Inlägg

And then backwards ...

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  2021-09-25 Grabels -  Montpellier  (11/140 km)  And then came the sad ending. I realized with a GPS only half working and myself often being very tired - it was time to interrupt this walk an return to base. So in the morning I turned my steps backwards to Montpellier.  A couple of funny things. First the lady that helped me in yesterday. She was driving a car in Grabels, saw me, stopped, and asked what had happened. I explained. In a second event, still in the outskirts of Grabels, I met a man - my age or slightly below. We stopped and exchanged some words about walking pilgrim trails. He had also started in Arles, a day after me. It would have been fun to walk with him. But my decision was made...! So I continued to walk my earlier steps backwards to Montpellier. Had found out that it was possible to go by tram from the center of Montpellier. And so it was. Found a room at an Ibis hotel 15 minutes from the terminal. And that all for now. 2021-09-26 Montpelli...

On my way along "Via Tolosana" - the first days

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 ... soon it's time again after the loooong Covid-19 pandemics ... This time I'm planning to walk the old pilgrim route "Chemin d'Arles / Via Tolosana". It's one of the four traditional pilgrim routes towards Santiago de Compostella trough France. This route starts in the city of Arles in southern France near Marseilles.  I've earlier walked "Via Podiensis" that traditionally starts in Le Puy-en-Velay. Personally I did start it a bit earlier in Lausanne and walked via Geneva to Le Puy as an extra bonus.  So this time I plan to start in Arles and walk towards Toulouse. Later I hope to continue "Via Tolosana" from Toulouse to St-Jean-Pied-de-Port, the traditional starting point towards Spain. A person knowing the pilgrim routes through France will remark: but Via Tolosana does not go trough St-Jean. After Oloron-Ste-Marie it passes into Spain through Col du Somport. That is correct. But from Oloron-Ste-Marie there is now also an alternati...