In May 2017, I joined a group of retired Aluminium industry friends for 10 days of hiking and sightseeing in the Loire Valley in France. This team, known as the Aluhike Group, has undertaken hikes all over Europe for more than 20 years. I am only able to join the Aluhike Group occasionally due to the great distance from Australia. When I was offered the opportunity to join the Loire Valley hike I jumped at it as the timing coincided perfectly with a break in my Round Australia trip while the program also appealed to me greatly.
The Loire Valley hike covered most of the area between Orleans and Angers with a combination of walking and driving through picturesque French countryside. We visited some of the best Chateaux in the Loire Valley as well as abbeys, wineries and a few excellent local restaurants. It was a significant physical, visual and gastronomic experience. This was a once in lifetime holiday and something I would not normally do on my own. A big thank you to Bruno who organized the hike in his normal efficient and precise manner and appreciation to my fellow hikers Tom, Werner, Josef, Wolfgang and Steve (for a weekend) for their great company over the ten days.
The hike was a mix of walking days and sightseeing days…typically two days of walking (average 20km per day) followed by one day of sightseeing. This program provided a good combination of physical and cultural activity. It is not practical to provide too much detail on everything we experienced. I think the best I can do is cover some of the highlights through a short description and a few photographs.
The Loire Valley between Orleans and Angers was home to most of the Royalty and Aristocracy of France over the period from about 1000AD to 1700AD. The Loire River is the largest river in France and the valley is extremely fertile and covered in forests harbouring abundant game (even today). This was prime real estate for the wealthy citizens of France. And they left their mark with over 1000 Chateaux spread across a relatively small area of the Loire River Valley of roughly 200km.
Many famous people passed through the area including Kings and Queens of France, Joan of Arc, Richard the Lionheart, Leonardo da Vinci and many other names that I recognized from school history. However the three key royal figures who came up several times in our guided tours were Charles VIII, Louis XII and Francis I who lived in the Loire Valley area in the period 1400 to 1600 and built some of the finest Chateaux including Chambord Castle (actually served as a hunting lodge..!) which is second only to Versailles in magnificence.
In addition, several Chateaux were built by Finance ministers to the kings as well as Chief tax collectors who took liberties with public funds to build luxurious homes in the Valley. Sometimes these (unauthorised) building activities resulted in their demise as they were stripped of their wealth or ended up at the gallows for embezzlement. I learnt more about French history in 10 days on this hike than I learned in 12 years at school..!
The Loire Valley region between Orleans and Angers which we largely covered during our hike
The hike team on the first day out…me, Tom, Wolfgang, Bruno, Werner, Josef
Chambord Castle – hunting lodge of Francis Ist…!! Great view for our first lunch stop.
Typical beech and oak forest that we walked through during the hike
On the terrace in Blois overlooking the Loire River
View of Blois over the Loire River. The building in the centre is the Chateau of Blois which housed 10 Queens and 7 Kings from about 1200 to 1600.
The Chateau of Chenonceau…the most visited Chateau in France with over 1 million visitors per year…!
Chateau du Clos Luce in Amboise where Leonardo da Vinci spent his final days
A pretty horse that we met on the hike
The magnificent gardens of the Chateau of Villandry