Hotel Restaurant Le Family Meyrueis

... view from the drivers side as I was looking right into the gorge (don't worry mum I drove very slowly and was very careful not to drive too close to the edge). Luckily there were many parking areas to stop at so both of us could get out and really appreciate how beautiful it was. On the downside it was still a little wet so hiking was off the cards...next time.

At the Chateau de Malerargues, surrounded by trees everywhere, Sebastian has voice training for the next couple months. The work consists of a mixture of breath, movement, and massage, as well as singing, sounds, and group work. It's hard to describe exactly what goes on, and each day is different. But the isolation, beautiful weather, and delicious fresh foods make for a great place to work, relax, and reflect. So why do so many people have so many nightmares here?

... luck at the local grocery store. Anyway... it was not to be so we just continued to the town of Gatuzieres (near Meyrueis). We drove past miles of scrubby forest land mixed with well used rocky fields and even a ski hill. This was actually all in Parc National Des Cevennes. There were hundreds of broken trees (some leaning on or hanging over the phone wires). We thought the terrible wind we had experienced was responsible ...

We departed Florac and headed by car deep into the incredibly beautiful Tarn River Gorge/Canyon in Cevennes National Park. The canyon runs for about 40 miles and it is breathtaking. The river is so clear, clean and blue. The walls of the canyon are very sheer and dotted with abandoned castles, manor houses, and old chateaus. The village of St. Enimie is in the canyon and is another one of the designated "prettiest villages" We LOVED this village ...

We are still staying in Florac tonight, but we took a beautiful drive to this village today. The Cevennes national park countryside is gorgeous with big, green hills and hardly any homes or buildings...just countryside! We went on a 5km hike to the Chateau Roquedhouil, a nice old home built in the 1500's. There was a very tall sequoia tree that was planed in 1887 and was about 25 feet in circumference.

... we reached Spain. But we sort of got sidetracked (AGAIN!) on the way down. We went to see the Geoffre de Paridac - "an enormous circular chasm or pot-hole 99m across & 103m deep, with lifts & staircases that take you down to a remarkable series of underground rivers & lakes". It was actually pretty good (not sure that my photos can do it justice though). Our second sidetrack, was a visit to ...

... climb up from the Mediterranean coast was a real test for the car, pulling the weight it has stuck behind it, but it managed it, just. The high point of the journey was the Millau Viaduct, taking the motorway across the Tarn, a few kilometres south of Millau and several hundred metres above it. We then had to drop down to the Tarn valley, then into the Jonte valley and 20 km ...

It rained all night and was still going the following day, so we packed up and got breakfast in the village. We never saw the attendant the whole time we were there, and left our €9 for the pitch in the letter box when we left. After breakfast, and during a break in the weather, we stopped at Chaisse Dieu, an old town founded around a large church. It was 'out-of-season' quiet and probably still early, but the butcher was open, so ...

... We just had the best meal! We bought prawns, ham salad, beetroot salad, egg salad and a crunchy baguette and ate it in the garden washed down with some local wine, and finished off with Roquefort cheese (which comes from near here) It doesn't get dark until about 10pm so we went for a walk afterwards towards the bridge across the fields....magic!!!!!

We rented a mobil-home on the Val de l'Arre campsite near Le Vigan. Nicely located campsite, although the traffic on the rather busy road can be heard. Nice river for swimming and canoeing. Good base for trips all around the Cevennes. We made cycling trips, hiked and toured around by car. At the time of our ...