Largentière is very old. That much I knew from driving by it on the main local road. But that was really the extent of my expertise before hiking to it. I decided to figure it out as I went along.
View of Largentière from the courthouse across the river
Largentière got its name from the local silver mines that operated in the 10th to 15th centuries (before then, it was called Ségualières). But, as the mines have been closed for more than 500 years, I didn’t really see any obvious evidence of this silver heritage.
Entrance (from a bridge) to the medieval old town of Largentière.
Three things struck me about Largentière. Firstly, its surroundings are very, very green (see photo at the very top of this post, which was taken from the bridge leading into the town).
These are a couple of the more wide-open streets in Largentière.
Secondly, the streets were very twisty and narrow – giving an almost claustrophobic feeling, despite all the greenery found outside the town walls.
Even the newer parts of Largentière look older than dirt
Thirdly, nobody was there! It was like being in a ghost town. Perhaps this is just how small towns appear on early Tuesday evenings. But there were still a number of restaurants, and tourism is in fact the main industry. I guess Largentière attracts mainly day trippers, and most of those people are long gone by 7:00 p.m.
One of many narrow passageways in Largentière.
I wandered the narrow streets, taking photos roughly every minute, and somehow managed not to encounter anybody besides some shopkeepers locking their doors.
Yet more nooks and crannies in Largentière.
Considering the small size of Largentière (less than 1500 people), I was surprised to see a massive court house (Tribunal) overlooking the town. It looked tremendously important, and at first glance I was certain that it dated back to Roman times. Alas, it was built in the 19th century. It was well weathered despite its relatively young age.
The Domaine Les Ranchisses resort is in its own little world. After being there for about a week,, and getting a few games under my belt, I decided to walk to the nearby village of Largentière for a change of scenery. The resort map showed a “2km pedestrian path” to the village. I thought this would be a nice, easy way to end my day.
An early encounter on the “pedestrian path” to Largentière.
It started innocently enough. The path started as a road, and gradually narrowed from there. I passed by a bucolic ancient farmhouse, with various roosters and chickens loitering about. But the path kept going higher and higher. And got lonelier and lonelier.
No guardrails (or anything else) on the “pedestrian path” to Largentière.
Soon, I was at an alarming elevation. Not to mention completely isolated from the rest of humanity. The path was a loose, rocky mess. Vegetation often encroached as if I were in a jungle. It occurred to me that I was very vulnerable – who would be able to help if something went wrong? And was this path going to disappear into nothingness as darkness fell?
I discover here that the “pedestrian path” was actually an ancient “mule trail”
Right about then, I found an explanation for the rather rugged “pedestrian path.” A slightly worn sign informed me that this was actually a “mule trail”. That would explain the steepness (and that few people have likely walked it in the last century). I decided to press on for 5 more minutes.
My first glimpse of the Château de Largentière
My patience and persistence paid off. The mule trail began to descend rapidly. Soon, I saw the Château de Largentière in the distance. I realized that the outbound leg of my journey was going to be completed successfully.
A different view of the Le Ver O Tof restaurant in Chassiers, France.
The patio at Le Ver O Tof, in the shadow of an imposing medieval structure
Chassiers was not very big, but it clearly had been a very important place at one time. My next post will share my impressions of the medieval town of Largentière, which I discovered had also been a very important place!
France enjoys a certain reputation when it comes to food. Like it or not, you cannot escape the impact of French cuisine. Lyon, quite close to my home base of Largentière (l’Ardèche region) is probably the capital of influential French cuisine. It was the home of legendary chef Paul Bocuse.
Close-up of Le Ver O Tof in Chassiers, France.
So it should come as no surprise that my stay in l’Ardèche also had its share of culinary adventures. The most memorable was probably our dinner in Chassiers, an impossibly old village high above the Val-de-Ligne at Largentière. There, we ate at a tiny place called Le Ver O Tof. It was perhaps the quaintest restaurant I have ever seen. And they specialized in…incredible gourmet burgers! It wasn’t the first time that I have found burgers done so well in a European culinary hotspot. Even the buns were made on site.
My “Burger Le Western” at Le Ver O Tof in Chassiers, France.
Because of the relatively isolated nature of our accommodation at Domaine Les Ranchisses, we often ate at the on-site Auberge. In addition to some other dishes, they had about 20 pizzas on the menu…and every single one of them had olives! Olives are big here. A black olive tapenade was on the table for every meal. I even bought a small locally-made jar to put on my sandwiches for lunch at the bowling green.
The Auberge at Domaine Les Ranchisses, Largentière, France
One of the salads (L’Ardéchoise) looked interesting, with a bunch of local ingredients that I liked. Topping the list was a local goat cheese (chèvre), and chestnuts (châtaignes). But there was one ingredient I could not identify: dés caillettes. I figured that it had to be some kind of local meat. I decided not to research it, and order it without knowing exactly what it was.
