Back roads to Millau (by Kerouac2)

[Deleted]

Okay, I had spent a night in Sète, and my next night was to be in Millau, only 130 kilometers away with the A75 autoroute linking them to each other. Arriving quickly was out of the question, so I would find other roads.

I did start out on the autoroute, though, just to get out of urban areas faster, followed by those interminable vineyards. I have seen enough of them.

Off I went, often stopping in a rest area just to see where might be a good place to get off the freeway.

And therefore it was at Lodève that I decided to venture on the country roads. These towns always have great parking areas in the absolute center, so I decided to already make a brief stop to look around.

The big church is always a place to use as a destination.

I discovered that it was in fact a cathedral, St. Fulcran. The style is called "southern Gothic" and it is nothing to write home about.

Nevertheless, they knocked themselves out building the damned thing, starting in 1265 and finishing most of it by 1320. However, the façade was not complete at that time, they ran out of money and there was that annoying problem of the Black Plague and the Hundred Year War complicating things. Just about all of it was finally finished around 1430.

Then there were the nasty Protestants who destroyed a lot of it in the 16th century, and of course then it was pillaged and turned into a warehouse after the Revolution. It wasn't restored until the 19th century and the roof wasn't even redone properly until the 20th century. Oh well, maybe it won't be attacked again for another hundred years or so.

The organ seemed quite impressive.











There might be other things worth seeing in Lodève but that was enough for me.

Where next?

[Deleted]

I kept moving to smaller and smaller roads. Just like everybody else, I often imagine the roads of France to be totally clogged with tourists in July and August (those awful Dutch caravans!), but on these roads, I was lucky if I spotted another car every 20 minutes.

These places are really isolated and lots of the farmers have abandoned the area.





I pulled over to check out some of the local creatures.

From the train a few days earlier, I had seen some really excellent lavender fields, and I was hoping to come across some along the road. Usually, I arrive in the area when lavender season has already ended, but this year I had a chance of seeing some for the first time in ages.

No such luck, so I had to content myself with the usual wildflowers.

[Deleted]

I came across an unexpected addition on the road signs.

The road kept twisting and turning through the "causses" which is the name of these distinctive rocky outcroppings on all of the hills. Technically, they are "rings of erosion."

Without encountering a single car, I suddenly arrived.







There were hundreds of cars in the multiple car parks but not a soul in sight.













Everyone had retreated, so I was obliged to leave.

And so I continued on my way...

[bixaorellana]

Oh, this is wonderful -- so unexpected! Great pics, too.

[Deleted]

I was still all alone on the road.





I arrived in an amazing little village, empty as they always are. It was on a little stream.



I decided to park the car in the shade.









I can't believe that a tiny village would pay for this picnic table.



(So I suppose that the département supplied the money.)

I will never understand this manhole cover in the stream.



If you open it to climb in, where do you go?









One resident did not manage to scamper out of sight before I caught him.









Even a village this tiny lost a big percentage of men during the Great War.





The wash basins looked like they might still be used.



Drainage was perfunctory.



It was time to find the road out of here.



Leaving the village, I discovered its name.

[fumobici]

This is a lovely report, I'm enjoying following along immensely. It looks like a near perfect area to drive nearly aimlessly around in the Summer.

That last village Lauroux could be in Tuscany. The sandstone buildings are almost exactly the same as there.

[mich64]

I too Fumo am enchanted by this report. How wonderfully clean the town was! So much pride in ownership of the residents. I wonder if most of the residents are retired and the rest go to larger towns to work, or is it a farming community?
Cheers,
Mich

[Deleted]

Actually, those roads disoriented me so much that I pretty much ended up almost back at Lodève, where I started from. But this didn't really upset me, because I had seen some interesting things.

I stopped to check my various maps and determined that I only needed to go from one exit the next to get to the D999 road that would eventually take me to Millau.

That section had some truly spectacular views of the "causses."

The major rest stops on the autoroute are tourist attractions themselves, with large eating establishments, tourist offices, and gift shops for local produce.

[mich64]

You cannot imagine how excited I can get to stop for gasoline in Europe. These stops are so much fun for me and I find them a little different in each country that we have driven through. Of course then there is the differences in the toilet stations in each country as well. All enjoyable experiences!

Our gas stations are nothing like these at all. They typically sell all junk food, overpriced out of date sunglasses, magazines/newspapers and maybe some if lucky there is a french fry truck.

Cheers,
Mich

[lola]

Just beautiful, Kerouac.

[fumobici]

If it isn't already too late perhaps you could be a dear when you get to the viaduc and lean waaaay over the edge for a few photos? Thanks in advance ;D

[Deleted]

I finally began to approach Millau. Before the A75 was completed, it was known to most French vacationers as a summer nightmare zone. The radio and TV regularly mention the worst traffic zones in the news all summer long, and so you will hear "2 hours between Valence and Orange on the A7" or "a 45-minute wait at the Mont Blanc tunnel" -- and one of the very worst areas in the past was Millau. "Three hours to get through Millau" was commonly heard. It was great for the snack bars, french fry trucks and cafés lining the road, because most people absolutely had to take a break there.

You see, Millau is at the bottom of a sort of rift valley, and the roads on both sides are up on the plateau. You absolutely had to wind your way down to the bottom, drive through Millau, and then drive back up the other side. Even when a lot of the A75 had been completed, it suddenly ended at the "hole" until the viaduct was completed.

Of course, since I was actually going to Millau, I needed to drive down to the bottom.

