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

No man is an island, entire of itself;                           every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. 

John Donne – No Man is an Island

As I was eating a pizza yesterday evening in the centre of Castellane I contemplated the fact that in a week’s time I would be back home. How would I rate the walk at the half way stage of this segment of my walk across France?

In terms of physical challenge and scenery it had so far exceeded my expectations. What I have found disappointing so far has been the lack of contact with fellow walkers or pilgrim host families. It’s all very well walking for 12-13 hours a day without meeting a soul, it’s somewhat dispiriting to end up on your own for the night in a remote gite. Maybe that’s one of the attractions of following established pilgrim routes – it’s just more sociable!

After almost a week of sleeping in pretty basic accommodation I had forgotten just how good it felt to have a hot shower and enjoy a decent night’s sleep in a double bed with decent sheets and a mattress! Perhaps I’m getting too old for slumming it. Ah well, let’s see what the next week brings and whether I actually get to meet any fellow walkers!

Castellane sits on another long distance path (GR406) which runs 325km from Cannes to Grenoble via Grasse. The path commemorates the return of Napoléon Bonaparte from exile on Elba on 1 March 1815.

With a small band of 1,100 loyal soldiers, he set out on an extraordinary adventure that was to lead to his return to power two and a half weeks later, on the 20 March, with his triumphal entry into the Tuileries palace which had been hastily abandoned by Louis XVIII. This was the beginning of the 100 Days which ended with his defeat at Waterloo.

Napoléon subsequently remarked ‘Before I reached Grenoble they thought me a soldier of fortune. When I got there I became a prince’.

Napoléon entered Castellane on 3 March via the faubourg Saint-Martin, preceded by military trumpets and drums. Seated upon a bay and dressed in his uniform as Colonel of the Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard, he was greeted with cries of ‘Long live the Emperor’.

Nowadays Castellane is better known as the gateway to the canyon or gorges of Verdon. The canyon, which is the highest in Europe and stretches for nearly 100km, was formed in the Quaternary Era, as a result of earth movements while the Alpes were “growing” upwards and from erosion of the Jurassic limestone by the Verdon river.

Through the 19th century, the deepest gorges were thought to be impenetrable. Only a few local woodcutters went down into the gorges on ropes, looking for box wood (buis) stumps that they used for making boules.

The canyon remained unexplored until the 20th century. Armand Janet attempted a canoe exploration in 1896, but gave up because of the violent currents. In August of 1905, the speleologist Edouard Alfred Martel became the first person complete an exploration of the gorges on a 3-day expedition.

It was only 18km from Castellane to Rougon. I could probably have reached Rougon yesterday but, in view of the parlous state of my walking boots, it was a probably a good thing that I didn’t walk from Soleilhas to Rougon in a day!

The walking was fairly easy along a wide path without much in the way of major ascents and descents. The only habitation en route was the tiny hamlet of Chasteuil. It used to boast a restaurant apparently but it seems to have closed a few years ago. It wasn’t hard to see why!

In 2022 there were terrible forest fires in the area which destroyed 850 hectares of forestry. The charred remains of trees were a grim reminder of the impact of climate change on the region. Wild camping is now completely banned in the Verdon Gorges.

Before reaching Rougon shortly after midday I crossed the Suech plateau at an altitude of 1,200m. It was alive with birdsong and later in the year would be usdd by local farmers for summer grazing.

The gite where I was staying wasn’t open until after lunch so I spent a couple of hours in the creperie next lunch having a leisurely lunch and enjoying the spectacular views.

There wasn’t much to Rougon but it did boast three restaurants, a food shop selling local delicacies and a small chapel as well as spectacular views of the Verdon Gorge.

If the gite de Bayles in Soleilhas was one of the worst gites I have stayed at in France, the gite Le Mur d’Abeilles in Rougon must rank as one of the best. Fantastically well equipped, spotlessly clean and stylishly decorated.

It’s not every gite in France where you find Roy Liechtenstein prints in the loo!

The dining room was well equipped, the gite served an evening meal and the proprietor told me that the gite was full with other walkers. That was music to my ears!

Tomorrow the fun really starts. The stage from Rougon to Palud-sur-Verdon takes in some of the most spectacular views of the Verdon Gorges. Bring it on!