November 4. Sault-de-Navrailles to Gite Acoulacoula south of Orthez. 18.58 km.

Breakfast by ourselves this morning, no bachelor brothers. Louis was off doing farmer stuff long before we strolled downstairs – the usual chocolate chaud for Scott and me, coffee for Ken and wow, two bananas.  Raoul kindly drove us back into Sault-de-Navailles to the trail.

This water pump and well are over 200 years old!

Louis painted a number of art pieces and they are dotted around the house.

Their pilgrim stamp is based on this old tile, which is one of the original floor tiles, several hundred years old.

The farm cat was in love with Ken’s backpack. Hmmmm. What exactly does it smell like???

Raoul.

Well, back on the road again – let the bantering begin.  It’s looking like a nice day so Scott takes off his hoodie.

Ken:  How can you wear that thing? You must be a cold blooded lizard.

Scott:  At least on the fire line I dress appropriately instead of flying in circles in a little airplane dressed in an Elvis suit.

Terry:  How quickly can I lose these guys???

By the way, there is a twee bit of truth to the Elvis story. 

Every day is a different dynamic. We walk together, we walk apart, one is ahead of 2, 2 are ahead of 1. Conversations and no conversations.  But there is usually at least a few minutes of pithy sometimes witty repartee between the two boys, some of which is quite funny. But darned if I can remember any of it by the time I post the blog.

I’ve never seen a water pump where you spin the thingy instead of turning a tap or pumping a handle.

This door must be ancient.

We are so grateful for these outdoor laundromats by grocery stores.  Our clothes were still wet from washing them the other night – some of our places have washers but never a dryer. It was too cold in our room for clothes to dry overnight so we made use of the dryer here while we did a grocery shop. Getting hot so I am ditching the leggings and walking in the skirt.

These guys came running across the yard to us, bleating all the way, and were rather annoyed that we had nothing for them. They must get fed by passers-by pretty regularly to behave like that.

Strawbie taking a rest in a random bird box on the forest trail.  Not sure what it was for as it had no base.

These ferns are growing straight out of the tree.

Ancient picnic table base and seats. Not something you could actually sit on.

Biker stopped to chat with Ken mid-way up the big hill.

Ken was excited to see this placque to the Battle of Orthez as he got interested in the history of the peninsular war when reading the Sharpe novels and watching the series.  This is the same Wellington that defeated Napoleon at Waterloo.

The plaque was on this gate, which looks old enough to have been around at the time of the battle.  It doesn’t actually act like a gate as you can walk right around it and water the plants,  if you know what I mean.

I like how they decorate their mailboxes.

I am majestically ignoring you.

Feed me.

There was a short detour / trail variant to thus belvedere (lookout) which we debated taking but we are so thankful we did. The view was magnificent, and the photos come nowhere near to doing them justice.

We see pockets of bamboo everywhere, which Scott informs me is very invasive. I just wanna know where the pandas are.

A different take on October Rose month with pink butterflies.

We hate walking on grinders, especially at quitting time. We are constantly having to move onto the shoulder, which is pretty much non-existent.  Lots of tractors hauling corn kernels today with the odd kernel littering the road.

Arriving at our chambre d’hotes,  I got the impression this place liked cats

We are in a Chambre d’Hôtes tonight with a cold room again, but not bone chilling like the farm manor.   We had the pleasure of a communal meal with the two other guests, a couple from Ireland and their dog Bailey. They are spending a year travelling around in their tiny car, staying with friends, working here and there. Ken always lights up when he has someone new to talk to.  But I completely forgot to get a group photo. Heavy sigh.

This place came with a meal and at the risk of insulting out host, I asked for no duck. I couldn’t face it again (I felt bad insulting Raoul but at least I ate the duck pate thingy) and Ken is no fan either. Of course the first thing I see when I walk in the yard are ducks. It’s very popular here. But luckily it was pasta and salads. Yay.