Tales from the Via Podiensis -g) From the Garonne into the Department of the Gers

My most vivid memory of crossing the Garonne river is that I slipped on the footpath on the bridge. So to avoid falling sideways onto the road in front of a passing car I threw myself forward and landed on one knee! Fortunately it was a short distance to the nearby bastide town of Auvillar. After a slow climb up the hill punctuated by separating two fighting cats, I arrived to find the town square deserted (and the tourist office shut). Mercifully there was a hotel bar which was serving drinks to some of the locals, so I was able to source some ice and then sit in the shade nursing my bruised knee.

Later in the day I was able to walk back to the edge of town and look out over the Garonne valley from a vantage point (featured in my initial blog post about the Via Podiensis https://debverranlivinglifeoutdoors.travel.blog/2019/11/06/tales-from-the-via-podiensis/). The very helpful tourist office in Auvillar is situated in an old building where Pope Clement V used to stay back in time. This also explains why the nearby Church of Saint-Pierre is so magnificent (it was all about political connections back then). This is because Auvillar was a wealthy town back in time due to the use of the nearby Garonne river for moving produce etc by barge. Attending an evening pilgrim service at the church is also a must if you have the opportunity.

As a reminder that every photo tells a story, it was whilst I was taking some photos of the Horlage (pictured below) that I felt a sharp stabbing pain above one shoulder. It took me a minute to realise that I had been stung by a wasp (through my t-shirt). By the time I quickly returned to my accommodation I realised that the bites were swelling up, so steroid cream was liberally applied (and this cream was to be my friend for the next 3 days to help manage the itching etc)

One of my other memories of this stage of my journey was that any soup with crème on the menu was a welcome entrée from the set menu as I was having to pack the kilojoules in at night. I also walked through a procession of small villages, many with buildings reflecting their importance back in time. One example was the old hospital which is now a chateau at Saint-Antoine-de-Pont-d’Arratz. In the nearby square was a convenient WC which I took the opportunity to use.

Then there was the welcome pop up stand near a farm with hot coffee and prune gateau on offer. This is why it was useful to carry some loose change along with low denomination Euro notes. However I still had to be careful of the nearby wasps because I did not need any more wasp stings. Plus I was nursing a bruised knee and a slightly corked thigh from the previous tumble whilst crossing a bridge over the Garonne river! However there were still views to be had in between what were largely empty fields (because most of the crops had been harvested).

I also have memories of sharing one of my sardines (because bread and sardines was a lunch option some days), with a black labrador dog en route to Lectoure. I had stopped near the Eglise in Castet Arrouy for a break as there was a convenient picnic table nearby.

One morning I actually spotted a pheasant on the path near a field of sunflowers. By the time I had retrieved my digital device out of my back pack, the pheasant had rushed off into the nearby field and was out of site. So I took a photo of this sunflower field instead!

I knew I was getting close to Le Romieu when I spotted the impressive UNESCO listed Collegiale. Plus there were also some pretty landscaped gardens on the outskirts of Le Romieu complete with a suite of beehives for the local bees.

Once in Le Romieu I found the very helpful information centre located beside the Collegiale. The staff were really helpful, and asked if I needed help with accomodation (which fortunately I did not). I then looked around the Collegiale which is very historic and contains remnants of medieval painting on parts of the interior. This Collegiale was built because the then Cardinal (Arnaud d’Aux) was a cousin of the then Pope Clement V. Also by the nearby town square are some of the places where you can have a very pleasant meal.

To be continued- Tales from the Via Podiensis- h) The Department of the Gers