Time to Leave the Vercors.

Well it had to happen: we were woken by rain pattering on the tent on the day we were due to leave.  Not another wet pack up!!  Fortunately it was short lived and soon all was dry again.  But bitterly cold and with lots of new snow on the high tops; in fact it continued to snow high up all morning.  After breakfast it was a delight to empty and then load the car in the dry.  It was the best packing and loading of the car we have had, including leaving home a month ago.  Never mind it's only take a few weeks to finally get organised.  When we had finally loaded up it was time to go and pay.  Horror the machine wouldn't accept the Carte Bleu.  Fortunately a machine fault and not the card.  We had to pop into the village, though to get some more cash with which to pay.  Still it did give us the opportunity to visit the Cave whose vineyards I had photographed a couple of evenings ago; and to but some more wine.
Finally it was time to reluctantly turn our backs on the Vercors.  What a fabulous spot; we shall be back.  Out journey took us through beautiful countryside to Valence where we had to join the motorway again.  Not for long, however, and once through the traffic queues at Lyon it was soon time to turn off at Macon for Cluny.  We have been looking forward to some hotel luxury and found it second try, the first one was 'Complet, Monsieur'.  We are situated on the river in Cluny and having enjoyed a beer while updating the blog it will soon be time to go down for a meal.
Tomorrow we intend to look round the old town and its abbey and then move on to explore Taize before heading up towards Troyes.

Below, images from the vineyards by the campsite.

Our Last Day in the Vercors.

This morning dawned bright and clear, although there was still a real chill to the air. Wondering what to do with our last day in the area we elected to return to the Vallon de Combau. Although we had been here before it was only a brief visit and we had thought the area would reward further exploration. Also the next three days are largely driving ones back to Zeebrugge, and, although there were many tempting places yet to discover, we decided to stay local rather than spend a lot of time in the car. So after breakfast we packed the daily picnic and set off. On the way I couldn't resist a quick visit back to Archiane to take some photos of the cirque with sun on it. I was also still looking for river shots. Although the water in the main valleys are cloudy with sediment, these high mountain streams are filtered through the limestone rock and crystal clear. I found the perfect spot, an ancient bridge spanning a sparkling river with a waterfall in front of it; magical. Distractions out of the way we continued up the exciting road into the Combau. At one time it would have been a road where daughter Beth would have insisted on being let out to walk while her suicidal father drove on alone. Now she has driven up and biked down 'The Most Dangerous Road in the World' in Bolivia, featured on Top Gear, this would have been nothing!! The most spectacular section is the 'gates' to the valley; huge towering cliffs on either side, the unbelievable entrance to a hidden high mountain valley of alpine pastures where transhumance is practiced. From the parking area we set off on foot, first up a wide track to a high summer farm, as yet unoccupied, and on, up ever smaller tracks to the Combau mountain refuge. From here we continued across alpine pastures and up to, first a col and then a minor summit at nearly 6000 feet. It was bitingly cold up here and when cloud blew in we 'enjoyed' a brief flurry of snow. We were amazed to find the pine trees high on the valley sides dusted with hoar frost. The temperature cannot have been much above freezing!! In the meadows around the parking area and also the higher meadows were large numbers of great yellow gentians. Unfortunately these do no flower until June and this year are a couple of weeks behind anyway. When they do come into flower, the sight will be stunning. We also found dwarf wild daffodils, poet's narcissus, carpets of cowslips and white alpine buttercups ( amplexicaule buttercups) and something I have never seen before oxlips. There were delicate blue mountain pansies, spring and trumpet gentian and, where the snow was melting, crocuses. We glimpsed vultures on the high cliffs, large flocks of alpine choughs and wheatears flitting about amongst the rocks. Perhaps the most exciting sighting though was a marmot which trundled along the path in front of us. We had been hearing their high pitched whistles for a while and, although generally very shy, this one posed beautifully for photographs occasionally popping down into its burrow in a snow filled hollow.
When we reached the col and our tiny summit the views over to the snow covered Ecrins mountains and, closer, the lost world-like Mont Aiguille and snow covered Le Grand Veymont at over 7000 feet were magnificent.
Eventually it was time to make our way down, meeting on the way my flower photography friend from a few days ago who again insisted on telling me that the winter had been too long and things were fifteen days behind. We also met up with a large group of friendly French walkers who shared a sweet sugary pastry delicacy with us. After a reviving cup of tea at the car, and photographs of the marsh marigolds and globe flowers, we set off for the long trip down to the warmer temperatures of the campsite for a welcome beer (or two - a bird never flew on one wing) before tea of ravioli out of a (big) tin, baguette and vin de pays.

The entrance to the Combau Valley.

The Vallon de Combau Gates

Globe Flower

The Alps from the Combau Valley

Mont Aguilles.

A Combau View.

Marsh Marigolds.

Marmot, high in the Combau Valley.

Now just let me get on with my meal!!

Oxlip.

Combau Valley.

Vallon de Combau.

Amplexicaule Buttercups.

Spring Gentians and Cowslips.

Bridge, Archiane.

Water sparkles in all the high valleys.

Wild Daffodils.

