Tags
Apt, auberge du Luberon, candied fruits, Christian, hiking, Roman, Saignon, Truffles
Hike from Apt to Saignon
Apt‘s history goes back to Roman times when it was a prosperous ancient city. Remnants of its days as a Christian bishopric are also visible in its gorgeous 11th-century Saint-Anne Cathedral. Today the town is loved for its candied fruits, jams, lavender essence and truffles and a very colorful market that teems with Provencal produce on Saturday mornings. When you arrive in Apt park your car in the cours Lauze-de-Perret car park in the east of town,and then you are ready to set out on your hike. On foot your will have to take D48 and walk along until you see the Auriane track on the left, you will then head left and cross the bridge over the Rimayon river. As the road sweeps left you will have to keep walking straight along the path that climbs the hill, then bear left and and follow a tarmac path for ( 164ft) until you eventually get to the Ginestiere crossroads. Once you get there stay to your right and follow the D174 to get to the village entrance, which leads to the pretty place de la Fontaine.
Saignon is not very well known by tourists. If you go there visit the Prieure and Farm built in the middle ages on a Gallo- Roman site and continued to expand until the 19th-century. The church contains Medieval frescoes , and the excavations of a first-century villa are seen through a grill in the floor. Exhibitions are staged in the farm while the gardens are devoted to historic and scented plants. To get to Saignon, make a turn left on Rue du Bourget and walk about ( 330 ft) until you reach a cobbled path, on your left that leads to kind of a square in the parking lot. At the bottom of the car park, you will find a path winding around the village’s ramparts. After the last house take a deep breath and climb the steps to the main castle ruins and marvel at the vistas from the lookout point. Then go back down the ramparts before going left and joining the D174. From place de la Fontaine backtrack to the Ginistere crossroads, and turn right. After the bend, keeping Tourel (a settlement) on your left, take the short cut at the next bend and continue straight for (650 ft). At the next bend turn left along a dirt track and head straight through an oak forest and then a residential area. Continue straight , and then cross the old N100, using the steps to join the cycle path. You will have to keep going over the Cavalon River and then head up a ramp on the right to follow the D22 back to Apt. Finish your hike with a hearty French meal at Auberge du Luberon http://francemarket.com/auberge-luberon, located in a century- old building in the city’s historic center.
Luberon, Provence.
