Postcards from Provence and beyond

After yesterday’s soggy ride, we found ourselves enchanted with the little village of Montpeyroux.

After a warm shower, and throwing our sodden kit into the washing machine, we ambled around the village, enchanted by its peace..

Almost every house was covered in Jasmine or Honeysuckle, and the early-evening, post-rain scent was wonderfully heady…

The swifts screaming around the market hall too, were just a delight.

We were rather tired though, after the day’s ride, so were asleep early, and woke refreshed, and ready to face today.

The sky had cleared and it was degrees warmer than yesterday, even at 8am, so after taking our coffee to a bench in the square, watching the day start around us, we packed up the bikes and pedalled out of the village. We decided to revisit Saint Jean de Fos, already vowing that we will return to do more cycling and walking around the area.

Yesterday had been too soggy to amble around the pretty streets of Saint Jean de Fos, renowned for its potteries, so we spent a while away from the bikes, exploring the narrow streets, to the soundtrack of swifts screeching around the rooftops.

We said hello to a cat, that was determined to sit in the centre of the street on what appeared to be its ‘magical circle of power’, and enjoyed the peace of the morning, before heading on again.

Yesterday had been tough, with steep, long climbs and torrential rain, but today it appeared that Mother Nature wanted to apologise, and as we swept out of Saint Jean, along empty roads, the sky started to clear and we ended up having possibly the best day on the bikes, so far.

Today was 1st May, a public holiday in France, when it is tradition to present a sprig of Lily of the Valley to friends and neighbours, to wish them good luck for the year ahead. And as we passed through villages, many had little stalls at the side of the road filled with the beautifully scented plants for sale.

The roads were empty, the sky turned blue and the scent of the widflowers filled our noses, as we pedalled along.

It wasn’t going to be a long ride today, just over 50km, so we felt we had all the time in the world, and could simply enjoy each turn of the pedal.

We pottered along back-roads that had grass growing through the tarmac, which wound their way between rows of vines, stretching as far as the eye could see, in every direction.

We crossed a river bridge, which had deep grooves in the roadway, leaving our knees wobbling, as we tried to keep our tyres out of the gaps, worried that we may end up falling off. Happily, we both made it across in one piece, although the video from today Shows how close it nearly came to disaster

The birdsong though, was a delight, and we found ourselves stopping to listen to the chorus of Nightingales, Orioles, Bee-Eaters, Cuckoos and Hoopoes, all of which seemed to be competing for the available airspace. It was simply joyful.

We found a bench by a church in a sleepy village, watching life pass by, and mesmerised by a Sparrowhawk chasing birds around the rooftops, as Andy set about making us a coffee, to enjoy with a second breakfast. Although we realised it was rather a late one, as the church clock chimed mid-day.

After an hour, which slipped by far too easily, we found the energy to get back on the bikes and carry on, although not for very far, before Andy stopped again, having caught sight of a vibrant pink orchid in the verge.

We stopped for lunch at the side of a quiet lane, with stunning views across the vineyards to the Herault hills beyond. When we sat in the grasses, we were enveloped by the scent of wild fennel that we had crushed below us. It was just a sensory delight.

Today was as much about taking time to enjoy the little things, as it was about turning the pedals, and we found ourselves stopping more and simply enjoying every sight, sound and scent, along the way.

We could have taken a shorter route to get to Pezenas, but felt we would be missing out on some lovely, and interesting new places, if we did.

To take the longer route, proved to be the right choice, and we stopped in places we hadn’t visited before, exploring a truly beautiful part of France, in more depth.

As we approached Fontès, we noticed a large war memorial, on the edge of the road, surrounded by vines, so went to take a closer look. It was unusual, in that it had been erected in memorial to an English officer, who had died with 2 local Gendarmes, following an attack by German troops.

We hve since researched the officer, Captain Peter Fowler, and understand that he was on covert ops, having been parachuted into the area as part of the M19 department, tasked with aiding the Resistance and recovering Allied POWs.

He was working with local villagers to establish the movements of German troops in the area, and set off with the 2 Gendarmes, on motorbikes to recon the area, with a view to blowing up a nearby bridge, to bring the German troops to a stop.

Unfortunately, they turned a corner and found themselves in front of 80 young SS officers on bikes. They tried to escape into the vines but all 3 were shot and killed.

The Memorial on this spot is incredibly poignant, and it’s hard to reconcile what happened only just over 80 years ago, with the peace and beauty of this place.

We paid our respects and carried on, climbing gently out of Fontès, before taking a stunning road, sweeping through vineyards toward Caux, with its pretty church tower dominating the skyline from some distance away.

Then, it was a short ride into Pezenas, our home for the next 3 nights, and the target of our trip, so that we can enjoy the huge Brocante that will take place here on Sunday.

We pedalled into the stunning, old town and headed straight for our favourite ice-cream shop, celebrating nearly 350km pedalled since Monday, with a scoop of something delicious

It’s been quite an aventure so far, and we haven’t finished yet, as we will be exploring here for the weekend, before heading on to Capestang and Beziers, before catching the train back, in time for Provence Rugby’s last home match of the season against Vannes, on Thursday.

It’s not quite time to slow down yet.