After living nine months in Marseille, in June of 2010 we moved out of our apartment carrying only our backpacks with a minimum of clothes and necessary items to start a month of walking. Our plan was to walk in four different regions of France:
– the Gorge du Tarn
– the Bastides Albigeoises in the Tarn
– the Pays Basque, and
– the Loire Valley.
We will take trains between the regions. The only reservations we made in advance was a hotel room in Ales, our first night away.
This is not the first time we have done village-to-village hiking in France. Our previous four outings have been:
– Le Chemin de St. Jacques de Compostelle (the pilgrimage trail that ends in Spain) from Nasbinal to Conques
– Le Chemin de St. Jacques de Compostelle from Figeac to Moissac
– Le Beaujolais – a circular hike through many of the grande cru villages beginning and ending in Beaujeu
– Le Lot and le Dordogne departments – from Martel to Rocamadour
This will be a brief description of each leg of our hike. I hope this will encourage you to explore France on foot!