Route: Pont du Gard
Area: Gard, Southern France
Date of walk: 27th September 2018
Walkers: Andrew and Gilly
Distance: 11.0 miles
Ascent: 1,100 feet
Weather: sunny and hot
Today was the last day of our three day walking holiday in the Gard region, and fittingly would end at one of France’s most iconic places – the 2,000 year old Pont du Gard, built by the Romans as an aqueduct to transport water to the city of Nîmes
On another cloudless day we set off from our hotel in Collias, passing underneath the bridge which we’d crossed at the start of yesterday’s walk. After passing by an attractive waterfall we walked across the plain of the River l’Alzon, following old farm tracks and deserted country lanes through vineyards and olive groves
We passed through the small village of Argilliers, detouring briefly to see the attractive church, and then continued across more agricultural land to reach the old stone quarries on the outskirts of Vers Pont du Gard. We wandered around the attractive village for a while and then set off to our final hotel, the nearby La Bégude Saint Pierre, where we checked in, had a well earned beer, and then continued to the Pont du Gard, about 20 minutes walk from the hotel
I’ve seen photos of this ancient place before, but none of them do justice to the incredible feat of engineering involved – a gradient as little as 1 in 18,241 (the aqueduct section) was enough to enable the water to flow from its source near Uzès to its destination in Nîmes, a journey of some 30 miles. We spent a couple of hours here, marvelling at the ingenuity of the original builders and engineers as we wandered around admiring the aqueduct from different angles
At last it was time to take our leave, and from the Pont du Gard we retraced our steps back to our hotel and the end of a wonderful journey – thanks to all at Inntravel for another faultlessly organised walking holiday
Click on the icon below for the route map
Scroll down – or click on any photo to enlarge it and you can then view as a slideshow
Dawn breaks over Collias - this is the view of the village church from our hotel room
Today's walk will take us out of the village to our destination - the famous Pont du Gard
We walk under the arch of the bridge over the River Gardon, which we'd crossed on yesterday's walk
We follow the riverbank for a short distance
After leaving the riverside we head north east and pass by a waterfall in the River l'Alzon
We join a farm track heading in the direction of Argilliers
This pleasant track takes us through vineyards...
...and olive groves
Olives, which will be harvested later in the year
We follow a deserted country lane
Though it's late in the season, there are still a few wildflowers around (sorry I'm unable to identify this one and if anyone knows please email me)
An old barn on the approach to Argilliers
We arrive in Argilliers and make a minor detour to see the village church
Leaving Argilliers
We follow a deserted country lane towards the village of Vers-Pont-du-Gard
We arrive at the ancient stone quarries on the outskirts of the village, some of which have been in use from Roman times
Carts carrying massive weights have worn ruts into the stone over the years
We walk between two huge walls of stone which were erected to prevent access to the quarries
Peering into one of the quarries which is still in use
We arrive in Vers-Pont-du-Gard and stroll through the attractive streets...
The contented village cat
Gilly studies the map
We walk out of the village, passing by some old buildings...
From here it's a short stroll to our final hotel, La Bégude Saint Pierre
We check into the hotel - the word 'bégude' is specific to the area and is an old French word equivalent to a watering hole for travellers
After a short rest we set off on a there and back walk to the nearby Pont du Gard
It's an easy stroll of about 20 minutes from the hotel
Ancient olive trees near the site of the aqueduct
We arrive at the famous Pont du Gard, a masterpiece of Roman ingenuity which weighs in at 50,000 tons
The section lower left is a road bridge which was added in the 18th century, and we cross over it in order to view the aqueduct from the other bank of the River Gardon...
A close up of the yellow limestone blocks, taken from a nearby quarry bordering the river
On the other bank of the river now, the three tiers of arches are well seen - the upper arch contains the aqueduct which once transported water to Nîmes
The aqueduct descends in height by only 41 feet over its entire length of 31 miles
Form, function and beauty...
A final look back to the Pont du Gard at the end of a wonderful journey
