Finding treasure on the Camino de Santiago

“Beauty is whatever gives joy.” Edna St Vincent Millay

DAY 2 – St- Privat-d’Allier to Saugues

Total steps and Kilometers to date – 47,63kms and 74 597 steps

Day two started a little earlier thank goodness. Phillipe drove us back to St-Privat and Jennie went off on the walk while I looked for a shop to buy Sparkling water, some lunch and Surprise! a little bottle of wine. I got the first comment on my Princess crown. The shop keeper spoke only French but I understood completely that she loved it and she understood my story about Kyle. It made my heart smile and I got quite emotional as I recalled why I started wearing it in the first place.

For those that don’t remember I got my first crown for my 50th birthday from Kyle, my beautiful son. Somehow before I left we all agreed I should wear my crown while I walked as it would be a great conversation starter and it would bring me joy as I love a bit of sparkle. On The Camino Frances I got os many comments and it started so many conversations. So I have just continued to do it. I did it on the Portuguese and now on my Le Puy route too. It’s a different crown as my Camino Frances crown is framed with my Compostella in my office.

It’s a lovely story actually. I had just bought my new one, my son lives in Canada, so I might have got one from him, but knew I needed one. The day after I bought it, I bumped into a lovely young colleague who works as the accountant for my Business School, she asked me have i got a crown and was I walking in one and could she buy me one, all in one sentence and I simply responded ….. with tears in my eyes “That would be amazing!” A few days later she arrived with not one but two crowns for me. I brought one along. I was so incredibly touched by this gesture and her message that I really inspired her that I knew I needed to walk with one of her crowns (to be revealed …..). Thank you special Jen for that, it really touched my soul.

I set off on Day two up a step hill and I come across a Chapel on a hill with a tower of sorts that was apparently a lookout and defense point in days gone by. I detour into the chapel hoping for a stamp. Remember those stamps are like gold for us Pilgrims we become obsessive about them. I contemplate climbing up to the tour as I see a few Pilgrims doing and then promptly change my mind as I feel my muscles protesting. An absolutely Disneyeque chapel and the views are spectacular. Chapelle St Jacques in Rochegude. The sun is out, the dandelions are everywhere and my heart is full of sunshine.

The Chapel is at about kilometer three, I am strong and invincible and I have got this. Then I get to the top of a forest pathway, that is so steep it feels like I have arrived back at the end of yesterday where it was just a vertical drop down down down. My ankles are screaming, my toes are groaning and my knees are saying “What the hell…….!”, but not nearly that politely. I watch as a few Pilgrims jack rabbit down the hill with hot a care in the world. It takes me literally two hours to descend maybe 3kms. I get to the bottom and I am like “Where is the nearest bar, I need a drink and a rest!”! And just like that the Camino answers my needs and a sign appears for a Bar Hotel around a corner.

I sit down order a glass of rosé (it was already 12h05), and I fiddle on my phone, raise a bit of money for The Butterfly Centre and order another glass and suddenly it is 13h50. The guy that owns the Bar strikes up a conversation with me initiated by my beaded South African flag pin I wear. British guy owns the place even living here for many years. He proceeds to tell me how many people have stumbled into his place over the years after breaking, spraining, tearing appendages on that very mountain I just came down. The extra wine seemed like a great reward. I made it. Don’t get too smug though, many more ups and downs to go. Mmmmmmm……… I still have technically 12kms to go, but actually about 15 and it’s up up up. Oh well the choices we make.

I start up the mountain, it is steep and the views looking back are spectacular. I encounter a Chapelle in the mountain. Sadly it only opens in June, but I could still get a glimpse through the bars. I find a painted rock, (I had seen one in the chapel at St Roch the day before. When I turn it around I realize it is the same guy “planting”the rocks). The path just keeps going up. I make sure I stop every hundred steps to turn around and take in the view. Breathtaking!

I walk and walk and walk and see no one. I am having full on conversations with myself and loving the scenery. I turn to tell ……. There’s no one to tell so I tell Warwick anyway (not going cray cray I promise) and I decide to talk into my little recording device on my phone so I can remember everything I wanted to share in the moment.

The day is marked by dandelions, vast fields and fields of them. I will google later if these are in fact weeds as I cannot believe all these beautiful farmlands would just be left to weeds they must have a purpose. I keep thinking of my friend Kim who loves dandelions and puffballs and has the symbol painted in her office. She is having her 50th party tonight and I was meant to be there and say something and here I am surrounded by her, dandelions wherever I look.

The beauty of the day and the fields and fields of yellow and dappled sunshine everywhere make the walk “easy”. I am not as fit as I would have liked to be, so I huff and puff a bit more than I would like but I know this will be fine soon. And there’s no one around to see me huffing and puffing. Just me and my little (very heavy) day backpack called Dandy as of today.

As I start descending into Saugues I find my shadow. Which hasn’t been that prominent as it’s been a bit overcast with dappled sunshine. You know how much I love playing with my shadow and all shadows actually. The descent is hard but I can smell the end. All the little pathways I walk down are also filled with wild cherry trees and they are all flowering with beautiful white flowers. Soon they will produce cherries and the Pilgrims will well fed.

As I walk down down down I encounter some really interesting wooden carvings (pics below) and along the road a HUGE WOLF looking wooden carving huge as in 10 meters wide by 3 or 4 meters high. I did not get a pic as it was on a busy road . But scary and creepy. Apparently there’s some legend about a beast of Gevauden (the area) that eats people and animals and terrorized the area between 1764 and 1767. These beasts apparently had formidable teeth and immense tails. Scary stuff to market your town on. I am tired so I am starting to see beasts everywhere. It is 18h30 and I need to find my hotel.

I find my Hotel only to discover we have been booked into a Gite. Which means I am sharing with someone, thank goodness it’s Jennie. But that was not what we paid for or expected. The guy who owns and runs the place meets me at the front door and proceeds to sergeant major me around (you all know how that makes me react). Anyway he introduces himself as Jesus and proceeds to instruct me to take my shoes off, leave my sticks in a bin and put my backpack in a bag all in fast furious French. I am a little rattled and thrown and he instructs me that dinner is at 7pm (all in French). He seems irritated that I don’t speak French and I suddenly get quite cross with myself too as I had promised myself I would learn for this trip. Let it go let it go let it go ……..!

I shower and vaguely unpack while Jennie goes down for 7pm. I make up my mind that if he shouts at me I will remind him that I am the customer. I am tired and know I should just breathe. I hear Warwick’s voice in my ear calming me down and giggling at how comical this all is. I am determined I do not like this Jesus man. He is very bossy and military like. THEN he produces dinner.

It starts with a vegetable soup, delicious! Followed by beef Ragu (stew), unbelievably delicious, followed by green salad with delicious vinaigrette and then cheeses and crème anglaise. All cooked by the sergeant major. AMAZING! UNFORGETTABLE!

He reminds us that breakfast is strictly at 7am and proceeds to tell us he was in the navy. Could have fooled me!

Camino Gifts today ….

– The ability to actually get down that mountain.

– My walking sticks, my best friends

– That meal Jesus with wine thrown in

– The fields of gold drawing me onwards and upwards

– Hearing real cuckoos – Wow!