Monday, April 21
We left Collioure and the Mediterranean behind, and headed north toward the Corbieres hills, another wine region within the Languedoc Roussillon. It was a cloudy day. We had had rain on Sunday, and it was spitting on us periodically as we made our way.
I had planned a route that consisted of only "yellow roads" or (even smaller) "white roads." One of the segments of this route would take us near Queribus, one of the legendary Cathar sites. It is an old castle at the top of a steep snag of rock, with sheer drops of 700+ feet on all sides. (You'd think the Cathars would have been safe in such a remote and inhospitable place!) We knew we would not be scrabbling our way up to this castle. It is recommended only for those with a very good "head for heights." That would rule me out quite quickly. But we were hoping to get close enough to see it, because it is a strikingly situated castle. As we started on the route that would take us nearby, the top of the ridge of hills was completely socked in with clouds. We were disappointed, but quickly distracted by the very steep road and switchbacks in front of us. We went up and up and up. There was not much between us and the valley, which was getting increasingly far below us. It was a narrow road. We were lucky to have only a few interactions with other cars--and that, of course, was on a curve with us on the outside and our oncoming friend well over the center line (had there been one). Eeyikes, that was a bit of a gasp maker. Fortunately, Jerry is a very good--and calm and collected--driver.
Once we got to the pass and were at the foot of the vaunted Queribus, we pulled off for a look up. I looked more closely at the map I was working from. The wonderful IGN (Institut Geographique National) maps that we use in France are very detailed. We have used them for years. But I am a geographer by training, and any geographer worth her salt should have noted that this particular road went essentially up the face of a very rocky, very tall hill. Looking at the topographical markings after the fact, I was quite shame faced that I had not noticed this. Having survived this rather treacherous climb, I'm glad we did it. The scenery was spectacular (if you were brave enough to look) and it got us to Queribus. But, if I'd been paying attention, I probably would have picked a different route.
As a reward for our interesting climb, Queribus decided to make an appearance while we were below it. The clouds lifted a bit, and we got to see the castle in wisps of cloud. Then the clouds lifted fully enough that we got a very nice view. We drove on a ways, then pulled off to the side of the road to eat our boulangerie sandwiches (purchased before we left Collioure) with a pretty unrivaled view.
As a note: Queribus is cited as being the last stronghold of the Cathars. It left us wondering if every site claims to be "the last." But we can see that the date of the fall of Queribus was indeed some years later than the fall of Montsegur (see Cathars and Castles post). We assume the reference to the last at Montsegur must mean the last of the Cathars that had once been in residence at that site, not the last of all the Cathars.
We made our way further north, enjoying the beauty of (and the wide open, relatively unpopulated space of) the Corbieres hills. Lots of vineyards tucked in among the hills. Olive groves as well. We twisted our way through the hills, completely surprised by how pretty they are and how quiet and peaceful they are--in spite of their tortured history.
We stopped for the night in Lagrasse, a little town made up of narrow cobblestone streets. It is a medieval town (there seem to be a lot of them in these parts) and provided a very nice venue for a pre-dinner walk. It even includes an ancient abbey (founded in 799 AD), with 21 Benedictine monks in residence.
All in all, we had a pretty easy day, in touring terms. Easy, maybe, but it definitely had its high points in more than one sense of the expression.
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