Country: France (Volvic to Avignon)
Nathan woke us all at 0730 this morning, but to be fair we did have another long day ahead. We had to drag the kids out of bed but then took things at a leisurely pace even fitting in one final scoot on the skate ramps before driving out by 0930.
We were back on the motorways but today’s route took us through steep, winding valleys and past the most amazing walled towns. Whilst the views were amazing the roads proved a challenge in particular the 7.5% winding gradient that took us down about 400 metres. With trucks and cars aplenty and steep drops into the valley below, I readily admit to having to close my eyes a few times (seems that me grabbing the car door etc… was a bit off putting to the driver!) The kids sat in the back oblivious to all playing on their IPODs. We took a quick detour into one village to pick up some baguettes then continued on the A75, the highest on average motorway in Europe at about 770m, peaking at a height of 1121m. It was opened in 1975 after the French Government decided they wanted a toll free Motorway linking the north to the south. We were thankful for this having already paid out €64 in peages the day before. Our next stop was for lunch at the closest Aire to the Millau Viaduct.
The Aire from above (our van parked next to facilities)
The Millau Viaduct is a cable-stayed road bridge that spans the valley of the river Tarn near Millau in Southern France. It is the tallest bridge in the world, with one mast's summit at 343.0 metres (1,125 ft). It is the 12th highest bridge in the world, at 270 metres (890 ft) high below the road deck. Construction began in October 2001 and it was formally dedicated on 14 December 2004, inaugurated the day after and opened to traffic two days later.
The enormous pylons were built first, together with intermediate temporary pylons, which were in themselves, a massive record-breaking construction project. The pylons range in height from 77 m to 246 m and taper in their longitudinal section from 24.5 m at the base to 11 m at the deck. Each pylon is composed of 16 framework sections, each weighing 2,230 tonnes. These sections were assembled on site from pieces of 60 tonnes, 4 m wide and 17 m long, made in off site factories. The pylons each support 87 m tall masts.
The entire length of deck surface (that is to say, the bridge itself, the actual kilometres of roadway) was slid out, into the valley, across the pylons from both sides. This feat was achieved using hydraulic rams that moved the deck about 600 mm every 4 minutes, over the course of many days (imagine an massive conveyor belt). While the kilometres of roadway were being slid-out through space, it was supported by both the final pylons and the temporary pylons. Only after the roadway was completely slid-out in to the final position, were the masts erected on top of the deck (that is to say, over the pylons). It may be noted that the masts on top are not continuing elements of the pylons underneath, although they appear to be. The masts are separate constructions, which were built on land, wheeled out to position only after the pylons and roadway were complete, raised and emplaced. The construction of the massive cable-stay system between the masts and deck then followed. Finally, the temporary pylons in the valley were removed.
After taking in the views of the bridge and surrounding valley we had another exciting trip to the facilities at the Aire. Abbey was adamant that she would not go if they were the ‘scary’ toilets so we crossed our fingers and ventured forth. Luckily I spied a disabled toilet and figured they would not expect them to squat! Sure enough we were in luck and all ended well for the ladies. Nathan and Zac were also in for better luck but not so for some poor English boy who obviously had the more advanced call of nature. When Zac yelled out to Nathan “These aren’t holes!” the poor child could be heard to reply, “these are!”
Back on the motorway we went, across the bridge and on to Avignon. We had booked ahead at Camping du Pont d’Avignon and were able to locate the campsite quite easily. It was located right on the Rhône River and opposite the famous bridge and Papal Palaces (tomorrow’s adventure). Today we were happy just to park and head straight to the pool.
The pool was a welcome sight with the onset of summer heat (we have been waiting a while for this) and came complete with a little set of rapids and loads of people! Whilst we had a great time cooling off we did unfortunately lose Nathan’s wedding ring at this point (that’s all I’ve got to say about that!) After our swim we explored the campground then got completely distracted by the serenity. We had come to Avignon at the tale end of some festive which seemed to culminate with house music being blasted up and down the river bank by some DJ set up on the end of the bridge. It was the kind of music you feel to your very bones and there was no escaping it. We bought the kids ice creams and continued our exploration discovering the toilets to be a tad confusing. They were obviously unisex but not really clear on layout. Took me a while to find the loos (normal thank god) and longer to find the washbasins. It was well used and a tad on the grotty side. The rest of the camp was fantastic and afforded a safe place for the kids to ride and scooter to their hearts content.
Not to be deterred by the continuing music we dined well on snags and salad (and cheap wine) then cleaned up and headed out for another stroll – hoping against hope that the music would cease sometime soon. By 10pm we gave up hope and headed for bed. Low and behold, the house music stopped and almost immediately the camp restaurant started in with a band of its own. This continued until almost midnight when a French family camping near by decided it would be an apt time for a domestic (you could hear that in any language!) All told, not the most tranquil night’s rest for any of us!
I have a spare wedding ring. Bought two months after I lost the original which I then found. You are welcome to it!
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