in Javarzay, that is run by the local council, Tumulus de Bougon is on a huge site with a restaurant, indoor exhibits and exhibition space, plus the numerous burial mounds in the outdoor park, all run by the Deux-Sèvres Department. 

 

After a coffee we picked up the audio guides, that we could use in English, and started our visit indoors, learning about seven million years of history and the evolution of man. It was fascinating, but too much for my brain to take in on one visit, which gives us a great opportunity to return. This area in France has a number of standing stones, dolmens and megaliths, often found in woods or fields, but also including one in a residential street in Poitiers. There are many legends that tell tales of giants and fairies moving these huge stones around, but we now know a lot more about them than fairy tales. The first thing I learned was that these tabletop stones or pierre levée are actually the three entrance stones to a long-eroded burial mound – which seemed so obvious when it was pointed out, but not something I’d ever considered before. The museum is home to round and long burial mounds, many of which you can access some of the inner chambers, which is properly exciting for children of all ages. We had a blast exploring and admiring the amazing construction work that predates Stonehenge. 

Pierre Levée, Poitiers

Our day continued with a picnic in the neighbouring village of Pamproux where we then set off on a Terra Aventura bike ride treasure hunt, that gave us even more local history to discover. I can 100% recommend a visit here. 

Advent postcards, Bellevue, Pays Mellois, Deux-Sèvres

Advent postcard, Bellevue, Deux-Sèvres

 

Advent day eleven

Today’s cycling advent-ures postcard is from the abandoned village of Bellevue, a surprise find in the middle of some woods in the Lambon valley. 

 

We were out for the day, on our bikes, ticking off the Terra Aventura circuits in Celle-sur-Belle and Prailles, near Lac du Lambon in the Deux-Sèvres. The theme of the Prailles course was Resistance but it had nothing to do with The Occupation during World War Two. This area of the Pays Mellois was an important stronghold for the Protestants during the religious wars in France five hundred years ago. Forced to meet in secret, they were adept at hiding their faith from the authorities and there are many signs still visible today that show how they resisted against the Catholics. There is also a local museum dedicated to their story, that is on my list of places to visit next year.

 

What began as a cycle ride along quiet rural lanes lined with fields and vineyards, changed abruptly as we turned onto a narrow track at the edge of a field, and descended into a wood. We followed the map and clues, and soon ended up deep in a forested valley with no other signs of life aside from the birdsong. It was a real adventure, although rather tricky manoeuvring the bikes over the stones, roots and logs in the pathway. As we reached the river Lambon, it was one surprise after another. First the ruined stone walls of houses from the abandoned village of Bellevue came into view, now mostly consumed by the foliage of the forest, and then a medieval stone bridge appeared (and I do love an ancient cobbled bridge). If it hadn’t been for the handy information panels explaining the plight of the Protestants and illustrating rural life over the ages, it would have felt like we’d become lost in a forgotten world.

 

You can find more information on this 5.5km walk on the tourist office website here. I’d definitely recommend it, but it’s probably better to do it on foot, in dry weather, rather than attempt it on bikes.

 

Advent postcards, Aulnay Charente-Maritime

 

Advent postcards, Aulnay, Charente-Maritime

Advent day eight

The jet stream has once again turned on us, bringing wild, wet and windy weather this weekend. We did have exciting cycling plans, but for the moment, it looks like we’ll have to take a rain check in the morning – keep your fingers crossed please. At least I can look back on our summer fun and remember that wonderful feeling of the heat of the sun on my skin.

 

Aulnay, in the Charente-Maritime has been an important stop for pilgrims on the Chemins de Saint Jacques de Compostelle for hundreds of years and a special place for us since our first St Jean d’Angeley 100km-day cycle route in 2017. There is something quite magical about reaching Aulnay and the last twenty kilometres of the day.

 

This year Aulnay has featured twice on our cycling calendar. As well as being our last cake-break and offering cool shady grass to lay down on, with a view of the impressive church spire, on our 100km a day, it was also a cycle ride destination to explore it more on a Terra Aventura adventure. This, once again, took us to hidden places we’ve missed, and pointed out so much more details than we’d noticed despite many years of cycling here.

 

The church of St Pierre dates from the 12^th Century and is a beauty. The spire draws you in from many kilometres out, and once you stand underneath the enormous carvings on the arched doorways, there is so much to see, one visit isn’t enough to appreciate it all.

 

I can’t wait to return to Aulnay next year, celebrating not only turning 53 but ten years of birthday 100kms-in-a day-bike rides.  

Advent postcards, Embourie Charente

Advent postcards, Embourie, Charente

Advent day six

Today’s cycling advent-ures postcard is from a small village in the Charente, home to only around one hundred inhabitants but that kept a huge secret for hundreds of years. Hidden in a field above the village of Embourie are the remains of an impressive Gallo-Roman villa and many other artifacts have been uncovered in area in the last fifty years.

