Into the Moselle region and heading for the mountains of the Vosges

 Tuesday 27 August 2024

Nido's parked up at an aire next to the swimming lake in the beautiful mountain village of Walscheid, in the Moselle department.  It's proper dark outside and completely silent; the sunbathers and swimmers have left, as have the pétanque players. It's still very warm and we're sat here with the door open and a cup of tea and a shared Mille Feuille! It's a free aire although jetons for the services need to be bought in the village shops.

Yesterday morning I didn't wake until 0930, so it wasn't until about 1100 that I cycled out of the aire.  The route to the medieval village of Hattonchâtel was up a steep hill with several hairpins but, despite my lack of fitness (and age!) I got up there without too much difficulty. I stopped there to admire the view from the balcony next to the Marie, which overlooked the plain towards the lake and onwards to Butte de Montsec, a World War I monument located on an isolated hill. It commemorates the achievements of the American soldiers who fought in this region in 1917 and 1918 and dominates the landscape for miles around. It honours the US First Army, 12 - 16 September 1918, and the US Second Army, 9 - 11 November. It was a strategic viewpoint during the war as it overlooked all the trenches of the battlegrounds laid out before it.  I can just imagine the Generals stood there with a glass of champagne, looking down at the hundreds of thousands of soldiers walking into the machine gun fire and their imminent death.

Back to Hattonchâtel, it's located on a rocky promontory and was fortified in the ninth century by Hatton, Bishop of Verdun, who gave the village its name. The citadel was destroyed in 1634 by order of Richelieu. Miss Belle Skinner, an American benefactor, helped to restore the architectural heritage damaged during the First World War. The chateau, rebuilt in 1923, is now a luxury hotel.  Obviously not as luxurious as our campervan and certainly more expensive to stay in!

I followed the road out of the village, heading through forests and small hamlets, stopping occasionally to soak up the atmosphere, check my map and take a drink of water on a hot, still day. In all I covered 43km and returned to the van for a cold coke and some lunch.  

Later we went for a swim in the lake.  It was much quieter today, being a Monday, so we stayed a little longer before returning to the van for dinner.  Later, as the sun was starting to set over the lake, we walked Salty along the water's edge, watching the dragonflies and (all too few) birds flitting over the surface of the water to hoover up the insects.

The service point just outside the aire this morning had a long queue.  It's a Flot Bleu, which isn't my favourite as the toilet emptying point and fresh water tap are both squeezed into a small locker - blurgh!  On our journey I spotted an aire sign in a village so we pulled in and were able to empty the tanks and refill for just €2.  After a food and fuel replenishment in Pont à Musson, we carried on and pulled off in a small village to have lunch in the shade of some trees by a chalk stream.  

Perfect lunch spot

It was a hot afternoon, so we were glad to reach the aire next to the municipal campsite in the ancient pilgrimage village of Saint Quirin.  We took Salty for a walk in the shade of the forest and returned for a cup of tea.  I wandered down to check out the notices and saw that this is no longer a free aire, but to stay we would have to pay the same rate as the campsite.  As we'd just spend two nights in one place we decided to move on and drove the 15 minutes to this lovely village of Walscheid. 

As I drove in it had a lovely relaxed atmosphere so I knew we'd enjoy our stay. Dinner was eaten at one the picnic tables by the lake in the still of the warm evening as the sun set behind us - idyllic.  As darkness began to fall we took a walk around part of the village and the lake, picking out which of the lovely swiss-type chalet houses we'd have if we won the lottery!

Highland Coos?

I need to do a bit of research to see where we head next.  It would be nice to stay in one area and explore it a bit more, so I'll plan on that as I check out our guide books and apps.