Day 2: Montbonnet to Monistrol d’Allier. 16.84km
The day started off pretty cool. We had breakfast at the gite - bread and jam, with a cuppa – then it was time to hit the road again. I was the first person out I think, I wanted to experience my second morning alone without people around. And it definitely paid off, the morning was cool and frosty. I only had a tshirt on this morning so I was a bit chilly but soon warmed up.
I headed out along dirt roads that went past paddocks and small plots growing veggies, before heading up into a forest. This was really lovely, it was so quiet, just me and the birds.
I got to a road and there were men working here cutting trees down so I had to wait for ages while they got their machinery out of the road (I waited so long that people started catching up to me, which was a little annoying). We continued on in the forest then came out to what I assume was a departmental road as it was an asphalt road but very quiet.
We had to cross a bigger road then take a left to Le Chier. I stopped here to have a drink and to chat to the other people who’d caught up to me. There was also a very friendly cat there. I left them and went up into the forest again. This was a difficult path, as it was steep to come down, and quite rocky, but I popped out near this river and a house that I would totally love to live in. It was so pretty just tucked away near the river.
I walked up to Saint-Privat and wandered around. Saint-Privat was a village where lots of people stop on their first day but I’m glad I eased into it a bit and stopped at Montbonnet. I think it was only 6km more but it was quite tricky with the ups and downs and would have been hard on the first day. I went to the church and a viewpoint and then I went to go find a sandwich in an epicerie nearby. I also bought a pain au chocolat, but this dog was hovering as I was eating the pastry, trying to get some of my food!
I started walking again, downhill to a river – the path had been covered in broken bits of roof tiles which, I assume, was because it got muddy. However, they were SO hard to walk on and slipped a lot and were sharp underfoot. I crossed the river then it was time to go back uphill again.
Uphill had some lovely views along the ridgeline, then another forest, then I entered the village of Rochegude. This place had a loo, drinking water, a very quirky fort and a church built into the cliff. There was also a table near the church so I stopped there to eat my sandwich. I was soon joined by an orange cat, who had the most pitiful meow. I held out for most of my sandwich then gave him the little bit at the end with some ham and cheese.
Of course I went into the church, which was very cute. Didn’t go up to the fort as there was not much up there. But then I carried on.
The next section was honestly like walking down a mountain bike course. It was so steep. There were people stopped on rocks everywhere just catching their breath or adjusting their shoes. In hindsight, I should have used my poles, but I got down without getting them out at all, though I slid a few times. I came out onto the road at Pratclaux and was very pleased to be out of the forest.
I then went the wrong way, and was waved down by an old French couple sitting on their verandah “Madam! Madam!” but it turned out I could have kept going as all the paths joined up in the end.
It was time to go downhill again, I was sick of the downhills after the sketchy one to Pratclaux, but this was into the town of Monistrol, thank goodness. I eased down, went to the public loo then sat on the ground under a tree outside of the gite and waited for it to open. The lady came by about 3:10 and let me and a French couple in. She proceeded to give instructions in French, which the woman of the couple kindly translated for me, as the host couldn’t speak any English at all.
I was shown to my room and went about having a shower, washing my clothes, etc etc. It was a lovely and warm afternoon and everything dried really quickly. There was also a lovely sun trap of a terrace at the top, and I sat there. I was joined by a French Vietnamese lady (whose name I’ve sadly forgotten), and I helped her with her accommodation – somehow I’d been studying the guidebook so much that I remembered all the places we were going in the first 10 days or so.
Dinner was at 7pm so I wandered inside for dinner at about that time. One of the couples from last night was there, as well as a group of brother, sister and sister in law, and a Canadian from Montreal, who surprised me as she couldn’t speak much English. I’d assumed Canadians learn both but she was firmly French-speaking, though it was with a different accent than the French people. Dinner was a bit harder tonight, as there were less English speakers, and everyone had a jolly conversation in French which I mostly couldn’t understand. I could pick up some words but couldn’t make sense of it. Dinner was a pork dish with peppers, which was served with rice. Now I don’t really like capsicum / peppers, but these French ones were surprisingly nice (I only had a few pieces). I don’t recall dessert. Starter was a soup again.
I was so tired that night that I was out like a light.
Gite le Ricochet: 8/10. Good food, nice host even if she couldn’t speak English. Lots of space, the terrace is really lovely. Good breakfast.