Loop ride from Lourmarin: Armistice Day

November 11, 2009

Weather: sunny all day, cold in the morning

A light frost greeted us in the morning, but we hoped the bright sunshine would soon warm things up. Breakfast was served in Rose's kitchen and again everything was of the highest quality—freshly squeezed orange juice, good croissants and baguette with homemade jam, yogurt and fruit compote, and coffee. She provided us with useful information about cycling destinations in the area, and we planned a scenic 40 km loop ride for today past vineyards and through picturesque stone villages.

After breakfast we wandered up and down through the centre of Lourmarin, quite deserted on this Armistice Day holiday. Apparently in the summer the village heaves with tourists, and once again, we were delighted to be here in the heart of Provence during the off-season, when we could soak up the historic atmosphere of the stone buildings and winding streets without pushing our way through hordes of other visitors. Hardly anything was open because of the holiday, and we were happy that Rose had offered us dinner at “home” again tonight.

We started off eastward and cycled to the tiny village of Cucuron, up and down slopes covered with grapevines and olive orchards. We passed several cooperatives for wine and olive oil production near the village. Cucuron dates from before the 11th century and suffered a serious plague epidemic in 1720. Its primary feature is a long rectangular pond (l'étang) that occupies its main square. We rode past the pond and then found ourselves at the tail end of an Armistice Day parade which filled up the whole main street. It was just 11:00, and most of the townspeople seemed to be marching in front of us. People of all ages from veterans to schoolchildren, many carrying flowers, were walking to the cemetery to pay their respects to the war dead. The French take Armistice Day very seriously since so many of their young men were killed during the two world wars. We walked our bikes behind the parade until we could veer off onto a side road and then headed out of town and through the nearby village of Cabrières-d'Aigues.

Between villages the roads we cycled on were mostly deserted.

More pleasant cycling mostly uphill to another picturesque village, La Motte-d'Aigues. We walked our bikes along the steep cobbled streets and could smell tempting cooking aromas wafting through windows open to the sunshine. We started to think about lunch, and Rose had recommended a good place to eat in the perched village of Ansouis, our next destination, south and a bit west on a quiet country road.

Groups of lycra-clad cyclists—mostly men—raced past us in the opposite direction, out for a holiday ride on their lightweight road bikes. Several of them greeted us with a “bonjour”. We made our way uphill into Ansouis, a perched village indeed, only to find the recommended restaurant closed for the holiday. By now we were getting quite hungry, so headed for Cadenet, a slightly larger town on the way back to Lourmarin, where we had a reasonable late lunch in a small hotel restaurant. Instead of returning directly north to Lourmarin, we rode west to Lauris through the first strip of ugly retail establishments that we had encountered in Provence. Between Lauris and Puyvert we saw gorgeous orange persimmons hanging from bare trees in peoples' gardens.

Back in Lourmarin, we parked our bikes at the chambre d'hote and walked over to the chateau. We were too late to tour the castle itself as they were just closing, but we explored the gardens and admired the views of Lourmarin from the chateau walls. Later on, Eva had time to finish “A Year in Provence” before and after another good dinner in our room.

Today's ride: 42 km (26 miles)
Total: 786 km (488 miles)

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