Done with walking the walls by noon, we still had the afternoon left to enjoy the fantastic weather. After returning to our hotel to have lunch and relax for about an hour, we went our separate ways. Rachael went for a ten mile walk through the nearby salt marshes, surprised to find out that the route she had mapped out was through a controlled access area requiring an admission. Fortunately she had the cash on hand and was willing to fork it over because she came back with a stunning set of photos and a tale of an exceptional experience. It made me regret my decision to hop on the bike rather than join her. If we come back to Aigues-Mortes I’ll have to go and see for myself.
Feeling sorry for me for not having accompanied her, she generously packed all her photos into a tidy slideshow and freed up most of the space in today’s post for my less interesting loop.
I chose to spend my afternoon on the saddle because it’s a beautiful day, we’re not likely to have many more of these this late into the season, and I want to get in all the rides I can before the rains settle in. And, if I’m honest with myself, I’m just a bit on the lazy side and riding lazily through the flats is easier than walking for me.
And it was a lovely if undramatic ride, one I was quite happy with until seeing the photos Rachael brought back.
You know this place by now, but it’s nice to get a look at it from the outside; and especially nice that the ground is a bit puddly and reflective. This is the west face, adjacent to the salt marshes, and presents what I think is the most magnificent view.
Looking back at the Porte de la Reine (the Queen’s Gate) as I leave the city to explore the few paved roads to the south. Aigues-Mortes has a remarkable history from many aspects. Looking at it now, it’s hard to comprehend that it was initially a port town and all of the land to the south has silted in over the last 900 years.
The route I mapped stuck to the pavement but I was enticed to come down this road because it looked interesting and RideWithGPS said it was a through road that would eventually connect up. RideWithGPS often lies, as it did in this case. Interesting though, even ridden in both directions.
The famous Camargue cattle, raised both for bullfighting and consumption. Taureau de Camargue is the principal meat offering in most restaurants in the region. It has an AOC designation, the first French beef to receive an appellation of origin.
The Chapel of Montcalm looks deceptively ancient, with its Romanesque design. It was built sometime in the mid 1800’s as an outbuilding of the adjacent Montcalm winery.
We see Camargue horses everywhere here, but always penned up. I think some still run wild in places in the Camargue. It would be a thrilling sight to see them.
Algae shadow selfie, the last and best of about a dozen attempts. I did well to not tip the bike into the canal while I was balancing it against my leg taking a shot.
Approaching home along the Rhone-Sète Canal. The Constance Tower, standing like a beacon, is still three miles off. The tower at the top originally served as a lighthouse.
Probably my favorite part of the ride came at the end, biking past the fine barges lining the canal. Each of them seemed like a work of art worth stopping to admire.
