Time to leave the Mt Ventoux area and explore further south in Provence, before heading back to Avignon. As I headed south I was arriving in an area called the Luberon, bordered in the south by a range of mountains, a very fertile land of lavender and sunflower fields, vineyards, and fruit orchards. This is where many of the famous hilltop villages of Provence are, and I visited many of them.
I left the bed and breakfast of Christian and Christine at 10 am. Another day of clear blue sky, and light wind. Unlike yesterday, I was carrying my backpack, which probably weighed 10Kgs, so it made cycling a bit tougher especially on the climbs, but fortunately it was quite comfortable. I headed south following quiet but quite straight back roads through Mazan (somehow got lost) and Venasque. From Venasque (Km 25) there was a pretty steep climb of 350 vertical metres over the Plateau de Vaucluse, to be rewarded by a lovely 11 kms descent down to the Abbaye de Sénanque. At the top of the descent, it indicated a no entry sign after 10 kilometres which I ignored, and when I got to the Abbaye, the road became a one way road against me. I figured I should just ride on, so I climbed the hill from the Abbaye against the flow for the next 4kms, being careful staying out of the way of the on-coming vehicles. Then I had arrived at Gordes (Km 45).
Moving south to the Luberon Stats of the Day: 80.52Kms ; 3 hours 58 minutes moving time ; average speed 20.3Kms/hour ; vertical metres climbed 1352. |
Sunflower fields |
Abbaye de Sénanque, near Gordes
|
Gordes, a stunning town, a tourist hotspot, with quite a few visitors arriving by coach, including a coach load of Chinese people, so I felt quite at home |
Provence postcard view : the Town of Gordes, Luberon mountains in the distance |
I then continued south with the Luberon mountains right ahead, crossed the D900 main road, and after another climb was in Ménerbes, one of the famous 'golden triangle' villages of Provence. I climbed up into the village and went to the tourist office, who took great pleasure in telling me that everything was full, and then offering no advice about where i could stay.
Hilltop Town of Ménerbes |
Provence - Known for its Rosé wine |
Ménerbes |
Café de la Poste in Robion |
Night stop in Robion, chez Hélène Rodriquez |
View from my bedroom window in Robion |
Robion is a delightful town |
No comments:
Post a Comment