Viva Espana!!

Friday 23rd May 2014

[caption id="attachment_919" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Nighttime over the lake[/caption]

A view over the lake last night....a little shaky, but the colours were fantastic!

It was a cold blustery night, but we awoke to sunshine...still a cold wind but sunny all the same! BT parked the van to give us as much shelter as possible and we ate breakfast in relative warmth!



[caption id="attachment_921" align="aligncenter" width="640"] View across the lake[/caption]

Mont Louis was just down the road...a good place for coffee we thought! Its an interesting place...a Citadel that is still in use as a military base and has a small village within its walls. Another design by Vauban.

[caption id="attachment_922" align="aligncenter" width="427"] View from Mont Louis[/caption]









[caption id="attachment_927" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Mont Louis[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_928" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Washing with a view!!![/caption]

After coffee and getting washing done it was a decision whether to turn right or left!...either head to Spain across the mountains and down or back to the coast road. We opted for the coast road...but first we had to drive down the steepest, wiggliest road we have ever seen. I would say that as the crow flies t’s probably at least half the distance we actually travelled. The mountains seemed very different today....much less lush...more sparse. We passed little villages and towns perched high up on the rocks or nestled into crevices...how they ever built these places we’ll never know.





[caption id="attachment_931" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Very wiggly road[/caption]







The road continued to wiggle its way down until we reached Perpignan where we spent a stressful 2 hours in McDonalds trying to upload all the latest blog info.....sorry to those of you actually reading it...we just don’t get wifi access enough to upload something everyday! (just add it to your reading list and settle down with a nice cuppa when you’ve got a few spare minutes and look at the pictures!!)

Once on our way again we were unimpressed with the landscape...it’s almost like they’ve forgotten this part of France...a sort of no mans land between France and Spain. That is, until we came out from a tunnel and saw the sea for the first time....absolutely gorgeous!



 



We continued to drive along windy roads, making our way to Cap De Creus...looking for a likely spot to stop for the night. As we did so, the clouds came tumbling in, the sky turned dark and big drops of rain began to fall. A few years ago, Simon walked part of the Pyrenees and ended up at Cap De Creus....it’s somewhere he has always wanted to come back to...so here we are. Right next to the lighthouse there is a bar/restaurant with accommodation...and that is all that there is here. It’s a national park...and quite rightly so..it’s absolutely stunning.













We have booked in for the night....another treat! Not only do we have a bedroom and bathroom, but also a kitchen/diner/lounge...all with far reaching views over the sea and rocky landscape. It couldn’t have come at a better time for us as we had a very cold night in the mountains last night, we haven’t had a shower for a few days..and it’s raining, so the thought of another cold damp night in the van isn’t very appealing!!! We’ve lit the woodburning stove in the lounge, so we are all toasty....and are settling down to a cosy night in!!!

The Pyrenees

Thursday 22nd May 2014

[caption id="attachment_870" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Relaxing morning[/caption]





[caption id="attachment_873" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Blog catching up![/caption]

The beauty of what we are doing means that we generally have no time constraints and can just take the day as it comes. Today is definitely one of those days. After a short stroll into the town for coffee and croissants, we spent a very happy morning catching up with blog writing, cleaning Bluebelle and the bikes, chatting to locals and generally pottering. It has been very relaxed and great to take time just to be.

As I said yesterday, we planned to continue on our way via the Pyrenees, so we set Trusty Tom Tom to direct us to Axat via the D618 and then towards Mont Louis via the D118. As we left Salleles D’Aude, the countryside was reasonably flat, full of vineyards and swathes of vibrant poppies....I wanted to stop and photograph them all but one poppy is much like another...and we’d never had made any progress today.



 

[caption id="attachment_875" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Climbing higher[/caption]







Gradually, the landscape began to change. Hills and mountains took shape on all sides, vineyards were clinging to sloping fields, the growth around became incredibly lush and green. We saw many more chateau and fewer and fewer villages and towns. As we ascended higher and higher the road became incredibly narrow and in some places you could see where it had been hewn between the rocks...we only just made it past several overhanging rocks. At times we had to squash ourselves against the rock face to avoid being crushed by fast oncoming traffic! Having said all of that, it was well worth the drive.....the views were stunning. We never knew what was just around the corner and the anticipation kept us moving on. Our first glimpses of the snow capped mountains filled us with absolute joy...they are awesome. One minute we could see them, the next they were gone and didn’t reappear for a long time. Along the wayside the flowers were gorgeous. Little blue starry flowers littered the roadside, along with campanula, cowslips, rosemary and many others....beautiful.





[caption id="attachment_881" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Blue stars[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_884" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Rows of plane trees[/caption]

What was amazing was that as we ascended the mountain the hill side was covered in every kind of tree possible...all of them looking so alive and lush in the ever increasing sunshine....we were just so awed at the colours, textures and shapes...it really made our hearts sing! (Not quite Sound of Music..but you know what I mean!!!) Once we reached a plateau the scenery changed altogether...it became flat, open and full of meadows bursting with wild grasses and buttercups, vineyards and cattle grazing. The houses are all much more chalet like and we are spotting ski slopes all over the place.

We stopped for lunch with a view of the mountains....

[caption id="attachment_882" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Lunch stop[/caption]





[caption id="attachment_885" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Sorry about the quality of some of the photos…as you can see they were taken as we were driving![/caption]



 



[caption id="attachment_890" align="aligncenter" width="427"] The rock faces were very close at times[/caption]









 





[caption id="attachment_897" align="aligncenter" width="427"] Le Gorge de St George[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_898" align="aligncenter" width="427"] We have followed the river Aude nearly all day[/caption]







 

[caption id="attachment_902" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Luscious trees[/caption]





[caption id="attachment_905" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Snow capped mountains[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_906" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Plateau[/caption]



and afternoon tea was by the lake at Matemale.....

[caption id="attachment_909" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Matemale[/caption]







Having moved on from the lake to find a stop for the night we followed the D60 to Lac des Bouillouses hoping that this would be the perfect spot. We climbed higher and higher, noticing the temperature dropping rapidly and seeing piles of snow along the roadside. We eventually reached 2000m above sea level and the lake...it is amazing...



[caption id="attachment_914" align="aligncenter" width="427"] It's fffffreezing!!![/caption]

...but as it is SO cold and fairly developed we decided to head back down to the Lac at Matemale and set up camp for the night. We watched as vast black clouds gathered above the mountains on the otherside of the lake and then saw lightening and heard thunder rumbling in the distance. Fortunately for us, it rumbled away in the opposite direction. We have however, retreated inside Bluebelle for the evening as it is so cold outside tonight!!!