Oppidum d'Enserune, the old pond Montady, a beautiful walk in the Languedoc.

Oppidum d'Enserune, the old pond Montady. 8.5km (We did about 10km, but we did a bit more in the middle of the walk and went up to the view point on the ridge after the main walk). 3H yellow markers, easy. The walk is easy to follow and it's well marked. Park at the car park at Malpas. There is a lovely cafe there with lots of outdoor seating and plenty of parking. 

Turn right out of the car park and walk to the bridge. Turn right here and walk down the little road keeping the canal to your right. Soon you will see a little road to your left. Take this and you cross a unused railway track.

This small road goes under the hill with lovely views over the fields of vines, wheat and barley.This whole road and its fields were just like Monet pictures, ablaze with poppies in swaying barley fields.

After a few km you will come to a left turn under the old railway bridge and continue up the slope to reach a group of pretty buildings at Soustre.

The track bares right through the buildings and then left up the hill. Now the track bares right around a lovely olive grove, continue along this ridge to the end. Here the views are just breathtakingly beautiful, all the way up to the Caroux and the Espinouse with little villages sat upon hills and church towers atop them. 

The path with yellow markers goes left now up through vineyards, but we continued around the ridge past a greenhouse to enjoy our picnic under beautiful almond trees and a carpet of wild flowers. The scenery on this side is to the south and goes all the way down to the coast and the Pyrenees with its snow-capped mountains.

The path bares to the right and goes down a little track with lovely barley fields and cactus. Finally the track bares right and goes between the buildings of some beautiful golden coloured buildings next to the canal du midi.

Cross the lovely bridge and turn left to walk along the tow path. Sadly the promised shade of plane trees beside the water was not to be found as they appeared to have been recently felled. The walk along this part of the canal is therefore quite exposed but its level and quite soon you come to the entrance of le Malpas tunnel. 

If you want to go through the tunnel you need to cross to the other side and go down the steep steps to the little path that runs within the tunnel, after this go up the slope and turn left to return to the car park. (If you prefer to return to the car park continue a little further and you will come to it). You can now either enjoy refreshments at the welcome cultural centre or go up the hill to the panorama viewing area were you will find a small museum at the top. 

There is a hill fort here with traces of an Iberian-Greek settlement and a crematorium dating from the 4C and 3C BC. The museum contains artefacts of daily life from the ancient city and those used for cremation and offerings. The settlement began in the 6C BC where mud huts were found clustered around the hill fort. 

The Romans arrived in 118 BC and installed a sewage system, laid paving stones and plastered and painted walls. The hill fort was abondoned in the 1C AD when people settled the plains. Enjoy this most lovely walk with its peaceful and stupendous views.

Les Pigeonniers, Murviel-les-Beziers a very pretty ramble in the Languedoc.

Les Pigeonniers, Murviel-les-Beziers. 9.5km, 2H.30 yellow markers, Easy. A most lovely country ramble through vineyards, olive groves, forest of pine and oak and fields of wheat and rolling barley. The beautiful loop uses little dirt roads and stone sided tracks.

The views are are simple and beautiful, carpets of flowers and fields edged with red poppies, orchids, cistus and blue borage. The back drop is that of the Caroux and Espinouse peeking over near the mountains that back Causses-et-Veyran. Popping up at every corner is a little pigeon lofts dating back to the Middle Ages. 

The pretty village of Murviel-les-Beziers sits peaceful under Pech Belet, with its lovely church at its centre.  And then there are the poppies themselves at the moment. Worth a visit in themselves.

It's difficult to remember all the twists and turns of this walk there were so many, so I'm not going to go into too much detail. The walk is so well covered by yellow markers that it is in fact quite unnecessary.

Park just behind the little camping site on the D36 as you enter the village from the west. There you will find a sign for the walk and the first yellow marker instructing you to turn left and walk up a small tarmacked track. You will see the first of the tall pigeon lofts on a hill in front of you. The track bares to the right and crosses a stream. Here you are walking through beautiful vineyards, at the end of this track you will pass the first pigeon loft (Vernes) where you turn left and walk to the top of the hill.

 Turn right passing the second loft that you had viewed earlier. The walk twists along little tracks, always with good signs until you reach a large pink house with Out buildings at the top of a rise (Le Ministre). The path goes straight past the barn and then turns left before taking a right turn. (Be careful here as it's the upper, middle track that you take). 

