Downhill all the way - except for the col!

After dropping down a few hundred meters at the end of the last day we looked forward to a gentle ride following the river from St Enime to Florac. This area is the Gorges du Tarn and there were cliffs on either side as we headed up the valley. It was a beautiful, quiet day, with birdsong everywhere and again our intended night-stop became our lunch one. Florac had a pretty 'Centre Ville' with trout swimming in pools by the restaurants and cafes, but there was not enough to warrant stopping there for the day. We headed onwards, not knowing quite where we would stay for the night, but the sun was out and sunset was after 9:30pm, so there was plenty of time left to venture further and make the best use of the day.

Up the Gorge du Tarn towards Ales.








As the day wore on we were getting quite tired, especially after the road crossed into a different valley and we had to climb a col again! At the top there was a man selling fruit and vegetables from a stall by the road, so we bought four ripe apricots and a bag of cherries, all for just over one Euro.

We had considered cycling all the way to Ales, our planned stop for the day after, but decided to call it quits at Le Collet de Deze where we stayed at Le Vieux Moulin. This was a lucky choice. The Hotel was a family concern, run by a young couple with small children. The meal, cooked by Guillaume, was excellent and would put most Perth restaurants to shame. This seems to be the case throughout France where the food is simply on a different level to what we are accustomed to. The small hotel had an outside terrace and we watched the swallows playing (or catching flies if you prefer Julie's interpretation) as we ate our meal.



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Location:Rue des Capucins,Le Puy-en-Velay,France