Rally roads!

Friday 8th June

Another drive day to view another river gorge and a couple of other villages. Today we headed northwest from here back up to the town of Sisteron we visited on Monday, then out to the west along the Gorges de la Meouge. This river was at a lower altitude and the road actually followed alongside the river, rather than high up on the cliffs looking down on the river. A very pretty drive though not as startling views as the Verdon gorge. Another narrow, winding road, but virtually no traffic so not quite as nerve-wracking for the nervous passenger.

Along the Gorge de Meouge

At the end of the gorge road we turned on to a road heading north over the Col Saint-Jean (1150m) – ouvert thank goodness. Rob was really enjoying the drive up this road and then down the other side. As we were driving he commented that from the rubber marks on the road he felt that it had been used in a rally at some stage – in the opposite direction to our travel. Well, he almost wet himself when we got to the end of the road and there in a garage facing the intersection were posters from the Rallye Monte Carlo. He had just driven a stage of the rally in reverse! The building with the posters was a museum to the rally but unfortunately only open on Saturday. I think we've got enough photos of that particular spot!

The intersection at the top of the Monte Carlo stage.

A good use for disused phone boxes - street libraries.
We've seen a few of these in our travels.

We travelled to the village of Opierre. This village was a beauty! We had lunch here, a delicious canneloni, and then just did a wander through the streets and lanes. Sometimes the villages are a disappointment, but this one wasn't.  I guess there must be a few duds in the mix.

More fabulous streets to wander. This one had a few 'tunnels'
linking one area to another.
Sometimes you felt like you were wandering through
someone's private driveway or yard.

We saw quite a few sundials through this area.
They are marked on the tourist map.

Next, over the Col du Reychasset (1012m) and on to the village of Rosans which also had a medieval centre. We were able to get the keys to the tower from the tourist info centre, and climb to the top for a look. The views over the surrounding countryside were beautiful.

Looking down on the village of Rosans from the tower.

There is a walk you can do from the town to the top of this peak
and then a loop back around.
There are lots of marked walking trails all through the hills.
It seems to be the favourite French weekend activity
- along with cycling.

From there it was just a winding drive home. Along the way I noticed that there is a scenic drive you can do of the perched hilltop villages. Something to save for next visit, unless we head that way tomorrow to our next gite.