Cycling in the Alpilles

Getting paid to cycle all day in the Provençal countryside isn't a bad deal really, and a welcome change from all the time I've been spending in the office lately.

Yesterday's reconnaissance took me some 80km through a countryside of olive groves windswept fields, while a moderate Mistral wind -- about 30km/h or so -- which was helpful at the start, but had me cycling directly into a headwind for the last two hours or so.

Below is the Oustau de Baumanière 5* hotel, nestled under the village of Les Baux de Provence. I was here to put together a new cycling itinerary staying in luxury accommodation: Cycling in Luxury

Below Les Baux to the south I cycled along tracks and back roads under a beautiful winter sky, in close to 15°C weather.

Someone should inform the Spanish broom that it isn't quite yet springtime:

But the mimosa is right on time:

At the end of my ride, climbing atop the pass and above the village of Les Baux de Provence, with the setting sun highlighting the 1000 year-old medieval buildings.

Vines in the winter

Vines hidden in the countryside in between Gigondas and Sablet. I was here yesterday, rewriting a paragraph of the Roadbook of Walk Inn's holiday: Under the Silhouette of Mont Ventoux. You'll see in the photograph that the vines have been recently pruned, a very important step in the winter to limit the yield for the following September.

We have had more than stellar reviews of our Roadbook for this particular holiday but needed to tweak one small section, where some of our guests became confused in orienteering. We take every tweak seriously, and for me it's a wonderful excuse to get out of my winter-hibernation-phase-in-the-office and get out on the trails.

January in the Luberon

Yesterday I went into the Luberon mountains to scout a new hike between the villages of Bonnieux and Lourmarin, and this for a luxury walking tour that Walk Inn now proposes: Luberon in Luxury.

But first was a visit of Lourmarin, and the B&B we'll be using there: Côté Lourmarin.

The 18th century building in Lourmarin was entirely restored last year by Christine Delatour, and converted into into a more-than-charming-actually-downright-sumptuous B&B. There are only two room in this guest house, set above the cobbled streets of the centre of the tiny village, and overlooking the cafés.

Below is the "lavande" room. As a male who has no sense of style or detail, I made sure to take as may photos as possible to remember...

The bathroom, with a marble sink.

The bathroom of the suite, with a luxury bathtub set in the centre and a huge walk-in shower, with possibly the largest shower head I've ever seen...

These "linear" walks, from A to B, require yours truly to use a bicycle at either the beginning or at the end of the walk. It was at the beginning this time, after leaving the car in Lourmarin (end of walk) and cycling up the road to Bonnieux (beginning of the walk). That doesn't make sense, does it? In any case this was one of those unfortunate times where the beginning of the walk just happened to be 250m higher in altitude than the end, which makes for an easy walk, but a sweaty bike ride.

The walk starts from Bonnieux and quickly reaches the crest of the mountain, from where -- at least yesterday -- the snow-capped chain of the Alps was clearly visible. It reminds me just how close everything is in France. From Sea to Alps just a short drive away...

It was a beautifully sunny winter's walk, about 15°C, and even up on the crest I was in a T-shirt, overlooking the gentle forested slopes of the Luberon:

Mont Ventoux looking back towards the north:

Rosemary in bloom on the sun-parched hills:

From the crest now looking towards the south:

On the path above the southern slope, getting ready for my descent towards Lourmarin. It was a beautiful walk, nice paths, and I'm more than convinced that Walk Inn's guests will enjoy it as much as I did.

It's days like these when I'm reminded why I moved here to Provence, surrounded by magical countryside, caressed by the warm sun and by the concentrated scent of thyme and pine needles.