Létra at Last!

Full of confidence and enthusiasm after our first tiny randonnée, our second one was a little more ambitious... We would hike back to "Le Grand Bola," then this time we would keep going to Létra, and ideally our efforts would be rewarded with tasty bakery bread of some kind.  :)  The round trip is approximately 10km, with an elevation change of about 240m.

The day is sunny and warm as we head out from our gite towards Le Grand Bola, so we forgo our coats and pack the suntan lotion and a couple bottles of water instead (for a description of the trip between our gite and Le Grand Bola, please visit my previous post).

After Le Grand Bola and the frog pond, the path skirts a lovely forest as it follows the crest of the hill towards La Burie. Then the landscape suddenly opens up, and we pause to soak in the nearly 360 degree views.

To approach the hamlet of La Burie, we must descend about 125m rather quickly.  We find ourselves walking though vineyards, across fields, and we soon are able to see La Burie in the distance. This is also where we notice the VTT signs, meaning that this route can be done by bike.  Although I am pretty shaky on a bike, I can imagine Colin and his brother Matt happily riding along these routes, when he comes to visit in June.

Entering La Burie, we are greeted by two friendly sheep. Despite there being only about 12 houses and zero amenities, the buildings are beautifully maintained, almost to resort quality, indicating there is money in this tiny village.  At a house distinguished by the image of a dog on its gates, a woodpile resembles a work of art.  Colin and I both immediately think of my dad, who was both a woodworker and a perfectionist.  ;)

Leaving La Burie, our left side opens up to grassy fields. On our right, a tall stone wall edges the path down to the Chateau de Letrette, which is home to Korian Les Bruyères, a treatment facility for addiction and depression.  In front of its impressive castle walls and sprawling grounds, two men are engrossed in a game of outdoor ping pong, and don't seem to notice us passing by. I don't feel right taking a photo. We keep heading downhill to reach the highway, the point of lowest elevation of our journey.  On the highway, we pass the sole restaurant in town, Le Cep Vert, and suddenly realize that getting into Létra will require us to gain back about 60m of that elevation.

On the bright side, after the steep climb into downtown, we quickly locate the Vival grocery, and emerge victorious!!  On the dot of its afternoon opening hours at 2:30pm, there was exactly 1 croissant and 1 pain au chocolat available.  We bought both.  We were not permitted to buy bread, as all the loaves left were reserved.

Maybe it is the thrill of success, or my empty stomach, but I swear this is the best croissant I've ever had!!  We decide we must return to visit the bakery itself, which is located back down near the highway, heading the other direction out of town. After scarfing down our treats, we took the time to note the hours posted for Le 57 Bar across the street, because no amount of internet searching yielded them to us.  (FYI: They are Tues-Fri 7:00-12:30 / 14:30-20:00, Saturday 7:00-20:00, and Sunday 7:30-12:30)

On the return trip home, we decide to take a different route: a switchback path descending out of the back of town to the Creek Badier, which runs the length of the forested area seen below. By this route, we would skip La Burie in favor of Le Badier, a similar tiny village. Well, we made it down the switchback alright, but somehow missed the direct path to Le Badier (marked on my map above with two orange dots), and ended up back on the same path we came, this time following the tall stone wall away from Korian Les Bruyères. In the photo below, we are looking back towards Létra (hidden by the forested hill on the left), and you can see the switchback in the trees on the left, and Les Bruyères in the distance on the right.

A quick course correction at the junction set us back on our way to Le Badier.

At a distance, Le Badier looked nearly indistinguishable from La Burie. However, upon closer inspection, Le Badier held a few surprises, including a roving rooster, a happy little donkey, and THIS:

Is it possible there are 16 children in Le Badier??   Although Le Badier was a little more homespun than La Burie, it was absolutely charming, and quintessentially French.

After Le Badier, we fairly quickly rejoined the path back to Le Grand Bola, and began our steep ascent up to the ridge. Walking through the vineyards was like a fantasy, and after the steep rise, reaching the brief shade of the little forest was divine.

Approaching home, we passed the small group of curious cows we saw the day before.  I am certainly ready to sit down, but push through the last set of hills up to Le Cret and our gite.

By the time I get to the top of the last hill, I am sweaty, I am tired, my buns are burning from the exertion, but there is a big smile on my face... I can't wait to do this again tomorrow!!!!!   :D  :D  :D