Today was a day of climbing. First a two miler out of Poet-Laval past Dieulefit. Col de Valouse Then shortly after that was the 5k climb to the Col de Valouse at 785 meters. It's always a good thing to see the sign and know you're at the top. As usual, after reaching a Col, there's a glorious long downhill. This one was accompanied by beautiful limestone craggy cliffs. The downhill turned out to be more or less the next 20k. Col d'Ey Shortly after lunch at Ste.Jalle, we had the climb we'd been waiting for all day: 9k to the top of the 718 meter Col d'Ey. Fortunately, it was fairly cloudy, so we didn't have the sun beating down on us as we did the switchbacks through vineyards and farms. From the top we could see the village where we started,and the whole ride up Start of the hill The thrill of downhill And then it was another long and glorious downhill that ended a few miles from our destination for the next two nights: Buis-les-Barronies. Total very hilly kilometers for the day: 60

Buis-les-Barronies

An interesting little town that grew on us over the course of our stay.

Surrounding crags

This is the rock climbing capital of the region, as it is surrounded by huge craggy cliffs.

Dinner every night was al fresco, as it was for the entire trip.
	Dinner al fresco

Main Square

Our hotel was in the middle of the 12th century main square. When we arrived on Monday night, it was a quiet area.

Same Main Square with market

But Wednesday it was the central hub of the town's weekly market, and it was bustling with activity. All make and manner of produce was available -- beautiful fruits and vegetables, sausages and cheeses, pastries and bread.

Artichokes!

Here is something that took us a moment to identify: these are the flowers that artichokes turn into if they are left to bloom!

Tilleul/Linden Leaf Market

That particular Wednesday we were lucky to experience the annual "Tilleul Market." Tilleul is translated as linden leaves; these are used in great quantity as bases for perfumes and bath oils. Buis is the center of the tilleul growing region, and this was the day that the farmers came to sell their crops. It was a huge affair, with enormous truckloads filled with the the stuff being tossed around and weighed and traded. Very entertaining.

Days 4 and 5 - Loop from Buis to Montbrun-les-Bains (more hills), and on to Sault

We covered similar routes these days, and the scenery was spectacular. On both days we climbed high into the mountains to get views of villages perched on hillsides and fields of lavender. To the south was the great mass of Mont Ventoux, famous as the lone giant mountain in northern Provence, and as the ridiculously difficult 12 mile climb by bike up to its summit, which was on the route of that year's Tour de France a few weeks later.

Brantes
	Savoillan

On day 5 we climbed the Col de Fontaube and the Col des Aires, and then passed the village of Brantes, which seems to hang off a cliff. We followed the mountain road down to the village of Savoillan and its fields of lavender.

Montbrun-les-Bains

Lunch was in Montbrun-les-Bains, a picturesque village built on the side of a hill, with typically narrow streets, and glorious gardens of flowers hidden in its streets.

Chateau d'Aulans

After Montbrun we climbed through the Gorge de Toulourenc to the Col d'Aulans, passing the Chateau d'Aulans en route. After the Col, it was 25k downhill back to Buis, through olive groves and fantastic mountain scenery.

Aurel

The next day we took a similar route near Mont Ventoux, but a different road, and continued up through the village of Aurel to Sault, the region's lavender capital.

View from Sault

At the Nougatier

Sault (pronounced "so," as in "so what") was a nice town, with spectacular views of lavender fields from the main town park. It is also the home of André Boyer, makers of world-class nougat, a regional specialty, that is well worth the calories.

Total kilometers day 4: 65
Total kilometers day 5: 52