30.3 km today.
3.5 km/h average today.
8 hours 39 mins walking time.
83 km this trip.
2812.5 km from start.
0 metres minimum height.
107 metres maximum height.
86 metres ascent.
195 metres descent.
Track Log: Logged.
Travel: Bus, Walk, Train.
8.70 Euros.
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2011-02-23-Generac-to-Arles.kml
2011-02-23-Generac-to-Arles.gpx
Quiet roads, especially the nicest bit in the northern Camargue.
The 07:30 bus to Générac departed on time. The previous evening, there was pandemonium at the bus station. No electronic signs were working and there were no staff or information kiosks. It was almost impossible to work out what was going on. Then a 37 bus pulled in and the driver confirmed that Bay 6 was the usual departure point. In the morning, it was so empty and there were so few buses that there would have been no chance of missing it.
After a minor detour in Générac the walk progressed, initially avoiding the longer pilgrims' route. This involved walking on a road with little traffic. It was cold, windy but sunny. Later as the day warmed up, the route rejoined the pilgrims' and a heavily laden backpacker could be seen trudging towards Santiago.
The highlight of the day was skirting the northern perimeter of the Camargue Regional Natural Park. A huge bird of prey was spotted as well as a stork. Of course there were lots of horses.
Neil has taken up a new hobby called geohashing. This is a pleasant activity where the aim is to visit daily locations generated by a computer algorithm explained here. On this day, the path came within about 800 metres of a hashpoint but sadly the location could not be reached. It was well fenced and on the wrong side of the drainage canals. On most days, the hashpoint is too far away to reach on foot. Sometimes, extreme terrain makes the point too hard to reach. Each day there is a new challenge, rarely easy, often possible but frequently not.
At Arles, the route crossed the Rhône. This is another landmark being roughly the half way mark across France and the regional boundary.
Transport Costs: EUR 8.70.