Col Agnel and Italy

 Friday 5/9/26

Close to the Col, looking back over France

We had a massive thunderstorm last night so everything was soaked and chilly this morning.  This, coupled with the fact that my knee has been playing up a bit meant we opted for a drive today as opposed to our planned hike.

Looking out over the Italian Alps
Can you tell we were too chicken to walk to the end of the path - and a sheer drop.

The closest entry point into Italy is only 32km from here but the drive takes around an hour, through the narrowest of villages and winding up through the valley.  Again, we tipped our hats at the cyclists battling up the never-ending uphill stretch.  

There was a lot of road works at the summit as they are building new parking areas so it was very tight and congested.  We turned around after stopping briefly in Italy, because we decided that getting to the first Italian village would entail an accumulation of too many hairpin bends for us for a day.

We stopped on the way back for a lovely Plat de Jour et café.  

The scenery around here is just amazing, it's fantastic to have such a beautiful area so close to where we live.  Lots to explore!

Tomorrow we'll see if we can tackle our planned hike.

Briançon, the Col d'izoard and Abriès

 Friday 5/9/26

Anyone not wanting to look at loads of mountains - look away now!

As much as we love our new home in Mallefougasse, we were both determined to do a late summer exploratory trip into the Alps before winter sets in.  

Neither of us ski and we wanted to see what hiking facilities are like relatively close to us.  We'd booked into an apartment in Abriès based on a personal recommendation by our landlady.  Luckily we were warned the main access road into the town was blocked for repairs on the day we arrived so we planned a longer route via Briançon, to the north and then down over the Izoard pass.  We did want to see the mountains, after all.

The old walled town in Briançon. 

We were blown away by the sheer number of cyclists slogging their way (mostly successfully) up this extreme route but between them, the narrow roads and millions of motorcycles thundering up and down, it made for a rather tense but worthwhile drive.  The views along the way and from the top of the pass were absolutely amazing!

Mountains, as far as the eye can see.

Even though we are still in France, the road resembles a piece of spaghetti.

Our apartment is in the middle of the village, and overlooks the local supermarket / boulangerie aptly named the Sherpa.  From there we can watch all the hikers departing in the morning and new ones arriving in the afternoon, desperate for sustenance.  Although very much geared for winter sports with numerous ski slopes around us, the summer season is definitely hiking season.  The village is along the GR58, a 100km hiking route winding it's way through the Queyras region.

We're not sure if she's looking after the lamb or the post.

Abriès village.  We're staying in the apartments in the lower right of picture

The interior of the church is exquisitely decorated

We still need to build up some mileage and buy some more serious kit but we are definitely planning on tackling the 100km trail next spring; it's contagious being here.  We've done a few shorter hikes from the town and, although very, very hilly, it is really beautiful. We're sleeping well at night with tired legs!

Hiking up the Lure

 Tuesday 26/08/25

Ever since we arrived in Mallefougasse, we have been planning to walk up the mountain behind our house. 

Heading out bright and early.

We have been doing longer and longer hikes in the area to build up our stamina and wait for the right day (cooler conditions) to mount our assault.  

From our side, the mountain has the profile of three large hills piled on top of each other, rising from our village, at 750m above sea-level, to 1,800m at the peak of the Lure.  The northern profile is quite different, dropping sharply into the valley far below.

Our route from the yellow start following the hearts.
You can see the very defined ridge line.

There are numerous tracks on our side, mostly used by hunters and the summer shepherds with their flocks. These tracks are very rough, comprising loose rocks carried down by the rain storms and only a few of them are maintained at all.  Although we could see some tracks on Google Maps, it was impossible to see their condition and, the higher up one goes, the less clear the tracks are.

Much of the trail is wooded but every now and again you reach a clearing and the 
views just keep getting better as you climb

Nonetheless, we had decided today was the day, leave it too late in the season and we might risk running out of time.  We set our alarm for silly-o-clock and woke up early, packed loads of water and sandwiches for breakfast en-route.