Keep on the route with beautiful views of the Caroux now. The track bares right a couple of times before reaching another tarmacked track. Turn right onto this and follow it for sometime.Keep straight on until you come to a ruin.

 Now take a little path through low bushes to join a small track. Turn left onto this and then turns right before crossing the river on small steeping stones. At a sharp left turn the route double back along a track to meet another sharp right at the end of it. 

This path goes up hill with beautiful views at the top. You now head towards the village once again and pass a lovely olive orchard on your right.

 Lovely views of the village here. The track turns right once again and then sharp left at some tatty buildings. A few more small twists and you are back at the car parking area. Enjoy.

Mount Liausson. A glorious walk in the Languedoc.

Mount Liausson. 7km 3H. Medium. Yellow markers and easy to follow. This is a walk of pure joy, a delicious mix of village, lake views, woodland and ridge walking. The views are so extensive, it's like you are on the top of the world.

A stunning view of Moureze on on side and beautiful Lac Salagou on the other. Here you can see the coastal plain, Pic Vissou, over to Pic saint Baudille and even down to the Pyrenees on a clear day.. Wonderful. And the colour is just amazing. Yellows, greens, blues and the reds and greys of the rocks. Just lovely.

The walk starts from the little village of Liausson, where you will find parking in the centre. Turn right and walk a little way down the road (follow the yellow markers all the way) until you come to a left turn. Take this small road which soon turns into a track at the next left turn. The path becomes smaller and steeper as it twists up to the col.

At the col you will find a junction of paths, where the route to the top merges with that of the one coming up from Moureze. Turn left at this col and take the little path that rises steeply to the ridge. Here the route is shared with yellow, green and blue markers but keep to the yellow ones. The ridge is your prize for getting to the top. Views to the north of the lake and to the south of the cirque de moureze. 

Continue on this path to the end of the ridge, soon the path will start to descend a little and the blue path will leave to the right. Keep going straight on and you will see that the path starts to descend and curve towards the lake once again. 

It's quite a steep path down but with beautiful views and wonderful flowers all the time. (You can leave the track on the left to see a large monolith if you wish). Keep on the track down to join the road in the village once again. Turn left and return to the car park.

There appeared to be an auberge in the village, but I would take your own picnic if you can as it didn't look very open. Enjoy this beautiful walk.

Mons to Vieussan, a walk over the col de Courbou. Languedoc.

Mons to Vieussan via Coasteplane, Courbou and the col de Courbou. Around 8km-10km. 3.30H . A lovely little route, but a variation on the way that I normally take.

Leaving Mons by taking the bridge down to Ornac, once in the village I meet a lovely old gentleman who told me about a pretty route on a little old path, so I decided that I must try it. In the hamlet beside the first house to the left there is a small track down to the river. Take this and it passes some nice vineyards and gardens with fruit trees. 

Pass the small track on your left and keep along the edge of the vineyard. The track goes down a little more and then crosses a small stream. Once over the stream take the little path uphill that stays on the right of the stream. The path here is rocky and fairly steep but eases off a little soon, before becoming steeper once more but not rocky. 

The path, although in the little holme oak woods is very pretty with lots of orchids on its edges. Further up the views open up of the Caroux, Espinouse  and the villages of the Orb and Jaur valleys. There are lots of wonderful flowers nearer to the top. 

The lower part of the path is marked with a few cairns but after a while you will see some yellow markers too. Finally the path joins a larger track just past the houses of Coasteplane. 

Turn left onto the track and walk a little downhill towards Courbou. There were cowslips here and lovely views though the chestnuts. When you reach Courbou go past the houses, there is a little left turn that takes you back down another small path, but go straight on (there are still yellow markers). The small track goes alongside the pretty buildings and leads to a stream which you cross where the path bears left and becomes narrower.

Now the path climbs up a rocky path to the col de Courbou. Here you will find a junction, which you need to cross over and take the opposite track that leads downhill on the other side of the col (red/yellow markers). Stay on this wide track until you almost reach a road, follow the red/yellow markers to your left for a short while then go down the first little  path on your left. This is quite steep, keep going downhill and don't turn off it.

