Pilgrim's Progress – Long Distance Walks in Europe and the UK

Stand-up comedy is what I do, and it’s so rewarding. If you write a joke and tell it to an audience of 15,000 people who laugh their heads off at it, it’s the best feeling in the world.

Michael McIntyre

There are many things I wanted to be when I was young. They included – becoming Prime Minister, an archaeologist, an astrologer, a journalist, a diplomat, an author and a stand up comedian. For various reasons none of these came to fruition. But I sometimes wonder – is there still time to achieve one of these ambitions?

There were four of us staying at the Gite Fougal. Myself, a couple from Marseilles, who were carriage riding in the area, and anither Frenchman, who was walking the St Regis Way and was a metal worker.

Supper, the previous evening, had been a jolly affair. Martine, who runs the Gite Fougal with her husband Jean-Pierre, had prepared a delicious meal which included celeriac soup and a paella like dish with peppers and chorizo, accompanied by a bottle of Burgundy.

Conversation had revolved around the challenge of organising carriage riding trips around France. It is apparently no easy matter finding gites which provide stables and hay for horses as well as accommodation for the ‘cavaliers’ (riders).

I’d hoped to be off the next morning by 8am but fate intervened to thwart such plans. Breakfast, which commenced at 7.30am, continued for an hour and a half as we had an animated discussion on a variety of subjects including the British sense of humour (Benny Hill etc), the impact of artificisl intelligence on human society, the decline in moral standards in France, the challenges of runming a business in France and the joys of overseas travel. The couple from Marseilles worked as a butcher and a hypnotherapist and spent much of the winter travelling around Thailand on scooter.

As the conversation turned to the differences between British and French humour, Martine (who was sitting at the end of the table listening assiduously to our conversation) piped up:

“I have a joke for you. How do you make a cat bark?” (spoiler alert – punch line to follow later…)

Before I left, Martine asked if I knew anybody who might want to buy their gite. They were hoping to downsize and move elsewhere in France. I said I might have one acquaintance in the UK who might be interested and would highlight the fact tgat the Gite Fougal was for sale in my blog).

The weather, when I eventually set off, had taken a distinct turn for the better. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the temperature was ideal for walking.

The landscape had changed subtly, granite had become the dominant geological feature, reminiscent of the landscape of the Aubrac.

One of the most distinctive geologicsl features on the Meygal plateau are the sucs. The term suc is derived from Indo-European or Celtic and designates a slightly rounded protruding relief. The underlying granite bsse of the Velay was formed 300 million years ago. 15-16 million yearss ago the sucs were formed. They are unique in Europe because, unlike other volcanoes, they don’t have craters.

The whole Meygal plateau is apparently a paradise for lovers of cross country ski-ing.

I reached Saint-Julien-Chapteuil shortly after 2pm.I tried in vain to track down some grated carrots and tinned mustard mackerel but had to settle for a ham sandwich from the only bakery in town that was open.

On my way to Le Puy-en-Velay I crossed the Loire for the first time on the walk. What a contrast with my last time on Le Puy on May when it was tipping down with rain and thoroughly miserable!

I checked in at Le Relais de Saint Jacques just around the corner from the Cathedral and headed off to buy something for supper. 

Run by the Association of St Jacques, the six staff who were meant to be welcoming pilgrims spent the entire evening gossiping amongst themselves and swapping ‘strange pilgrims I have met’ stories at high volume. Meanwhile, I was left to my own company to eat my pasta in solitude as the staff members quaffed a bottle of wine and wolfed down pasta al genovese. I felt like a fish out of water rather than celebrating the completion of the Via Gebennensis!

After 11 days and just over 350km, I’d completed the Via Gebennensis pretty much as planned without any great mishaps. In the process I’d met some great people, got to practise my French and eaten an awful lot of grated carrot and tinned mackerel! Tomorrow is another day and I start on the Chemin de Régordane towards St Gilles du Gard.

And as for how do you get a cat to bark (“comment faire aboyer un chat?”) the answer is simple – yoy give it a bowl and it will bark! (“lui donner une gamelle et elle boit!”) Nb- this French joke loses something in translation. However, if I do finally realise my ambition of becoming a stand up comic (in French), this will definitely be my first joke to ‘warm up’ the audience!