Salade l’Ardéchoise, at the Domaine Les Ranchisses Auberge
I ate and enjoyed the salad. There was indeed a meat in there: it was kind of like ground beef, but with a bacon flavour. It turns out that dés caillettes are made from pork liver and throat. For balance, I had the salade végétarienne the next time.
The salade végétarienne, at the Domaine Les Ranchisses Auberge
However, the most interesting food turned out to be an innocent looking hard cheese from Normandy called Mimolette. I thought it looked like an extra old gouda, so I bought it from the local supermarket for my breakfasts. Notably, I had never seen this cheese in Canada. Some research provided a possible explanation.
My piece of aged Mimolette cheese
Mimolette comes with a dusty grey rind. The reason we don’t see it much in Canada is probably because cheese mites are deliberately put on the rind. This apparently enhances the cheese’s flavour while it ages. I learned this before I ate any. But I figured that there would be huge warnings on the packaging if there was truly any health risk. I cut away all of the rind and eventually ate the whole thing.
The supernarket where I bought the Mimolette (Largentière, France)
My research told me that if I didn’t eat the rind, I shouldn’t be eating any significant number of cheese mites. In any case, the cheese was quite good and did indeed taste similar to extra old gouda. If you do find Mimolette in Canada, chances are that the rind will be different (usually a black wax). You’ll need to go to France for the unadulterated real thing!
I’m now at Domaine Les Ranchisses, where I’ll be living (and lawn bowling) for 13 days. It is actually a massive campground, with accommodation options ranging from campsites to “bungalows” (cabins) to a small hotel. It is rated as a 5-star campground, due in part to the many amenities on site.
My “bungalow” at Domaine Les Ranchisses
I’m staying in a bungalow with one of the Swiss bowlers. The bungalow has 2 small bedrooms, a living/dining area, a kitchen, and shower/bathroom facilities. So, we are not really roughing it too much. We just need to clean it up after our stay, so that “we leave it as we found it.” There is no daily cleaning, etc., as you would get in a hotel.
Our street (as viewed from our bungalow) at Domaine Les Ranchisses
The recreational facilities are immense. There is a spiffy rugby/football (soccer) facility and, of course, a world-standard lawn bowling green (see cover picture at very top of this post). There are about 6 large outdoor pools (of various types) near the large indoor/outdoor bar. There is a separate large indoor pool. There is a large spa. There are canoes, paddleball courts, pétanque areas, trails, and probably many more activity areas that I haven’t seen yet.
The restaurant (centre left) at Domaine Les Ranchisses
There is a nice restaurant on site. There are also conference facilities – and it seems to be very popular as a wedding venue. To help with self-catering, there is a small grocery store on-site…with fresh baked products every morning. However, my housemate has a car and we are going to the larger grocery store in Largentière (about 2 km away) for most purchases.
Spa at Domaine Les Ranchisses
As I brought two (heavy) sets of lawn bowls from Canada, I couldn’t bring too many clothes. But that is not really a problem, because Domaine Les Ranchisses also has a self-service laundromat that is available 24/7.
Paddling at Domaine Les Ranchisses
You can really have a self-contained vacation here. It is also extremely peaceful for a campground – although I suspect it is much busier in the summer high season. But even now, there are guests from various European countries. The majority seem to be from France, Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
One of the many pools (bar and reception building in the background) at Domaine Les Ranchisses
Coming up: reports on Largentière and the surrounding area!
While I’ve indicated that the main reason for this trip is lawn bowling, I haven’t really explained the details. As I’ve got some interesting but unused pictures from Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard, I will use them here and provide some background information about the lawn bowling competitions.
Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard, as seen from the village of Menthon-Saint-Bernard
At present, lawn bowling in Switzerland is played entirely indoors. They play on large “carpets” in curling rinks that would otherwise be unused in the summer. When they want to select players for certain international competitions, however, they go to the nearest outdoor facility that is compliant with world standards. And that facility is in Largentière, France.
Chapelle Notre-Dame des Grâces (in the hamlet of Ramponnet, above Menthon-Saint-Bernard)
That’s why I’m going to Largentière: I am vying for a spot to represent Switzerland in two international lawn bowling competitions. One is the European Championships, for which 5-person teams will be selected for both men and women. The other is a Singles event known as the World “Champion of Champions”, for which each bowling nation sends their national Singles champion.
Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard
This will play out over two weeks. For the first week, I’ll be mostly practicing. But I also will participate in some informal tournaments with Swiss bowlers and bowlers from the local French club. As we move into the second week, I will start to play my qualifying matches.
The larger chapel at Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard
It’s going to be an interesting experience. In my competitive events, there are a couple of Swiss-Australian bowlers in addition to the players who live in Switzerland. But, so far, I’ve found that lawn bowling seems to translate fairly well all over the world.
The cosy library at Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard
Whatever happens, I’m going to have a fascinating visit to a part of the world that I had never really considered as a travel destination. And sometimes those trips can be the best ones. Stay tuned!
