Farnsniente

The GPS showing how twisty and windy the road is up ahead.

Here we go loup de loup (or not)

—

in
📍 Gourdon, France

Photos

Trip index

Summary

Breathtaking drive way up to hill town of Gourdon, reputedly the prettiest of France’s Plus Beaux Villages (Most Beautiful Villages). It was extremely pretty and the views were amazing. Grabbed a shady table and had a great lunch on the terrace at La Taverne Provençale (best hot goat cheese salad ever!). Had a little trouble finding the unassuming entrance to the Cascade du Saut du Loup but persistence paid off in the form of a stunning series of waterfalls. Drove from there to a former olive oil mill in Opio then home in time to enjoy happy hour poolside and dinner on our deck.

Details

We have days when we’ll be having our hands held, and told stories and lead around. And then there are days like today, when we’re on our own. What’s not changing is that it’s a beautiful day, the sky is blue, the Alps are visible and there’s still snow, for now. We’d been sitting inside for breakfast and news but we’ve wised up and are now sitting outside for all meals to enjoy the view and the lovely cool weather. 

When we head out we’re aiming towards the city of Gourdon and the Loup (wolf) Gorge, to take a hike and to see the waterfalls there. We hear good things. Funnily (or maybe not) our destination is only 8 miles away but that’s like a 40 minute drive. That tells you what the twisty, turn-y roads will be like. There’s also lots of turnouts, which is good. It lets me allow the cars behind me to go by and allows us to enjoy the views and take pictures. We’re next to picturesque villages and also big swaths of national parks with (seemingly) only nature. 

We park in Gourdon and begin our inspection in earnest. The wares for sale are the usual: sweets, nuts, “art”, dish towels, perfume, postcards, mustards, etc. etc. I hate to say it gets old, but I guess we get what we ask for, and apparently this is what we want. We also want views and we get those in spades. We can see all the (short) way out to the Mediterranean and up into the blue sky, this time complete with many paragliders, lazily swinging back and forth as they ride the updrafts higher and higher. We wonder out loud how long they can stay up. 

A busy restaurant with lots of outdoor tables catches our eye and we install ourselves. The group gets water and I have a tasty local beer. Most of the other patrons are French and are very much enjoying the company and food. Eventually full and relaxed, we push on and pile back into the car. We’d been wanting to visit the Loup (Wolf) Gorge but hadn’t gotten there til now. It’s a long windy road down without many cars (thankfully) but bicyclists huffing as they climb or whizzing by on their way down. We try to avoid each other. 

At the falls we park. We don’t know it’s the falls but the waiter at the small cafe there explains it all to us. We give the machine our four euros for the four of us and go through the turnstile. Down the stairs we quickly come to the view and it doesn’t disappoint. The water is seemingly coming out of the hillside and streaming down in as many different paths as it can. This makes for a lot of moist ground and lush, green moss has filled in everywhere. We marvel at it for a while and take many more pictures than we should before heading out. 

The GPS guides us to the trail head and parking but it’s all full so we reluctantly give up, heading to our next destination, an old mill (gift shop and museum). After being briefly lost and almost having an accident we get there and head inside. On the walk in we can see two enormous metal water wheels, one even bigger than the other. They’re motionless and very rusty with much of the actual metal material rusted away. Inside the two big stone wheels and all the wood have all been lovingly restored to great condition. The young French woman working there gives us an explanation of all of the intricate workings of the machinery, as best she can. Her British accent is good, but her recollection of some of the technical terms is lacking. We get the picture and can imagine how much work it was to process all the olives. 

Across the street we stop in to yet another grocery store to top off our larder for dinner. We’re mostly getting lettuce and vegetables. We’re constantly amazed by how fresh and perfect the produce is here. 

At home again, Ron takes the lead and with Karen’s help (and Nancy and myself, when needed) another  delicious dinner is pulled together. We dine out on the back deck with its beautiful view. This will likely be our last dinner at home here. 

Photos

[Note: to view the photos in chronological order, start at the bottom :-/ ]

Once again and delicious dinner at home. Healthy and enjoyed al fresco with tasty local wine. One could get used to this.
Back at our villa Ron and Nancy finally get in the pool, or at least a little bit. As much as the water’s cold temperature will allow.
The stone wheels crush the olives into a paste, after which they’re put into sturdy cloth bags and then squeezed with these big presses. The long arms give leverage to really apply pressure and the vertical spool looking thing on the left helps press even more. You want every drop of that precious oil.
Further along we visit an old olive oil mill, with its big gears and stone wheels. Not operational since the 1920s.
A long walkway’s been constructed long ago to facilitate viewing of the falls. It’s a popular stop.
At the bottom we pay our four euros (for the four of us) and take in the falls. They’re impressive.
The road down there is anything but straight. We encounter few cars, thankfully, but many bikes, both going up and down.
Next stop: The Gorge du Loup, Les Jardins du Loup, La Rives du Loup. All things Loup (wolf).
I’m having a leek quiche and salad (and beer).
We’re happy with our choice of a place for lunch. Good location, good weather, and tasty food.
Lutfi is here for genealogy, looking for close (or distant) ancestors. She’s is wondering if this branch of the family is from some place like Arkansas.
In the sky we see paragliders, lazily going to and fro, undoubtedly trying hard to avoid each other.
To our north is a national park, and pretty much all we see is lush green. This is the Loup Gorge, where we’re headed next.
The town is all in good repair, which is nice, the layout having been designed 100s of years ago.
In town Karen points out which candies she’d eat, if she could.
I don’t think I’ve shared a picture of our big BMW car. It’s large for this part of the world. There are bigger, but as a driver it’s big enough to be scary.
In the distance we can see Gourdon above us, perched precariously on the hill.
Two motorcyclists ask us to take their picture, which we do, and then they return the favor. We converse in French, with me misidentifying their “motos” as “velos” (motorcycles for bicycles) and calling them women (Nicoise) rather than men (Nicois). Imprecise pronunciation can be insulting.
Lutfi, Nancy’s travel dragon, enjoys the view, too.
Up for coffee and news, we set our selves up outside, with a good view of the still snow-covered alps. Near by there’s agricultural burning going on, but it smells wonderful so we don’t complain.