Chemin du Piémont Pyrénéen - Day 6

 September 16, 2023

Oloron-Sainte-Marie to L’Hopital-Saint-Blaise - 25 kms

When we checked in at Oloron-Sainte-Marie our host asked if we would like her to drive us a wee way out of town when we started walking again. We said thanks but no thanks, but after seeing my blister we contacted her again and asked if her kind offer still stood. This was to be our longest day and we didn't know how  well I could walk. Shortening the day by a few kilometers made sense.

She dropped us off at Orin, a village 7 or 8 kms from Oloron-Sainte-Marie and we walked from there. It did seem strange to not walk out of town though, and my blister didn't cause any problems so in hindsight we could have walked it.

Orin was a lovely wee village and not many kilometers along the way we came to Aren, then, just a couple of kilometers later we came to Préchacq-Josaig, the last of the villages until L'Hopital-Saint-Blaise. None of the villages had any services, and nor did L'Hopital-Saint-Blaise when we arrived there. 

We stopped for a morning tea break at Préchacq-Josaig, sitting outside the Mairie which was shut, as was the church. So many of the small churches are locked. 

This part of the walk was through a cropping area on sealed roads but once past the villages the path went up in the hills through what seemed to be a beech forest. 

L'Hopital-Saint-Blaise is a lovely small village, and it's church is it's pride and glory and it's easy to see why. It was built in the 12th century - the timbered eaves were dated to the mid 1140s. The church has been offering refuge to pilgrims since that time - only now, the pilgrim accommodation is in a lodge further up the road. This is where we stayed. Three Italians stayed there also, a couple who we crossed paths with earlier in the day, and a woman walking on her own. The gîte sleeps 8 - 4 bunks in the one room.

As we entered L'Hopital-Saint-Blaise we met Debbie and Fred, the American pilgrims who were with us in Lestelle-Betharram. They weren't staying in the gîte. 

Photos are in reverse order again!

The hospitalero of the lodge.

The old timber which was used to date the church. 

Detail of the entrance arch.

The alter in the church. 

We went to the Light & Sound show in the church. It has a unique Hispanic-Moorish design. 

The gîte. Very simple but all we needed.

So good to be able to hang our washing in the sun.

On our way to the gîte. One of the Italians in front. 

Our first glimpse of L’Hopital-Saint-Blaise, the beautiful church. 

In the woods, near L'Hopital-Saint-Blaise now.

Lunch time.

Jeff had successfully negotiated his way over the incredibly slippery path.

Dodging the mud.

Many buildings have these metal pieces, in different shapes. They seem to support or hold the beams in place. 

I like the colorful shutters.

The Mairie, the town hall in  Préchacq-Josaig. We sat on the seat to the left and had a morning tea break here. 

The church in Préchacq-Josaig - it was locked. 

Most of the cropping has been maize but this is obviously a bean of some kind. 

Aren - all along our walk crepe myrtles have featured. 

An old Chateau in Aren. It appears to be lived in. 

The church in Aren. 

Walking into Aren. We haven't seen any big herds or milking sheds at all.

The Pyrenees are around us now.

I like all the different features of the buildings.

Orin

Detail on the church entrance arch,  Orin.

The church in Orin

 Our host dropping us off in Orin.