Loop Ride – Pic de Nore and Lastours – Distance: 76km / 47mi / Elevation: 998m / 3274ft

The region around Carcassonne has been ridden regularly in the Tour de France for good reason. This most recent Stage 15 of the TdF rode up the Pic de Nore into the upper Aude rolling past Gouffre de Cabrespine, one of the biggest caves in Europe, then from the peak traversed and dropped again into Cathar country to Châteaux de Lastours.

So many options are available on a rest day; most do laundry as roommate Dave did for both of us. I slept in, took a guided walking tour of the walled city, grabbed another massage, napped, had a beer(s) and rested my nagging lower back injury.

 

Also had some issues with my bike sorted out by master mechanic Manuel, who is travelling with us.

  

Our group post ride/afternoon stretch comes before happy hour and today we had a relaxed historical talk about ‘the Man’ himself, Hannibal, given by leader Sam.

 

Dinner was again spectacular when we dined on sea bass and a Carcassonne traditional staple, the cassoulet, which is a slow cooked crock of white beans and broth. Ours had duck confit and chorizo sausage in it.

Gazpacho

   Sea bass Casoulet w duck confit and chorizo

Field Notes – Carcassonne

The medieval citadel at Carcassonne, known as ‘La Cité’, dominates Languedoc’s tourism map. It is huge and completely over-the-top, encompassing no less than 53 towers, strung together by two enormous concentric walls, surrounded by a moat, and punctuated here and there by heavy barbicans, portcullis and draw-bridges. Within these fairy-tale fortifications sits a castle, a basilica (church), and a small town. And the whole thing struts its stuff at the top of a hill, giving it superb views of the modern city of Carcassonne to the west, the Aude river and Canal du Midi to the north, and the often-snow-capped Pyrénées to the south.

   

Such Medieval extravagance has made the citadel at Carcassonne France’s second-most popular tourist attraction, and visitors from all over the world are bussed in in their thousands – to stroll around what has become the world’s largest medieval theme-park, and one of France’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

 

Arguments rage about whether it has been over-restored, or even badly-restored. And the centre is a bit of a Disneyesque mess of overpriced shops selling cheesy trinkets and dodgy-looking nougat.

However, the trick is to visit Carcassonne in the right way. Firstly, You’ll never get another chance to see Medieval (and Roman) military architecture on this scale, and the view of the castle from a distance, as well as of the modern city and mountains from the citadel itself, is unforgettable.
The City

Carcassonne has been influenced by over 2,000 years of conquests, crusades, and the prosperous period of Catharism’s religion. Before its restoration, the Cité was an abandoned place in an outlying area in a town made wealthy by the wine trade and the clothes manufacturing industry.

Today, Carcassonne offers a unique historical and architectural asset. In the absence of any heavy industry, tourism is undoubtedly the city’s strength both because of its geographic position and its exceptional heritage. The medieval walled town, the “Cité,” lies on the right bank of river Aude, and is still home to a population of around 120, with a large number of shops and craftsmen. On the left bank, the modern city Bastide Saint Louis has kept its historical roots. I was amazed by its outstanding variety of architectural styles, including buildings dating from the 14th to the 18th century, such as the Saint Michel Cathedral.

Rest day ends tonight as we kit up and put wheels down tomorrow riding into the High Languedoc for our next leg of the odyssey to find Hannibal!

Bon Soir…