After saying goodbye to Jim, with both promises to return next harvest and our newly purchased 5 bottles of wine, Martin and I headed west towards the Auvergne region, Valley of the Volcanoes to hike Puy de Dome a “volcanic hump looming over Clermont-Ferrand”. The hill was formed as a result of 3 volcanic eruptions over 11,000 years ago. Apparently the views from the top showcased the surrounding 100+ volcanoes…so we were going to hike it.
But first, we had to get there; no thanks to Fifi, our GPS system. Our sometimes schizophrenic, always drunk, back seat driver, was not always the most reliable in giving directions (she suggested a full 360 in a roundabout). However she always managed to correct herself, and as a result Martin and I were able to get off the main roads and see some of the smaller villages and back roads of France (sometimes more than once).
We finally made it to Royat (our base camp) and began the drive up the hill to hike Puy de Dome. Per our book, you could park your car up the hill and then hike the 45 minutes to the top of the dormant volcano for stunning views of the surrounding valleys. Unfortunately, like Fifi, the book failed to mention that there were 2 parking lots – 1 to the right and 1 to left, a mere 3 km further up the hill and coincidentally the starting point of the 45 minute hike. Based on past experience, we parked in the lot on the right.
After 15 minutes of looking for the trail and 15 minutes hiking the trail (allegedly 1/3 of the hike) we realized that something was wrong…we were still at least 500 vertical meters from the top and probably 5 km in distance. Thankfully Martin sensed that something wasn’t right and we headed back to the car for assistance. We were then informed of the second parking lot.
We re-parked in the correct lot and made the hike up the hill, completing it in just over 35 minutes, no thanks to my constant rest breaks (I could swear I am training for a half marathon). We took the obligatory hot lap around the top to take in the views and made it back down the hill in 25 minutes. All in, we spent more time at the café at the bottom enjoying our hard earned cold beers and crisps (or as the French call them “chips”) then we did actually hiking the hill. And we further treated ourselves later that night with another 4 course dinner including plenty of wine and cheese.
Two nights of wine and cheese…the trip so far had the makings of my favorite to date.
But first, we had to get there; no thanks to Fifi, our GPS system. Our sometimes schizophrenic, always drunk, back seat driver, was not always the most reliable in giving directions (she suggested a full 360 in a roundabout). However she always managed to correct herself, and as a result Martin and I were able to get off the main roads and see some of the smaller villages and back roads of France (sometimes more than once).
We finally made it to Royat (our base camp) and began the drive up the hill to hike Puy de Dome. Per our book, you could park your car up the hill and then hike the 45 minutes to the top of the dormant volcano for stunning views of the surrounding valleys. Unfortunately, like Fifi, the book failed to mention that there were 2 parking lots – 1 to the right and 1 to left, a mere 3 km further up the hill and coincidentally the starting point of the 45 minute hike. Based on past experience, we parked in the lot on the right.
After 15 minutes of looking for the trail and 15 minutes hiking the trail (allegedly 1/3 of the hike) we realized that something was wrong…we were still at least 500 vertical meters from the top and probably 5 km in distance. Thankfully Martin sensed that something wasn’t right and we headed back to the car for assistance. We were then informed of the second parking lot.
We re-parked in the correct lot and made the hike up the hill, completing it in just over 35 minutes, no thanks to my constant rest breaks (I could swear I am training for a half marathon). We took the obligatory hot lap around the top to take in the views and made it back down the hill in 25 minutes. All in, we spent more time at the café at the bottom enjoying our hard earned cold beers and crisps (or as the French call them “chips”) then we did actually hiking the hill. And we further treated ourselves later that night with another 4 course dinner including plenty of wine and cheese.
Two nights of wine and cheese…the trip so far had the makings of my favorite to date.
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