Day 4: la Mothe to Auch

Voie d’Arles Day 4: La Mothe in Isle-Arne to Auch

37,840 steps or 17.2miles (actually probably about 22-24 km)

We got away earlier this morning, reaching the Chemin at about 8 am.  The first hour of walking in the cool through Isle-Arne to Lussan, tiny villages with no shops, was lovely. We took a shortcut on a small road to Lussan, saving some time and wet feet from the heavy morning dew, then took break on a bench in front of the Lussan Church.  Only a few cars passed.  We headed across country past a couple of chateaus, a reflecting farm pond, and fields of yellow rape.  We climbed up and down some long hills, mostly on grassy paths.  We kept looking for the Pyrenees, but there were too many clouds in the distance.  It has continued to be quite humid.  We crossed a stream on sticks and stepping stones — I was glad my taped up pole was holding—and stopped in the shade of a shrub along side a path that followed a green verge between two recently plowed fields. We sat in somewhat damp grass and ate the delicious apples and sandwiches we brought for lunch.  The grass made my arms itch and we were stiff when we got to our feet and hoisted our packs again, but It was all quite lovely walking on small tracks and paths that changed before they became too predictable.  Who knew what we’d find around the next corner or over the hill?  As we neared Montegut the terrain rose to a limestone plateau, drier underfoot, with scrubby trees.  It was some of the best walking of the trip, and both Kent and I drifted off into our own caminos of the mind.  I don’t know what Kent was thinking, but I was writing poems in my head, remembering Ed’s last moments and thinking of a pilgrim friend’s current vigil with her husband, moments of transition that change everything forever when loved ones leave on caminos we can’t yet follow.  

Suddenly, the trees opened to reveal A fairy-tale scene below — the church and turreted chateau of Montegut.  A white-flowering tree I’ve never seen before appeared, and an old stone watchtower loomed even higher above the white limestone trail that reminded me of limestone outcrops in my childhood home in Michigan.  It felt right and happy to be walking in this lovely place.  We descended into the hamlet — again no shops—and took a break in the cool shelter of the church, which besides its statues of Saint Germaine and Jeanne d’Arc had a poster detailing the history of the town.

From there we descended sharply, then climbed again up a long paved hill, as we once again left the Grande Randonee with its lengthy by-pass of the freeway on which we’d sped in a bus to Toulouse just days ago, to take a more direct route into Auch.  Kent was great at finding our way with the map in our book, while I worried Anita about taking wrong turns.

We came out on a busy highway where we walked on a very narrow, unpleasant and somewhat dangerous edge as cars and trucks whizzed by.  That section lasted only about 500 meters, and along that way we stopped at a veterinary clinic to ask for a refill of a water bottle.  We had to wait a bit, and I got to pet a fuzzy and curious little puppy.  Eventually we came to sidewalks along the still busy and very noisy road.  What awful things cars are for walkers!

The towers of the medieval cathedral in the old town of Auch loomed on the hill across the river as we walked the long way down into the center of town.  I thought how medieval Pilgrims must have thrilled to see that sight, as we did, too. But they would have walked in green silence, hearing only the birds and sounds of animals.

We looked longingly at the cafes in the center of town, but stopped only briefly at the bridge that separated the new and old towns.  We could see in the distance the famous grand steps that led to the old town.  I pulled out my phone and put in the address of the ancient presbytere where we would be staying.  Nine minutes walking!  Yeah!  We trudged up the last hill of the day.  It was just after 3 pm that we were welcomed by friendly volunteers and shown into this amazing place.  

There are 3 rooms of beds, including one with a double bed, which we claimed, two bathrooms, a kitchen, and laundry soap for hand -washing clothes, with drying racks on a balcony overlooking the cathedral and the town and the hills through which we’d walked.

Later, Emmanuel showed up.  We’d exchanged phone numbers.  He asked for a recommendation for dinner, and we ended up having a lovely dinner and conversation in a cafe a bit out of the historic tourist area that was good and reasonably priced:  Cafe Le Parking

 Before this we got to the cathedral at 5:40, but were chased out five minutes later for the 6 o’clock closing.

We looked down the famous staircase with its statue of the Three Musketeers’ D’Artagnon, but instead of another climb up and down, headed back through the square, which was totally under construction, to have a cold drink at last at a sidewalk cafe.

Tomorrow on to L’Isle Noe.  It appears there are only 4 beds at La Barran, and 3 have been booked by Emmanuel and two pilgrims he met along the way today.