La Couvertoirade and the Gorge de la Dourbie

Once installed in our borrowed house on Mars and recovered from the rigours of the journey from Deux Sèvres, we were ready to explore the various attractions of the region. These were present in some profusion but we chose two for a day trip, the fortified town of La Couvertoirade and the Gorge of the Dourbie.

  La Couvertoirade is a restored fortified cité occupied by the Knights Templars and their successors the Hospitaliers from the second half of the XIIth century. As the region was somewhat turbulent with the hundred years war against the English and later the wars of Religion, the Knights created a walled inner city where the inhabitants of the surrounding larger town could seek shelter during an attack. The walled inner cité has been well restored and must look today as it did in the Middle Ages, though I expect more sanitary! There are two large fortified gates with towers either side. The narrow streets are lined with little houses all still occupied and the ground floor stables and sheep sheds have been largely taken over by little tourist-trade workshops and shops, with several restaurants. The church is worth a visit, very simple and small, perched on a craggy rock. Although based of course on the tourist industry, they do not seem to have descended to fleecing their customers and the only payment you have to make is a reasonable 3 Euros for the car park, though there are many opportunities of spending your  money if you feel inclined! There was an ancient cemetery outside the church and a modern one outside the walls, locked, I am glad to say, proving that the commercants do draw the line somewhere in entertaining their clients.

   After this interesting visit and a picnic lunch we returned to Mars via  Millau and the Dourbie Gorge. This latter was a very impressive canyon scoure out of the limestone rocks of the area by a little river. It is deep and creepy with the road running along the bottom and villages hanging on the sides from place to place.

   After a brief detour provided by the GPS which adopted a route 10 kilometers shorter but several thousand feet higher, we were glad to return to our Martian house for tea.

 I will tell you later on of our further adventures in the region. I`ll bet you can scarcely wait!

  Bye for now.