DAY 62 - REILLANNE TO APT

We had fine weather and lovely scenery for today's long walk through Provence. 

A lovely old path to start this morning's walk 

After an hour and a half of easy walking, we came to the ruins of the medieval priory of Carluc. We spent some time wandering around the site.

Storyboard at Carluc Priory - another attempt at shadow photography 

Carluc Priory

Carluc Priory

Another few kilometres brought us to a Roman bridge on the way into Céreste. 

Roman bridge near Céreste 

Céreste was to be the last village of any real size on today's walk, so we bought supplies for lunch and afternoon tea, and sat down at a café for a coffee stop.

Coffee stop, Céreste 

The path after Céreste took us towards the Luberon mountains, past lavender fields and vineyards,  and through a few small hamlets.

Lavender fields beneath the Luberon 

There were no formal picnic facilities on the way (benches, picnic tables), but we found a nice shady spot by the side of the path to sit down and have our lunch.

Lunch stop by the GR653D on the way to Apt 

After lunch we were treated to some delicious cherries from a path-side tree.

No tarts today, but we kept up our intake of healthy fruit thanks to this conveniently located cherry tree 

The GR joined a cycleway for several kilometres of easy walking on the approach to Apt. 

The GR goes along the cycle path for several kilometres 

While the cycle way continued on into Apt, we took a detour up to the touristy village of Saignon. We climbed to the top of the Rocher de Bellevue for a 360 degree view of the region, including the town of Apt down below.

Haven't had a selfie for a while. This one is looking down on the town of Apt from the Rocher de Bellevue at Saignon. 

The Rocher de Bellevue at Saignon.  We had climbed up to the top of it for the previous photo. 

After a rest/afternoon tea stop in Saignon, we descended to Apt, our accommodation stop for the night.

Descending towards Apt from Saignon on the GR653D 

Day:  62

Distance: 34.47 km
Walking time:  7hrs 07mins
Elevation gain:  704 metres
Cumulative distance:  1540.44 km