It winds down through the valley crossing a stream on a bend and comes out at the road not far from the bridge in Vieussan. I stay on the road now but it is possible to use the little path below the road. Cross the lovely bridge, enjoy the views of the river and if you are able to find either the Blue Lizard restaurant or the local shop open enjoy the resentments on offer.

Now this is the tricky bit. Getting back. I have walked up the road to Mons before but it's not the best of routes although the scenery is nice. There is a bus service sometimes but if you can get a lift you have hit the jackpot.

La Croix du Roi, Alignan-du-Vent. A walk in the vineyards of the Languedoc.

Alignan-du-Vent, the King's Cross. 6km/2h Yellow marking (but if you can find them you get a prize! We only found 5 on the whole walk and they were pretty hidden). The walk begins in the village.

Park in the car park behind the square. There is a board for the walk near the gate which is opposite the the wine cooperative. There are three walks here of different lengths and all are marked with yellow markers. It was rather rainy today but the walk was wonderful all the same. So many lovely wild flowers and dotted with crosses along the route.

Leave the car park and turn left onto the D33 (you can walk around the town first if you wish). You soon reach a small parking area with a little lane to your right. Take this tree lined lane down to another junction and turn right beside a house onto a small track. Very soon you will see a small track on the right across the fields take this and then a left turn onto a wider track. This track will take you to Le Peyret, a large château with the first stone cross. 

Turn right at the cross and go past lovely fields of vines to your right and meadows on your left, with the river beyond. The track bears right at the woodland and then you will come to a small bridge over a stream. Go over the bridge, and take a right turn onto the small track along the side of the field.

Keep the little stream to your right and you will after a short while come to the Kings Cross of 1660,a spot where King Louis XIV passed though.

Keep to the right of the cross and you will come to another small Iron cross. Keep to the right of this cross too and follow the little paved road of Lissac up to the village. Keep straight on until you reach the wine Cooperative once again and turn right to reach the car park.

Our walk today was rather damp to start with, but as Phoebe wanted a walk we set off and hoped for the best. The flowers in the vineyards at this time of year are so beautiful and it was lovely to her all the birdsong and wonderful smells.

It soon stopped raining and we dried off in the warm breeze. And finding a nice spot beside the last cross we sat down for a picnic of our local bakers Rustiguette bread that was still a little warm and ate it with local cheese, homemade cake and little oranges with their leaves still attached. Phoebe is always present at picnic times and we hoped that she didn't come too close as we were only just balanced on the side of a little stream. One knock and we would have tumbled backwards into the ditch. 

We enjoyed the history too, a remarkable thing about the area is that everywhere you go, you find little treasures and snippets for the past. Here King Louis XIV had come riding past the very spot we walked now and the locals had erected a lovely stone cross to celebrate the occasion.

Mons, Bardou, Heric, Gorge de Heric .A walk in the Languedoc.

Mons, Bardou, Heric, Gorge de Heric. 11km/4h Medium distance and no really difficulties. Take the yellow/red lined trail from the village of Mons up a fairly steep track for about 5km .

The trail has beautiful views of the Jaur valley, ravine and Espinouse. It goes through mainly oak and chestnut forest. Watch out for mouflon here, I didn't see any today but did see a beautiful large deer near the river. 

There are also woodpeckers up here and red squirrel. Ignore all yellow, blue or red dotted trails that leave it from the left or right (the trail does level off a little as you get near to the col du Bardou. You now reach the GR7 at a junction of paths (If you want to have a picnic go up the blue trail here for about 100m, it's a beautiful spot overlooking the gorge and is my idea of heaven).

Take a right onto the GR red/white markers, this trail is steep for about 1.5km and takes you down to a little bridge over the river. Once over the river the trail climbs up to the hamlet of Heric and passes some lovely pools on the way. These are a good place for another rest or go on to the Buvette in Heric for refreshments.

Leave the GR in Heric and take the gorge road down through the beautiful Gorge de Heric for about 5km. There are waterfalls and pretty beaches along this route with magnificent scenery too. In the river I spotted quite a few dippers and slender wagtails in the water. Lots of information boards too.

Once out of the gorge follow the road a little way and you will see some railing beside a house on your left. Follow the yellow/red markers back to Mons though the pretty wooded path, lined by old stone walls.