Can you see the viaduct in the distance?











There are panoramic viewpoints to stop and look.







There are proposals for pedestrian fun, too.

[Deleted]

The river that runs through Millau is the Tarn.







The majority of the townspeople were in hiding, of course.

[bixaorellana]

This is immensely enjoyable, Kerouac. It's like being in the car with you -- where to next?

All those people-less villages are so beautifully groomed. Lauroux's geraniums and hydrangeas, for instance -- cared for by elves?

Those are some ritzy truck stops y'all have in France!

I'm knocked out by the glorious terrain and by your photographs -- the light dazzle on the altar in St. Fulcran's, the roses in the weeds, the harvest fields seen through the dried dill heads, the back-roadsy look of the back roads ........... all of it, really.

[Deleted]

The central market had very short hours.







The beffroi (belfry) is perhaps the biggest attraction in the town.







The square tower was built in the 11th-12th century, and the octagonal upper tower was built in the 17th century. It used to have a pointy roof, but it was destroyed by a fire in 1811 and they haven't had time to replace it yet. There was nothing left to do but climb to the top.














I was the only person there, but the view is admirable.















I could spy on the layabouts laying about down in the square.

Just as I was leaving, two breathless old people approaching death had arrived at the top. You would not want to cross anybody in the stairs -- in fact it is not possible. Somebody has to back into a niche if necessary.

There are very few trains at the local station.

[tod2]

I love back roads! You have certainly taken us on a wonderful romantic journey Kerouac and I'm hoping we are not done yet?!

I like going over the photos several times so I can't miss a thing. I noticed one of the narrow alleys between buildings seems to have been recently tarred. Putting down new cobbles too expensive?
Pity, because you don't get the same feel ...

Looking down on the orange rooftops from the Belfry gave a stunning view.
The L O N G bridge (aqueduct you say?) Is this the one completed only a few short years ago and proposed to be the longest span in the world??

The sign writers doing work on the fabric shop reminds me of how lovely olde world buildings are with their wooden facades...

My fav photo is the one of the town square with the fountain and the very green branches of the trees forming an umbrella.

More please...!

[Deleted]

The viaduct is the tallest bridge in the world, not the longest. The central pillars are taller than the Eiffel Tower.

There is a bit more to show, not much.

[thill25]

Great report...the terrain in that region is spectacular. Love the panaoramic views from belfry!

[Deleted]

A lot of the street signs were in both French and Provençal.

                   

This was my hotel -- Ibis & Mercure sharing the same building. You can see it from the belfry.



The view from my window



The church was of no interest, and here is proof.





It's nice to settle into an outdoor terrace for dinner after a long day on the road.





However, my tarte tatin for dessert was the only memorable item.

I had no reason to go over the viaduct this time, because the A75 wasn't going in my direction. But it is well nigh impossible to be in Millau and not at least drive down to the pillars of the bridge to get an idea of the massiveness of the construction. There is no way for photographs to do it justice.

The village of Roquefort was only 20 km away, so I went to visit the caves.

This is the corporate headquarters of the largest roquefort producer, Société. (I read that it is going to be rebranded soon in countries other than France as Président, which is an easier name and already well known for its camembert and brie, as well as the butter that you often find on airlines.)

Here is the waiting room for the tour. No photos allowed in the caves, so I guess that ends this report.

We tasted 3 different kinds of roquefort after the tour, which is an interesting experience at 10 am.

[Kimby]

Jul 14, 2011 13:35:21 GMT kerouac2 said:

The river that runs through Millau is the Tarn

That's a tarn fine bridge, K2!

(And you MUST consider reposting that wooden ceiling on the Wood photo board.)

[bixaorellana]

Jul 14, 2011 17:19:42 GMT kerouac2 said:

There is no way for photographs to do it justice.

If you say so. I think your photos of the bridge are stunning.

Jul 14, 2011 17:19:42 GMT kerouac2 said:

We tasted 3 different kinds of roquefort after the tour, which is an interesting experience at 10 am.

;D What a way to wake up your mouth! Had you had anything to eat earlier?

Hey people ~~ we shouldn't hog a wonderful thread like this. Please check out anyport's facebook page for easy sharing of this and other great threads.

[BigIain]

Really nice, K. Love that part of the world. The day we drove to Roquefort everything was closed due to being offseason!

[Deleted]

Do I sense a certain amount of nostalgia for when you lived there, Iain?

[BigIain]

More than just a small amount.

[Kimby]

m.us.wsj.com/articles/a/SB10001424127887323372504578467040204852174?mg=reno64-wsj


This article in the Wall Street Journal today reminded me of this excellent old thread.

If the link doesn't work, google Joseph giovannini millau.

[bjd]

We were in the Quercy on Wednesday to see people who had driven up using the Millau bridge. It costs 8€ to cross it.

It's definitely a beautiful piece of engineering. Thanks for bringing up this old thread, Kerouac.

[Deleted]

It's Kimby who brought it up, so I give my thanks to Kimby.

One thing about the Viaduc de Millau is that it remains just as stunning now as when it was brand new. Nobody ever says "oh, they've done much better things since then."

[Kimby]

It costs nothing to drive UNDER it! And it's interesting to note how the village of Millau is both altered and preserved by having the holiday travelers fly overhead instead of clogging the valley floor.

[Deleted]

I'm sure that dozens of snack stands along the road closed after the construction of the viaduct, but that is good news rather than bad. And I hope that my photo report on the town showed that it is a lovely place.