Author: Thom

For today’s feast of Saint James, our photo is a shelter in the tiny village of Lestrade. With three walls and a roof, it contains some coffee and juice and snacks for pilgrims, as well as a stamp for the pilgrim passport. It was a lovely spot to stop and rest a moment. I ran into an Italian family from […]

The Via Podiensis follows a French hiking route designated GR-65. It’s (usually) well-marked with a red and white blaze. It often follows other local routes resulting in a series of blazes. Here’s an example. The yellow blaze is commonly used to indicate a local route, so you see those everywhere. I’m not sure what route the green blaze indicates. In […]

After climbing a seemingly everlasting rocky incline, the Camino turned onto a little one lane blacktop. Although the air temperature was still relatively cool in the early morning, the asphalt seemed to be radiating heat from the day before. Soon I was walking through pastureland, and pastures mean cows! This was a particularly handsome example. I took a LOT of […]

The Way wound through forests and fields, and eventually the sun came up. Long time followers will know that I love taking photos of weird abandoned agricultural equipment. So here’s one I passed on my way towards Les Cambrassats at about 7AM. As a bonus, you can see a waymarker on the tree to the right. Tomorrow I’ll post a […]

After crossing the Pont des Pèlerins (Pilgrims’ Bridge), the Way climbed up to a forest road. I couldn’t find the trail markings in the dark, even with my flashlight. And these woods were definitely a little spooky. After wandering around a bit, I was soon joined by four pilgrims, two older German ladies and two younger French ladies. One of […]

I left Saint-Chély-d’Aubrac before dawn on the 24th of August. The Camino crosses a medieval stone bridge over a narrow river with the rather grand name of Boralde de Saint-Chély-d’Aubrac. The bridge itself is called the Pont des Pèlerins (Pilgrims’ Bridge), and it features a bas relief of a pilgrim with his staff and cape. The image is extremely weathered, […]

This was the gîte recommended to me by the Tourist Office, and it was great! Very welcoming, clean, and well-organized. By the time it opened at 3pm, it was already 97° F (36° C) outside. In the lobby, I ran into Delphiné from Brittany, who I first met way back at Domaine du Sauvage. She helped with some translation issues […]

One final photo from the church of Notre-Dame-des-Pauvres de Saint-Chély-d’Aubrac. The rear of the church features a curious two-tiered gallery. Based on the existence of a rotating music holder with chant book in the top gallery, this was where the choir sat. If you zoom in, you can see that the book is set to the Pater Noster. I’m not […]

Four photos in one! The church of Notre-Dame-des-Pauvres de Saint-Chély-d’Aubrac has four side chapels: the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Saint Joseph, and our Lady of Lourdes. This last was originally a Rosary Chapel. Indeed, the altar features a painting of the Virgin Mary gifting the rosary to Saint Dominic, and on the central statue of Virgin […]