 

It is much to my shame that Embourie has been on our cycling radar for many years, including as a morning coffee stop on our Christmas Day picnic rides, but having regularly climbed up past the church, we had never before turned off the narrow main road and followed signs to the villa. In our defence, France (and particularly French villages) have a habit of enticing the traveller off their chosen path with intriguing signs for Dolmens, cheese farms, Roman villas etc that often result in a huge detour for something that is closed or rather unremarkable. I’ve made Adrian follow enough of these over the years to make him wary, but I’m happy to report that Embourie isn’t one of these wild goose chase detours. 

 

Closely following the Terra Aventura app, we had visited the church and ancient tombs in the cemetery, and taken a walk through the antique garden, set out to illustrate the planting and structure of a garden in a wealthy Gallo-Roman villa. It was finally time to find the villa. At the end of a flower edged lane, a short stretch along the hedgerow of a field led us to a marked-out area with low stone walls depicting the remains of the villa, with handily placed information boards to explain it all. Embourie might be small, but our visit was fascinating and there was so much more to discover than I was expecting. 

As I look back on our various outings this year, Gallo-Roman sites have featured many times from Saintes, in the Charente-Maritime, to Perigueux, in the Dordogne, to Rom in the Deux-Sèvres, where we will be visiting for tomorrow’s postcard. It is wonderful to live in an area with so much history, from so many different periods. 

Advent postcards, Grignols Dordogne

Advent postcards, Grignols, Dordogne

Advent day five

Today’s cycling advent-ures postcard is another from our Périgueux trip in June, where the village of Grignols and its impressive château caught my eye, thanks again to the Terra Aventura app.

 

We left Périgueux under perfect blue skies, taking the cycle path that follows the river Isle towards St Astier, enjoying the cool shade provided by the water and tree canopy, with the delicate scent of tilleul flowers in the air. I can almost feel the heat of that day, just from looking back at our photos.

Grignols was a sleepy place with a market halle and auberge (closed) at river level, a Renaissance château commanding a position high above, and narrow lanes with houses between them. It was a hot climb up to the château which really is a beauty and as the road wound up and around, there were no end of lovely views and vistas of Renaissance architecture and Dordogne countryside. The château is a private residence, so there is no access, but it was definitely worth the effort. 

 

It wasn’t just the château that I loved about Grignols, in the market halle I found several paper booklets, available for free, with a variety of treasure hunts to follow as you explored. This great idea for tourists of all ages, really showed the pride they have in their history and heritage. The only thing the village seemed to be missing was a picnic table for us to enjoy our ham and cheese baguettes, but just over the river Vern, we found a bench by a church where there was a sad little vide grenier (car boot sale) to entertain us too. 

Advent postcards, St-Jean-de-Côle Dordogne

 

Advent postcards, St Jean de Côle, Dordogne

Advent day four

One of the things that makes me smile the most as I look back on 2023 is our monthly mini cycling adventures that have not only prolonged our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary celebrations but also led us to some hidden gems. 

 

Cycling gives us so much more than just outdoor exercise, which boosts our physical and mental health, but the slower speed of travel means it is perfect for exploring the tucked away villages that the main roads have bypassed for decades. Another exciting discovery for us this year has been the Terra Aventura geocaching app. 

 

This is a Nouvelle Aquitaine initiative that comprises over six-hundred interactive treasure hunts, and we completed our debut one in May. It would be fair to say the first few involved a bit of head-scratching, some mild huffing and an almost falling out, and after a particularly awkward question in Brantôme, we nearly gave up completely. However, as each one takes you somewhere special in the region, shows you interesting features you would never have noticed otherwise, as well as sharing snippets of history, I’ve become somewhat addicted, and Adrian indulges me. 

 

Today’s cycling advent-ures postcard is from St-Jean-de-Côle in the Dordogne. This Plus Beaux Villages de France is home to less than four hundred people yet boasts its own Terra Aventura parcours. Getting there involved us taking a detour off the tree-lined Flow Vélo cycle route from Thiviers to St-Pardoux-la-Rivière, on our return from two nights in Périgueux, but what a treasure we stumbled upon. This section of the Flow Vélo is along an old railway and the ancient station for St-Jean-de-Côle, decorated with metal artworks and photographs recounting the history of the railway, is worth a pause even if you don’t have time to descend into the village. 

 

As we rounded the mairie at the edge of the village, the road gave way to the Place St Jean, a cobbled square leading to the river with views of the church, covered market and château that is a mix of styles from the 12^th to 15^th centuries. I do love a tower and a turret and there were plenty here to feast my eyes on. The more we ventured into the village, the more there was to delight in the narrow lanes with half-timbered houses. My highlight had to be the medieval stone bridge that crosses the river Côle, its bumpy cobbles witness to countless feet, hooves and wheels over the centuries. Having successfully completed the treasure hunt, we stopped for a cake break in the shade of a tree, before bidding farewell to this picture postcard village in the Périgord Vert and resuming our course on the Flow Vélo.