The Cirgue d'Archiane.

The Cirque d'Archiane.

Les Sucettes de Borne

The weather is a tad gloomy this morning but hoping for a good day up early to make tea and shower before going to the campsite reception for my morning conversation with Mademoiselle Le Pain. I ask her how she is, she replies well and asks how I am and then I ask for my bread and croissant and order tomorrow's. We then wish each other a good day and off I go. Mon Francais knows no bounds mes amis!!! ;-)
After breakfast enjoyed a conversation with the French cyclists on the site who were leaving early as the weather is so poor. We are now about to set off for Les Sucettes de Borne. The Sucettes are gigantic, elegant slivers of rock jutting up from the valley sides. They were formed aeons ago when differing layers of sediment were laid down on the ocean floor. When continents collided and the Alps formed the horizontal layers were folded Nd became vertical. Over millenia the softer layers were eroded away to leave the Sucettes standing proud.
In order to reach Les Sucettes we first had to drive through the Gorges des Gats, a narrow defile cut through the limestone rock by the river. At times the road is overhung by the rock walls or passes through tunnels. Waterfalls and side canyons flow in. Once through the gorge the road climbs up to the tiny hamlet of Borne with the car park just beyond. Then follows a delightful walk of 2.5km through delightful mixed woodland with the river noisily in the valley below and rock walls towering above. The suggested time for this walk is 40 minutes but that is not timed for the naturalist photographer!! At the beginning of the walk we passed through a meadow full of Poet's Narcissus or Pheasant's Eye. Also in abundance were plentiful numbers of lilies and orchids, unidentified as they are yet to one into flower. In a few days/weeks they will be fabulous. Although the weather had been overcast, to say the least, to this point, as we neared the Sucettes the clouds began to clear and the sun appeared. The walk had been worth it as the rock formations were amazing. The walk down was somewhat quicker, although I did get distracted by attempting the definitive trumpet gentian photograph. Beautiful they are, but just as difficult to photograph. The trouble with macro photography is that at a distance a flower/insect looks perfect, but through the lens at 1:1 every imperfection shows and that's without the problem of getting the exposure and focus spot on. And then there's low light levels, breezes, and ......where's the razor blade!! ;-)
Once back to the car it was time for lunch in the sun. It was only as we were packing up the I resized we had been sitting next to a burnt tip orchid; another photo opportunity.
Lunch concluded we pottered back down to Chatillon and then on to Die to buy the case of Clairette from the Jaillance cave. A potter round the lovely old town revealed no more life than our last visit, although we enjoyed yet another coffee in Cafe Voltaire. On our way back to the site the evening light was wonderful and I couldn't resist a drive up into the vineyards for some photography. Set attractively amongst the vines are wonderful buildings/workshops, agaIn built of the warm local limestone. Some of the vines are on ancient root stock, others recently planted, but on all, the new growth is fresh and brilliantly green with the tiniest fruit just beginning to form. I would love to be here in Autumn to photograph the back end colours.
All too soon it was time to return to cook dinner; pasta with fresh local asparagus and pesto with parmesan bought in Umbria.

Les Sucettes

Les Sucettes

Les Sucettes

Les Sucettes

Burnt Tip Orchid.

Butterwort

Early Purple Orchid.

The Cirque d'Archiane.

Another excellent day. Although overcast for most of the day it hasn't actually rained - well not quite!! After breakfasted set off for the short drive up into the hills behind Chatillon to the small village of Archiane. For an area that I had always thought of as dry, there was the sound of water everywhere. In the main valley the Drome river and it's main tributaries are roaring in spate, full of angry, dirty, sludgy green water. Up in the side valleys, however, springs are bursting forth everywhere, in some cases, boiling out of the rock. As this water is filtered through hundreds of feet of limestone, it is crystal clear and is a beautiful jade green colour. I just love it.
Archiane is a quiet picturesque mountain village built of warm local limestone and encircled by towering limestone cliffs, the domain of vultures, ibex and wolf. From the village we took a circular path that climbed up towards the cliffs though scrub and then eventually contoured round to a belvedere under the cliffs of the Rocher d'Archiane which towered above us. At this eyrie, perched high above the village we had our lunch. Here we found trumpet gentians, early purple orchids, lady orchids and a bee/spider orchid I have yet to identify. Common everywhere is pink common centaury and delicate blue grey globularias. From this elevated spot we descended through beautifully delicate and springlike beech woods to the village. I had expected more open mountainside, so somewhat of a surprise. Once back at the village we were soon heading back down to Chatillon for a quick shop and then the site for welcome beer, wine and meal; a mix of fresh asparagus with mayonnaise and tinned saussicon with lentils and baguette, followed by coffee and dark noisette chocolate, and maybe another glass of Cotes de Rhone.

Old farm machinary in the Archiane valley.

Heading up to the Cirque de Archiane.

The Cirque

Le Rocher.

Lunch high in the Cirque d'Archiane.

The walk continues through beech woods.

June Berry.

Globularia.

Military Orchid.

Military Orchid.

Sombre Bee Orchid. ( I thinkl!)

Spring Gentian.

Trumpet Gentians.

Trumpet Gentian.