Le Puy de Ruines – L’Eyrette de Ruines
Ruins, ruins, ruined... but what a view!
Henk Francino
En route to the land of my forebears Martha and I were following memory lane. Thus we also camped a couple of miles south of Briançon in Les Hautes Alpes near La Roche de Rame. In the eighties we risked our lives here on the Durance, and on other fast flowing glacial rivers, with grade five white water kayaking (some people say this is suicidal). Many a kayak was ruined, we gained a lot of underwater experience, and I even managed to sprain an ankle, but apart from that we survived.
Nowadays Martha sticks to walking and sea level cycling, I myself prefer the rougher sort of cycling.
Well, luck was on my side, we pitched the tent at Camping Le Verger in the early autumn of 2011 and from there it was easy to head for the D338, the starting point to higher realms. Heading south it was easy going before I reached the Coutin area. From Coutin a forest track (on altitude 3225 ft) gently invites you to follow but before you realize this invitation turns into a 5.5 miles ascent to 5255 ft.
Unfortunately, on this beautiful autumn morning the temperature quickly soared into the high twenties (Celcius) and consequently my body soared into a state of disrepair and ruin. The track, in French called sentier, is not too bad but moderately steep in places. MTB riders will like it, tourers will think “am I pedalling the right type of bike here?” With respect to this question: there is more to come.
On having reached the 5255 ft level I headed for Puy de Ruines along a well signposted singletrack. At first there is a steep descent (bottoms above the rear wheel to avoid a somersault) and before long you regret this free ride, losing some 230 ft of height gain, because soon there follow a couple of hundred yards of steep climbs to the highest point at roughly 5400 ft. But what a view! Despite my state of disrepair, now quickly repaired by a cool breeze, I fully enjoyed the breathtaking scenery of the French Alps.
Looking down I spotted a couple of ruins. They could easily have been the remnants of shielings or bothies you see in the Scottish highlands. Which reminded me of the universal law of the rise and fall of many a culture wherever you are on this planet. Here, people living down in the valley near Roche, in a hamlet called Géro, changed places during the summer season and walked/rode to their temporary dwellings high up on the mountain to look after the various herds of cattle, to gather nuts, berries, herbs and other food nature provided and to make cheese.
The sentiers I was following on these mountain slopes are in fact the remnants of a means of communication now defunct. A lot of farmers here have left, the younger generations prefer farming lower down and many a herd is now confined to parts of the land with easy access. Which leaves quiet, quiet mountains with scattered ruins. And surprisingly well maintained paths and tracks along which walkers and (mountain)bikers keep up a means of modern communication. Of which, as said before, was more to come.
What followed from the 5400 ft contour was a very tight single track with enervating switchbacks. It passes just below the ruins and is steep. And, oh joy, a couple of rock steps. The modern form of communication is a twenty-first century cyclist flying his MTB over stretches of mountain track where in the, sometimes not too distant, past hardy farmers trudged along with their mules.
If you prefer the latter mode of transport you can do this route on a tour bike and walk down into the valley. I kept right at the only junction I passed and after two miles descended into a forest. The gravelly path leads you down to the road at Géro and offers you the last chance to demonstrate steering techniques along some interesting switchbacks and rocky places.
Back on the D338 my head was brimming with thoughts. Thoughts of ways of life which were perhaps not as comfortable as they are now but which must have been richer in other respects. And in stead of turning right to the camping I turned left and would have started repeating this tiresome but most rewarding 9 miles trip had not my GPS bleeped a helpful sound. Welcome back to the twenty-first century!
Map used: Google Earth (Roche de Rame area), waypointed via Garmin Basecamp and uploaded into my Oregon 550 Sat Nav.
Henk Francino
(Deventer, Netherlands)