Getting away - eventually!

Have we lost the ability to just get up and go?  Now we check the weather forecast endlessly, research places to stay, pack some food – in the past we just went and took our chances and it always turned out well.  So on Friday, after a day of procrastinating when we decided that the Pyrenees were going to be too wet, the coast too busy and Spain too far for a weekend, we opted to stay closer to home.  One thing was certain, we had enjoyed our previous camping trip so much that we fancied another night or two under canvas.  We had, of course(!), done some research on the internet for suitable campsites and narrowed it down to two, both on the banks of the River Lot in the Northern Aveyron.  When we arrived at the first campsite the pitches were tiny and everything looked desolate.  The nearby town didn’t look any better, so we carried on up the valley towards the border with Cantal.  What a beautiful place it is.  The second campsite, Camping La Plaine, close to the pretty village of Saint Parthem, looked perfect.  The Dutch owner, told us to choose our pitch – things are very quiet at this time of year.   He also told us about a fabulous walk, the Sentier des Buissieres, (more on that in my next post).    

We pitched our tent overlooking the river and ate our picnic lunch in the sun.    The River Lot here is so different from the broad deep river we know further downstream.  We definitely had a room with a view and the sound of the river rushing by was soporific.  In the morning a family of wild boar were spotted on the opposite bank, but unfortunately we missed them - in the rush to get away we had forgotten to pack our binoculars!  

Escapism

There is something relaxing about camping.  Maybe it’s leaving modern technology behind, or the fact that you wake with the dawn and the sound of birdsong or the fact that you can just chuck anything on to wear and not worry. We just got back from our annual camping trip with our niece.  One night in the tent is all that it takes.  We loaded up the car and went to the same campsite as last year, Camping Ruisseau du Treil.  It’s only a 45 minute drive away, but is far enough to feel like a holiday.  This particular campsite has a lovely swimming pool, although because of our poor summer it was freezing this year! 

A few years ago Richard and I used to wilderness camp.  We’ve stayed in some memorable places.  I remember one particular spot in the Pyrenees.  We had been walking all day, but hadn’t made as much progress as we had hoped so ended up camping high in the mountains.  It was an ominous place, surrounded by tall pinnacles and not helped by the fact that before we erected the tent I stumbled on a memorial plaque to a climber who had died there.  After a sleepless night, we awoke to sunshine and, as we climbed out of the gloomy gulley and reached the crest of a hill we were rewarded by the sight of a shepherd moving his huge flock of sheep singlehandedly by using his voice.  He was unfazed to have an audience.  We’ve also camped in some stunningly beautiful places by babbling brooks miles away from everything and everyone.  Of course the drawback to wilderness camping is the fact you have to carry everything, but I also see this as a blessing as it forces you to pack only the bare essentials and is a step closer to natural world and everything it can throw at you.  Yes there is something relaxing about camping.    

Our big hike in the Pyrenees 2005