As the routes we use aren't really hiking trails, they don't follow the usual 'meandering' route but tackle the incline head-on with no breaks from the relentless uphill on the way up and downhill on the return.  

As we were nearing the top we could hear the bells of a flock of goats/sheep and the barking of their accompanying Patou, very big sheepdogs.  We were a bit wary as there have recently been a few incidents of hikers being attacked with this type of dog, kept to protect the herd from wolves and other predators.  The dogs aren't always able to tell the difference between innocent hikers and predators, so we decided to divert across bramble-infested bush to try and get another trail.  In the end we were able to get around the flock and reached the ridgeline.  

The views were absolutely breath-taking at the top!   

The wind was icy and almost gale-force so we took a few photos, ate our breakfast and headed back down again, trying to beat the heat of the day.

Views worth walking up a hill for.

Happy faces

We were within 100m of our property when we noticed a deer in the neighbour's garden with a plastic watering-can stuck on it's head.  I walked towards it to see if I could help but as soon as it heard me, it panicked and started running away wildly, crashing into everything in it's path.  We couldn't leave it like that so I raced off after it, hoping to head it off before the road below our property.  In spite of it running around blindly, it was still able to reach the road before me but luckily there was no traffic.  Fortunately I could then run quietly on the tar to catch up with it near our neighbour's gate and then grab the handle of the watering can.  She pulled her head out and ran off - huge relief all around.

By now our legs were also feeling quite wobbly so we headed home, feeling a great sense of accomplishment and reward.

Total distance walked, 15km, vertical distance 850m, time taken 4.5 hours.

Now, what's next! 

Bonus video:-

The wind is the only soundtrack but you get a better idea of the views in the video.

Lavender harvest time

 Thursday 07/08/25

We're loving our weekly shop at the nearby village market.
The fruit and veg is amazing - how can you not love a heart-shaped tomato?

We've really enjoyed watching the lavender fields bloom, literally, from stubby rows when we arrived in the area to fragrant bursts of the most brilliant colour when out walking.  We're lucky enough to have quite a few well hidden gems in the mountains behind the house, so they are well off the tourist trails and we have felt that we have had them all to ourselves.

Alas, the time has come for them to be harvested and, one by one, the fields were shorn by a strange combination between a combine harvester and a hair-clipper.  

Thankfully one can still find beauty in the zen-like combed fields that are left behind.  Until next year's season.  

Apparently the price of lavender has declined dramatically in recent time so we are likely to see fewer and fewer of these fields in the future.

This morning we took another drive to the top of Mt Lure and walked the trail around the summit.  We thought the views to the south that we saw last time were good, but once we got up to the northern face of the ridge, we got the  most spectacular views out towards the Alps.  It feels like you are on top of the world! 

Unfortunately the views were slightly marred by the presence of smoke in the air, a sign of the serious fires that are raging to the south-west of us.

There are many hiking trails in this area so it will be a long time before we can get to them all - this mountain-top is very special indeed.

We really have to keep pinching ourselves to believe we are able to live in such a beautiful area.

Bonus pic:  We found this gem in the garden.

This is a Carlina acanthifolia, a protected Alpine flower.
The petals are still like the bristles of a scrubbing brush.

Bugs, bugs!

 Tuesday 22/07/25

We arrived at this field after a long walk and sat for a while.
It was amazing to see the masses of insects buzzing around the plants.

We're having a break from the really hot weather with a spell of slightly less hot weather and it's a blessing.  

We're managing to get some nice long walks in, something that has been difficult with the very high temperatures of the past month.

What an impressive moustache

Lesser-spotted bookworm

The area we are in is blessed with a rich diversity of insect life; a combination of the forested mountain area and the warm, sunny climate.  It has been very noticeable for us, having lived in the UK for so long, we had become used to minimal insect interaction.  

