St Claude, Not Quite a Gem.

This afternoon the mercury has risen to 27⁰ C in the shade, which is exactly where I am now sitting.  I have a beautiful vista overlooking the Gorge of the Ain..  We are sitting in the car park behind the tiny Church in the village of Charchilla.  The gorge cuts a huge rift between the forest of trees that carpet the landscape in this area, at the base of that gorge lies the lake of Vouglans.  This morning (Sunday) we walked the 1.7kms down to the lake.  It was quite a steep walk, downhill every step of the way.  Which meant only one thing, it was going to be one heck of a walk back.  The last leg of the walk was more of a scramble as we followed a very rugged path downwards through the woods,  we exited the woods and out on to an area loosely described as a beach, with very little evidence of sand.  The lake on the other hand glistened majestically in the morning sunlight, a few boats were motoring on the lake, with not a breath of wind any hopes of sailing would not materialise today.  The area close to the waters edge is very much a holiday destination, with cabins built within the woods.  There is evidence of boat hire and snack bars, but at this time of year everywhere is closed up.  Even the water level has left for the winter!!!! Seriously, the high water mark is tens of feet above its current level, some substantial rainfall is required to refill this lake.  As predicted the walk back was draining, however totally worth it for the view and the exercise.

We started yesterday morning by watching the fog rise off the lake, there is something quite mesmerising when a mist lingers just above the water.  Once the sun had broken the horizon we inched ourselves up the precariously small road away from Lake Genin, our destination quite unknown, with limited internet access at the lake we had been unable to research a suitable location.  Our trip down into Oyonnax was smooth, the descent angle and time very similar to that of an aircraft’s approach into Heathrow.  On reaching Oyonnax we sought out a suitable stopping point and reviewed our options.  We selected to head over to Saint Claude.

The one thing that can be guaranteed in this region is stunning views along with steep hills, both these were in abundance en route to St Claude.  On entering the city we found a service point by the roadside, so we filled and emptied our water and waste respectively.  We had selected a large car park designated for motorhomes on the far side of the city.  This meant we literally drove straight through the high street, getting a good view of what the city had to offer, which at first glance seemed okay.  The car park turned out to be a huge area of waste land and we were the only residents.  The thing that concerned us most about the area was the amount of skid marks which were evident in the gravel, we had fears of a very sleepless night.

With that thought in the back of our minds I think it tainted our view of the City.  St Claude has been built on either side of a huge valley, it is famous for the manufacture of briar pipes and the cutting of diamonds, there is even a museum dedicated to both.  It is a massive conurbation which spreads along the valley, huge tower blocks dominate the skyline, many buildings in a bad state of repair.  The big surprise to us was the lack of French being spoken, Turkish seems to be the predominant population within St Claude, with many cafes and bars carrying Turkish names.  We even came across a wedding convoy, with easily 50 cars all blaring their horns and flashing their lights, nearly every car had a Turkish flag flying from its window or roof.  The Cathedral in St Claude is massive, a huge grand structure that proudly stands over the old town.  However, it was a big surprise to find its interior almost bare, very little historical artefacts, nearly everything had a modern twist to it, there was even a motorised scooter at the entrance of the chapel.  During our walk back to Maurice we made the decision to move on, we had seen enough of St Claude, a quick look at our trusty friend Park4night and we selected the car park at Carchilla, our current location.  This has been an excellent night stop, no facilities but a peace and quiet that has been thoroughly enjoyable.  Later today we shall move on just a few kilometres to the town of Clairvaux-les-Lacs, so look out for tomorrow’s report.