Gondrexange to Belle Roche: Day 143

My last day in Lorraine, one in which the Vosges mountains became ever closer.

Overnight I dreamt I was still at work and unable to extract the information I required from a recalcitrant computer program. I wanted to ask a colleague what to do but I could not remember his name. In a semi dozing state I then found I could not remember any of the names of the people I once worked closely with, only the vague form of their bodies. Increasingly awake and worried I was suffering the sudden onset of dementia I concentrated hard and began to recall what a few of my former colleagues were called. Then I rationalised that I was never good with names, and as I recalled an increasing number of people I began thinking how odd or musical their surnames were as I drifted back into sleep.

My morning began with a visit to the Boulangerie - Patisserie for a coffee, croissant and large croque monsieur (most of which I ate for lunch). These little shops are invaluable for getting a morning or afternoon pastry or sandwich with a coffee or soft drink. Suitably refreshed I packed up and headed off.

After a brief walk along the canal and a diversion of the GR5 to take advantage of an underpass beneath a busy road, I reached a high point from which I could see the blue ridge of the Vosges mountains ahead of me, their peaks now easily visible. This evening I knew I would be at their foothills. Tomorrow I planned to climb up to the first pass, the Col du Donon, from the campsite at Abreschviller, then drop down to Schirmeck where I had booked an Airbnb for two nights to give me a rest day. This plan was causing me some concern as it involved a 30 kilometre day tomorrow with over a 1000 metres of ascent. It had been a while since I had completed such a day with a fully laden pack.

Distant views of Vosges. 

Today was similar to recent days in Lorraine, mixed farmland, woods and small villages. Almost everyone you pass exchanges a "bonjour" with you. One lady working in her garden also checked I had enough water. If I could speak fluent French I am sure there would be many conversations to be had. I was looking forward to arriving at the larger village of St Quirin which claimed to be a particularly beautiful one. Its church had one of those bulbous steeples and stood next to a school where children were outside playing noisy games. I peeped inside the church's interior, admired the light filtering through the stained glass, said a pray, left a few coins in a collection box and left. Really I was looking for a place to sit down with something to drink. After almost giving up I found a bar, busy with a party of bikers, where I bought a Coke.

St Quirin village. 

From St Quirin the countryside changed. The remainder of my day was in mixed woodland with more birch and conifers than I had encountered in recent weeks. Gradients were also steeper. Arriving in Abreschviller I was not impressed by the campsite. More suited to "Camping Cars" no-one was about. A notice asked you to telephone but there was no answer to the number given. As it was before 3 pm, I decided to push on and wild camp on the path to Col du Donon, that way I could reduce the distance and amount of climbing tomorrow. So I filled up with water at the empty campsite, fortified myself with a coffee and brownie from one of those wonderful patisseries (the nearby Salon du The was up for sale), and bought a smoked ham half baguette and an apple pie for dinner. 

The subsequent climb up through the forest was a pleasant one despite being uphill, partly because there was no particular hurry. A Gallo-Roman site of interest lay close to the track, basically piles of stones outlining huts. Reaching "Belle Roche" I found a wide ranging view of tree covered mountains from the top of a large outcrop of red sandstone. Two backpackers were there, but soon headed off. The spot looked too good to leave and being after 5 pm, with a flat area of ground under nearby trees, a bench and a shelter, I decided to pitch my tent here for the night. My ham roll tasted really good as I ate it slowly sat on a bench watching the surrounding mountains as the cloud filled sky slowly darkened.

View from Belle Roche.