Day 50/France 35
Travelled: 126km via Lake Montagnes, Mazamet suspension bridge and OlarguesStay: Heric Gorge carpark €10 (total €13) 43.5732,2.9683
We start most days with just an approximate destination in mind…”we’ll drive along this road” and sometimes we get pleasant surprises. The morning began with a stroll in the sunshine along the midi canal to a different lock upstream. 
We had a pleasant drive through the countryside offering views of the Pyrenees in the background.
We then headed to a service point along that road which ended up being at a lovely lake, Les Montagnes. There was also free parking under the trees on the banks of the lake just for motorhomes… we were tempted to stay but decided after our cuppa to continue on.
Mazamet is quite a large town and as per usual we googled it to find out what was to see. What stood out for us was the suspension bridge, built in 2018, it crosses the Arnette Gorge linking to the medieval village of Hautpoul in the heart of Cathar country. Views from the road on our approach..
We parked down in the outskirts of Mazamet (297m alt).
We then chose the red path up to the 140m long and 70m high suspension bridge.
Once over the bridge we continued through Hautpoul to the statue of the Virgin Mary situated right at the top (499m alt). It was only a 3km round trip but well worth the effort of the climb.
We then headed to a service point along that road which ended up being at a lovely lake, Les Montagnes. There was also free parking under the trees on the banks of the lake just for motorhomes… we were tempted to stay but decided after our cuppa to continue on.
Mazamet is quite a large town and as per usual we googled it to find out what was to see. What stood out for us was the suspension bridge, built in 2018, it crosses the Arnette Gorge linking to the medieval village of Hautpoul in the heart of Cathar country. Views from the road on our approach..
We parked down in the outskirts of Mazamet (297m alt).
We then chose the red path up to the 140m long and 70m high suspension bridge.
Once over the bridge we continued through Hautpoul to the statue of the Virgin Mary situated right at the top (499m alt). It was only a 3km round trip but well worth the effort of the climb.
We popped in to Labastide Rouairoux, previously a textile village, but after a walk around we made the decision to keep going. 
Further on was Olargues, classified as one of the most beautiful villages of France. We meandered through the narrow cobbled streets.
We took in the history of the town at the free museum.
We even managed to follow the signs to the Devils Bridge.
And an Eiffel inspired train bridge on the way out of town..
From here we had some interesting tracks that Bluey (Mark) had to navigate eventually arriving at the parking area for Heric Gorge… that’s tomorrow’s adventure.
Further on was Olargues, classified as one of the most beautiful villages of France. We meandered through the narrow cobbled streets.
We took in the history of the town at the free museum.
We even managed to follow the signs to the Devils Bridge.
From here we had some interesting tracks that Bluey (Mark) had to navigate eventually arriving at the parking area for Heric Gorge… that’s tomorrow’s adventure.
No comments:
Post a Comment
We would love to hear from you...leave us a message below.