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| PLEASANT MONTREJEAU |
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| TRAIN SPOTTING |
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| TOULOUSE RAILWAY STATION |
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| CARCASSONNE LOWER TOWN |
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| ENTRANCE TO CHATEAU AT LA CITE |
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| LA CITE |
The problem was that the following day I would encounter the Coll de Mulleres, which is extremely steep and nearly 3,000m high. Even in good conditions care is advised. Given the late melting of the snow and the lack of any viable routes that would enable me to avoid the Coll, proceeding along this path on my own did not seem very wise. It seems that my way has been blocked once again.
Of course, I might have anticipated this just from a careful study of the maps, but my reconnaissance walks from Luchon gave me so much pleasure that I didn't really care. It was great to be walking without my usual heavy load for a couple of days.
Anyway, it was time for another hop, but to where?
Well, my decision was to go to Carcassonne!
"What," I hear you say, "that's not particularly close to the Pyrenees!"
My logic is this:-
In the Pyrenees there are few direct routes going in an east-west direction. Thus, in broad terms, my hops along the Pyrenees involve first going north, away from the undulations of the mountains, to link up with the main railway line, travelling east a bit by train, then finally going back south to the mountains again. The next practical place from where to continue my walk is l'Hospitalet-pres-l'Andorre. Getting there would involve taking a train from Montrejeau to Toulouse. However, Carcassonne is only about half an hour's train ride from Toulouse and I remember my friend, Terry, insisting that I go and see the medieval walled city when I got the opportunity.
So there you are. I'm going to l'Hospitalet-pres-l'Andorre really, but with a side-trip to Carcassonne.
As for not seeing or climbing Aneto, I can live with that. From photos, it doesn't appear to be a particularly attractive mountain anyway. It just happens to be the highest one.
The journey to Carcassonne was all a bit casual. My fellow walkers from Gite Skioura dropped me off at Luchon Station in good time, but the bus to Montrejeau had to wait 10 minutes for the ticket office to open and issue my tickets. It didn't really matter as the train to Toulouse was 40 minutes late anyway. The double-decker TGV from Toulouse to Carcassonne wasn't that prompt either, but it was comfortable and I had a reservation in the upper seating area.
I had a wait at both stations so I took the opportunity to step out and have a look around. Montrejeau turned out to be a nice friendly little town. The girl in the hairdressers let me use the shop's WiFi to check my emails. Toulouse was just like any other big city. In my mind, however, its real claim to fame is that the first Corcorde flew from Toulouse in 1969. I was an Air Cadet at the time and still have my scrapbook about it.
Carcassonne, though, looked extremely promising from the moment I stepped off the train. A canal, with boats, right in front of the station. Magic! I booked into the Hotel Astoria and set about exploring the lower town on foot.
Just to clarify, Carcassonne is actually two towns - the old fortified city known as 'La Cite' which was restored by Eugene Viollet-le-Duc in 1853 and is now a UNESCO World Heratige Site, and the lower town where my hotel is. Apparently, in France, La Cite is second only to the Eiffel Tower in terms of tourist numbers.
Even the lower town, with its narrow streets, is far from 'new'. It dates from the middle ages and is full of historic buildings which I took the time to seek out.
On Friday I decided to devote my day to exploring the fortified city. The sun was shining brightly. La Cite was about 30 minutes walk from my hotel. On my way I visited the Church of Saint Vincent in the old town. It has a tower which requires climbing a 232-step stone spiral staircase to get to the top, where it was windy enough for me to remove my hat. The magnificent views of the lower town made the climb well worth it, and I gained my first view of 'La Cite', which looked like something out of Disneyland.
This impression of a fairytale-like fortress persisted throughout the day. The place is huge and its restoration must have been a mammoth job. It was amazing to think that the first towers were built by the Romans. I took my time to look around the chateau which dates from the 11th century, and to walk the ramparts. Inside La Cite is the Basilica of Saint-Nazaire, a theatre, several museums and lots of shops and restaurants. It is not just a monument but a real, living, thriving place.
On my way back to my hotel I picked up some food suitable for carrying in my rucksack - enough to last me a couple of days if necessary. I'll be on my way to l'Hospitalet-pres-l'Andorre tomorrow and I don't know what shops I will find when I get there.