Holiday in France (part III)

The third part of the holiday was pretty straightforward: Paula and Dorien went horse riding at Cecile’s almost every day and Mary worked around the house and garden, while Piet was doing time in the office in The Hague. Cecile had a children’s holiday camp (daytime only) with 20 kids from 3 to 12 years old, and she needed all the help she could get. The (spoken) French of the girls improved again, and Dorien is also managing to chat away happily now. In the garden Mary cleaned out some of the ditches and opened up our natural spring. She also managed to get the antique wardrobe, which she had been restoring over the last few years, from the old part of the house into our bedroom. We had postponed this move many times, as we thought scaffolding was required. However, pure man- and woman power turned out to be sufficient. In between all the work Mary rode several times on the village horse Swallow, taking her on longer trips each time. Afterwards there is always the reward of fresh grass from our garden. Her companions, two sheep, enjoy that snack as well!

Piet’s return started a bad weather week: lots of rain and cool temperatures. We still managed to get in some cycling (Piet) and horse riding, and on one of the nicer days we did another Via Ferrata (see also post of the 8th of August), this one near Alpe d’Huez. The route had an easy and a hard section, which were intertwined, and offers the option of several different combinations. We used our own equipment (we have 2 complete sets now) and just did the easy route, leaving the more difficult parts for next year.

Due to the rain work in the garden was very slow, and we just cleaned up what was already chopped down. We had a huge bonfire again, and filled up the barn with more wood for the fire place. The smaller bits were shredded to wood chips and ended up in Swallow’s stable. After a day of cleaning in and around the house it was back to reality again: we left on Sunday at 5 a.m., had a very smooth ride and arrived back in The Hague after 11 hours in the car: home after a 7 week holiday!

Mary admiring another bonfire

Dorien riding Swallow along the Romanche

Paula and Dorien on the Via Ferrata of Alpe d'Huez

Holiday in France (part II)

The second part of our holiday got going when the girls left for a 5 day horse riding trip, with stable owner Cecile and two other teenage girls. They started from Col d’Ornon and descended to the southwest, arriving back across the Taillefer 5 days later (this for people who know the region...). They carried all their equipment with them, and slept under the stars or in mountain / shepherd huts. Even horse food and a portable paddock were dragged along, by a big Fjord horse acting as a giant donkey. The girls had a brilliant time, riding through the mountains on small hiking trails, cooking on a wood fire (couscous and tomato sauce every day) and being with horses 24 hours a day.

Just after they left Piet had to go back to The Hague to put in some time in the office. Mary was by herself for 2 days and then her parents arrived, by bus from Holland. In our village Mary met a guy, who was looking for a place to leave his horse overnight. Our fellow villagers pointed at our garden and a temporary paddock was put up. The guy was organizing a horse back mountain trip (similar to what the girls were doing) for a group of French and Italians. After a lot of changes of plan Mary decided to join them on part of that trip. In the mean time the girls had returned and all of them went to Vizille to a big horse festival “Equirando”. Here Mary stayed behind, leaving the girls in the care of the grandparents (or the other way around?). Mary spend the night in a barn and left next morning with the horse guy (Jacques), who had left his group by themselves, as they were a rowdy and unruly bunch. They rode to Alpe du Grand Serre, and stayed in a bed & breakfast. The next day they rode across the Taillefer (part of the beautiful route the girls took a few days earlier) and descended to Bassey; the horses stayed in our garden again. The following day the group had to be guided up to Villard Reculas, right above our village, from where they would go on by themselves. Paula did the honours along a narrow, steep and winding forest track. Mary drove round and picked her up, and the group continued their trek towards Briançon.

A day of rest and then Piet returned for a 4 day long weekend, and the following day Mary’s parents were put on the bus back home again. This weekend we did a long overdue activity: the Via Ferrata of St. Christophe. A Via Ferrata is a secured rock climb, where you are clipped in to a steel wire all the time. We rented some equipment and just took off with the four of us. It was quite tricky in some parts, with a 10 m vertical wall high above the Veneon river as the main difficulty. Vertigo is not an option as there is no way back once you started! We ended at the top after some 3 hours, doing much better than many other groups on the climb. Despite Dorien’s protests we also did the much shorter second section and ended up, exhausted, on a café terrace in St. Christophe. After the walk back down, a quick late lunch and a short drive we collapsed in our chairs at the house. The day was finished off with a meal in our favourite restaurant in Bourg d’Oisans. Unfortunately the next afternoon Piet had to return to The Hague again.......

Cooking dinner during the horse riding trip

Approaching Taillefer on horseback

Ready for the descend at Taillefer: the last day of Paula and Dorien's horse riding tour

Dorien climbing up the Via Ferrata at St. Christophe en Oisans

Mary, Paula and Dorien on the Via Ferrata