The butterfly population here is amazing, luckily we don't have a fancy
garden so don't have to fight with the caterpillars too much.

The rather scary looking Olios argelasius

Quite well camouflaged, this Palpares was almost as big as my hand

The Provencal Cicada or Cigale, huge and noisy
And a face only a mother could love...

Here they are an integral part of life outside and we find them endlessly fascinating.  

We're doing quite well in keeping most of them out of the house, particularly the many scorpions in the area. 

Bonus video - a bush full of butterflies

Early summer heat in Provence

 Monday 14/07/25

We not only get treated to masses of sunshine here...

It's been a while since we posted!

We're settling in to Provencal life, the weather has been generally dry and hot with occasional storms when the heat gets too much.  

We've been lucky to have missed most of the more extreme weather France has been subjected to and the house seems to cope with the heat quite well if we remember to close and open windows and shutters at the appropriate times.  Thank goodness for robust, working shutters - now we know that the beautiful iconic shuttered houses of Provence is not just for show.

The sight, smell and sound of the lavender fields are amazing when walking.

We've also had our first visitors as Charmaine an Nathan spent a week with us.  We spent a night in Marseilles and then combined visiting local attractions with chilling in the garden and pool.  It was a lovely time.

Family time in Mareilles

Verdon Gorge

French school holidays have started and we can already see the area filling up, shuttered holiday houses opening up and pools filling with excited children.

We're getting a lot of walking in, exploring the masses of walking routes from the house every morning.

A brooding sky.

Not much else to report - we're settling into life here, and enjoying the slower summer-pace.  Any slower and we'd be stationary!!

Mallefougasse-Augés

 Sunday 18/05/25

When we posted on Easter Sunday, we had met with local estate agents and were not hugely optimistic of finding a rental property in the area as there was very little available and properties got snapped up as soon as they were advertised.

Lovely Provence, we can't wait for the lavender to bloom.

However, shortly after our visit, we were contacted again to say there was a property about to come on the market and, given very few details apart from a few photos, we were asked if we were interested.  Of course we jumped at the chance and, although there were a fair few hoops to jump through, we managed to secure the rental.

The dovecote - bedrooms in the tower, living area at ground level, challenging stairs and
interesting bathroom arrangements.  The positives far outweigh the negatives.

It's been a very hectic few weeks while we sorted out all the admin required with renting in France but we finally moved in last Saturday - much sooner than we ever thought would be possible.  It certainly helps being organised!

The property is a converted dovecote (Le Pigeonnaire de la Tuiliére - originally built in the 1800), which was first used as a holiday home for a Parisian couple and then let as a holiday rental.  It has been unused for the past two years and the landlady decided to rather offer it as a full time property let.  The timing was incredibly fortunate for us as the property hadn't been advertised yet so we weren't under as much pressure as we might have been with other properties.

Our favourite breakfast bench in our garden has this amazing view out over the Alps

It's located on the outskirts of the medieval village of Mallefougasse and is at 750m elevation, partway up the Lure mountain which rises just over 1,500m.  We have an extensive garden and the most incredible views out over the area.

Mallefougasse - we're way off the left, slightly around the hill.

The garden Iris' are magnificent.

Can't get away from lawn mowing duties...

We even have wild orchids growing in the lawn.

We're still very much in the settling-in phase and have a trip planned back to Brittany on Tuesday to fetch our few belongings from storage.  It will be nice to have our stuff around us again - probably the final step away from our nomadic life of the past six years.  We're really looking forward to living in and exploring Provence, a stunning corner of France. 

Bonus pic:-

This weekend was our local village Bread festival where they fire up the historic bread oven, bake loads of charcoal-crusted loaves and celebrate local foods.  The evening was rounded off with some jazz by local quintet, Jazz on Five.  A lovely way to start integrating into village life.

Jazz on Five - quite different to the Jackson Five, as the host pointed out. 😊