Tag: Chemin du Puy
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Chemin du Puy: Navarrenx to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port
From Navarrenx, we headed to Saint-Palais, where we would spend the night. We traversed the bucolic French countryside on a trail with few hills, which was nice for a change. Soon we began to catch glimpses of the Pyrenees in the distance, a particularly bittersweet sight as we would end our 2025 journey there. Saint-Palais:…
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Chemin du Puy: Pimbo to Navarrenx, France
After our night without luggage, we got an early start and set out for Arzacq-Arraziguet. The walk was uneventful, with few notable sights along the way. We arrived in Arzacq-Arraziguet in time for lunch. Arzacq-Arraziguet main plaza looking left. Arzacq-Arraziguet main plaza looking right. Arzacq-Arraziguet private oasis. In Arzacq-Arraziguet, we stayed at the former Maison…
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Chemin du Puy: Condom to Pimbo, France
: The path to Montréal-du-Gers was wet and muddy. This is Dave kindly trying to rid my boots of a thick layer of mud. Larressingle: Larressingle is France’s smallest fortified village, and possibly the cutest. It currently boasts a population of 200 people. The walls are original, unusual for this part of France, which was…
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Chemin du Puy, Condom, France
A small medieval town of 6,500 people, Condom sits at the confluence of the rivers Gèle and Baïse. Contrary to what our less-cultured friends might want us to believe, the name derives from the ancient Condote-o-magos, which meant “market of the confluence”. Its similarity to the English word of the same spelling is pure coincidence.…
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Chemin du Puy – Agen & Lectoure, France
Agen: Agen was the French launching point for the final stage of our epic Chemin du Puy journey. From Barcelona we took three trains to arrive in Agen, only to have to take a bus the following day to Lectoure, where the walking actually began. Clearly, we are visiting some off-the-beaten-track places! The charming city…
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Day 9 on the Chemin du Puy: Estaing to Golinhac
Sunday, May 21 Quiet day. Nice hike through woods, lots of up and down. We thought we were going to see the Golinhac dam, which was finished in 1960, but all we saw were a bunch of signs warning walkers to exercise caution in case the dam burst and the waters from the dam’s lake…
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Day 8 on the Chemin du Puy
Saturday, May 20 We had a great stay in Espalion last night. Our room was spacious and even better, had a clothes washer! We took advantage of that as our clothes were in dire need of a good washing. Another light dinner in the room and a good Côtes-du-Rhône Villages. In the morning, our host’s…
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Chemin du Puy: Day 2
Sunday, May 14 – Day 2 on the Chemin du Puy (Mother’s Day in the U.S.) We walked over 12 miles today with some of the most difficult hiking I’ve ever done. The day began with an extremely steep grade and loose rocks, rock faces, and mud everywhere. Thank goodness for walking sticks – they…
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Chemin du Puy: Day 1
Saturday, May 13 – Day 1 on the Chemin du Puy/Via Podiensis Dave woke me up at 6:20 so we could attend the Pilgrim Mass at the Cathedral of Le Puy. Even though our hotel was located way up high in the village, we still had to climb to the Cathedral. Begun in the 11th…
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Córdoba to Montpellier to Le Puy en Velay
Tuesday, May 9 Today, after returning to Granada to retrieve our luggage, we grabbed a quick lunch at a café on one of Córdoba’s many parks. The image below, in addition to our usual soup and salad, included a Cordobés specialty: eggplant marinated in beer then lightly battered and fried and topped with a honey…