October 30, 2010
Mirepoix to Quillan
WEATHER: MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH SOME SUN, NO RAIN
We retraced our route past Lagarde, this time with a light tailwind--what a difference even though our bikes were loaded. We stopped several times to take photos of the ruined chateau after we had passed the village; the view was quite spectacular. A very pleasant ride, generally uphill, but not steeply until after we passed Chalabre. We had thought we might eat an early lunch in Chalabre, but found the town dreary and uninteresting, the only hotel was closed, so we pressed on.
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Now we were getting into Cathar country. We kept going past the little town of Villefort, and then about a kilometer after that and before Puivert, we forked left uphill for about four kilometers. Puivert is the site of a famous Cathar castle, but it would have required much more climbing and it was out of our way, so we decided to skip it.
On this uphill stretch through a wooded area, we saw hunters and heard their dogs; it was a bit unsettling and we passed by as quickly as possible. After the uphill, we had a long (12 km) stretch of downhill to Fa. It was a lovely ride, but a bit chilly. By now it was after 1:00 and we were very hungry; we'd ridden about 40 km. We planned to stop in Esperaza to look for lunch, but just happened to pass a funky little bistro in Fa for which Eva made a beeline. Luckily, they were still serving lunch. The pleasant colorful dining room was full of older hippies--it reminded us of a small community near home called Kaslo, only more so--and we had a good lunch: mixed salads, leek quiche and a fig tart with wine and coffee.
After lunch we went on to Esperaza and turned onto a tiny little track, closed to motorized vehicles, with lots of people walking. We followed that all the way into Quillan, then a short, steep uphill to get to L'Olivette, a chambre d'hote run by an older English couple, Silvia and Roy.
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Their house was newly built and our room was small but clean with a sliding glass door looking out on the hillside. We had arranged to have dinner there both nights. Roy was a retired professional chef (age 73) who had cooked for Pablo Picasso and had owned his own restaurant on the Isle of Wight. He was an excellent cook and told some interesting stories. Silvia was a good cook too and did the veggies and the desserts. Our first dinner was very good: salad with goat cheese pastries, lamb navarin with roasted potatoes, carrots and swedes and braised leeks. Then four lovely cheeses, and apple-rhubarb pie.
Today's ride: 55 km (34 miles)
Total: 669 km (415 miles)
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