But first, the market. It was very grey and still this morning but not cold at all and not a breath of wind. Everything is quiet, muffled and soft. A cover of duvet cloud, as if the world is tucking us up with a nice cup of cocoa! There’s hardly any colour either because it’s been so dry. Any grass is pale and beige. Dessicated ground. The leaves on the plane trees make no effort to colour up and are just shrivelling quietly to grey. Even the vines are slow to burnish this year and many are still greenish. I love this sort of day. [get on with it! ed.]
Right, so food purchased, coffee and croissants consumed and home by 10.30. M. Multiservices was blocking the road and moving furniture out of next door so we unloaded and headed for Caderousse.
Caderousse is a walled village the other side of Orange. The wall is to keep out flood water - the Mairie has several plaques of historic date showing the scary height the waters used to reach.
These days the Rhône is tamed and knows its place. Its duty is now to provide safe passage for barges and generate power!
We like Caderousse. It is half elegant and half scruffy, but obviously on the up.
It’s also of historic moment for it was here that our hero, Jean Moulin, set up his radio broadcasts following his parachute landing down the road in Salon.
Moving on, we parked up alongside the CNR generating dam and ate our mini quiches. Watched some cormorants preening themselves and waited for A Barge.
Just giving up hope when a loud chugging
announced a beauty. The
Guadiana laden with shipping containers heading north.
It only just fitted into the lock.
Then to the next bridge along, downstream from Marcoule (nuclear power) where you can walk through the tinder dry pines to the parting of the channel. One sign with No Entry and the other with a giant ‘this way’ arrow.
In the fullness of time the
Guadiana appeared above the tree tops and cut a wake through the mirror smooth water. By now the sun was
burning off some of the cloud and there was almost a heat haze over the river so that Marcoule was shimmering a bit like Avalon! I know, I know...sorry.
Almost back to the car when I spotted this incredible bracket fungus on a scubby tree. Goodness! It had droplets of liquid on the underside that I thought was honeydew. But
when I touched one it was just water (or maybe sap).
Anyway, more pictures on the Google photos link, if you want.
