Forcalquier to Moustiers Sainte-Marie: Sunny Skies with Threats of Rain

June 1, 2017

We both slept lightly last night thanks to a couple of drunks who spent the night on the street below our room telling their life stories to no one in particular. Sadly, this can be expected in these small towns as the sound echos through the narrow streets and into all the windows of the adjacent buildings. After a traditional french breakfast of cafe, pain, beurre, confiture, yaourt, and jus d'orange, we retrieved the bikes from the deep dark cave underneath the hotel, packed up and cruised downhill out of Forcalquier.

A traditional french petit dejeuner. Croissants were not up to snuff, but still adequate.

All packed up and ready to go in Forcalquier.

Our route took us immediately onto a small road through the farmland, really idyllic cycle touring. The weather was perfect at about 22 degrees and a very light breeze. We could see storm clouds in the distance that were dropping rain, but we evaded any actual rain until we passed through Villeneuve. Then the rain hit. The drops were big so we deeked under a big walnut tree and waited it out for about 15 minutes.

We continued on the wet roads toward Oraison, along with a lot of traffic. Fortunately it was only a few km before we got to Oraison and by this time the roads had begun to dry off. The drivers were very respectful. At lower speeds, they often pull up behind us until they know they will have at least 1.5m of berth (which is the law) but it's a much narrower berth at speeds above 70 kmh. The important thing to remember is to hold your line through all conditions, relax, and keep moving. Always be part of the dance and everyone is happy.

From Oraison, we rode along more idyllic roadways, after crossing the Durance, the EDF Canal and the Asse rivers, ascending up through an oak forest to a plateau that was again draped in well tended lavender fields. These ones were just beginning to flower and we got a few whiffs of the flowers as we rode through the rolling landscape. The road surface and condition was excellent which makes riding uphill considerably easier as the rolling resistance is much lighter. The sun continued to shine while the light breeze kept us adequately cooled. All the while we continued to guzzle water augmented with Nuun flavoured electrolyte tablets, as we have throughout the tour.

The river Asse flows into the Durance. Volumes in both rivers were very low but this is due to the canal system that captures the water for irrigation and hydro.

EDF Canal carries water from the Durance river for irrigation and hydroelectricity.

Lavender is just coming into bloom in this area.

We expected today to include more challenging hills than it actually had. At Vallensole, we stopped at the fountain for a banana, yogurt, granola bar, and prune break. After that refreshing break, we continued on out of town. Outdoor restaurants were packed with patrons on their two hour lunch break, eating 3 course meals of rabbit and such. Our bodies just couldn't take all that food mid-day.

The storm clouds from this morning hung over the mountains and Lac Ste Croix all day, very near to our destination at Moustiers Sainte-Marie. The road descended off the plateau in one fell swoop (it looked like the cars ahead of us were driving over a cliff!) and it seemed as though we would be heading from day to night as we rolled into town. But as luck would have it, we descended the steep winding road towards town in warm and dry conditions. Our jaws dropped in awe again as we emerged from the forest and saw this gorgeous village perched on the side of the mountain. What a privilege it is to experience this!

Water, water everywhere. Wash basins and fountains are found in most every village.

Our accommodation is in a chambre d'hote right in the heart of town. Moments after we were shown to our room, we heard the rumble of thunder and the skies opened up. Though it rains hard, it only lasts for 20 to 30 minutes and it remains warm. From our window, we can look up the almost vertical rocky mountain and see the chapel, where pilgrims have made their way for centuries. A waterfall cascades down from the mountain and divides the town.

Our room at the chembre d'hote looks over the main street of town and up towards the chapel high above.

We were greeted in the dining room with 'deux pressions' and a platter of olives and cheeses.

Moustiers is famous for its production of painted pottery, known as Faience. Its origins are way back in the 9th century. As much as I would love to have a piece of Faience as a souvenir, I have many mountains to climb so I settled on a small provençale tablecloth instead.

Moustiers Sainte-Marie is famous for its Faience pottery.

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