Pilgrim Graves

It was Sunday 14 September. The day would prove an interesting one. First there was the village of Usclas-du-Bosc with its collection of disc-shaped steles, or grave markers, denoting pilgrim graves (of course some pilgrims never reached their goal of Compostela at all because they died at various points along the Way - some from disease, some from natural causes, some at the hands of murderers and bandits...)

The partially ruined château (at one time a pilgrim hospice) in the village displayed another scallop shell above the lintel of the doorway:

And further on in the woods I took a little detour to see the Dolmen de la Bruyère (it reminded me of the dolmen I'd photographed last year near Gréalou):

Soon - after a delightful woodland walk along the edge of a limestone escarpment - the path passed directly by the Abbey of Saint-Michel-de-Grandmont. It was open so I left my rucksack with the girl at the ticket office (a reduced rate for pilgrims!) and explored. And by early afternoon I'd come to Lodève, a small cathedral city at the confluence of the Lergue and Soulondres rivers. I liked Lodève very much. Here's one of my early views of it:

The gîte d'étape La Mégisserie in Lodève was one of the best I'd ever stayed in. The hospitalier Pierre who'd refurbished it (aided by a grant) was justifiably proud of his work. At €18 a night (€30 with evening meal) it was a little more expensive than the €10 I normally paid - but, hell, this place had a lift, en-suite rooms with power showers, and cordon bleu cuisine! Pierre was an excellent chef, and the kitchen was modern and extensively equipped. It was more like a boutique hotel than a walkers' hostel.

Later that day I met up again with American pilgrims Ralph and Susan, and the next morning Pierre put me on the right path to Joncels...