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

I do desire we may become better strangers.

William Shakespeare – As You Like It.

It was a good thing I remembered to pack my earplugs. The  chap in the bunk next to me who looked like a wild eyed 6th century Irish itinerant missionary, snored like a drain all night. Thankfully the chap in the bunk above me was as quiet as a church mouse.

There was nobody else around at breakfast apart from a dark haired girl in lycra running shorts who appeared to be going through some sort of emotional breakdown. Breakfast was punctuated with deep sighs. I half expected her to break into tears at any moment so decided not to risk any small talk in case that pushed her over the edge into an emotional abyss.

The stretch of the GR4 from La Palud-sur-Verdon to Monastier Sainte Marie must have one of the most stunning views in France of the Lake of Sainte Croix. The walk to the viewpoint was relatively benign, the descent much more challenging but the views were sublime and well worth the effort.

There was a fair wind blowing from the summit but not a cloud in the sky as I stood on the footpath and surveyed the magnificent view over Lake of Sainte Croix. No pain, no gain as the old saying goes.

Although I had booked accommodation for the night in a gite in the tiny hamlet of Vénascle, which was accessible by a footpath near the summit, I decided to press on to Moustiers Sainte Marie and then double back on my steps to reach Vénascle.

Moustiers Sainte Marie is something of a tourist hot spot. Reknown for its faience pottery, the village was bustling with visitors of all nationalities. I made straight for the village bakery for a slice of pissaladière and a beer before making my way to the tourist office to find the most direct route to Vénascle.

A charming lady in the tourist office gave me a map of the area and told me it would take me at least 3 hours to reach Vénascle on foot from Moustiers. In fact it took me less than an hour to get there on a well marked path across the mountain.

I arrived at the gite shortly before 4pm and was greeted by a charming Lithuanian lady who showed me to my room and explained that she had been working there for the past 5 years.

After I’d had a shower I met the proprietor of the gite, Camille Scipion and her dog Boulotte.

We chatted and she revealed that she had recently returned from a trip around Asia (including South Korea, Japan and China) with her Colombian partner.

The gite at Vénascle is charming and enjoys superb views over the valley. Camille explained how her grandfather had bought the entire hamlet and converted the shepherd’s accommodation into a gite which had been passed down to her via her father who had specialised in bee keeping.

There were three other guests staying at the gite. We spent an enjoyable few hours swapping travellers’ tales over a bottle of white wine.

One of the great joys of travelling in France is sharing time together with complete strangers. There is something incredibly uplifting about listening to others’ travellers tales and shooting the breeze.

The day’s walking had been great, the views had been sublime but the icing on the cake was the warm welcome from Camille and the kindness of the fellow guests at the Vénascle Gite.