The Way of St. James #31: From Moissac to Saint Antoine

I write this on Sunday May 12^th, but because there is no internet connection here in the gite, it will only get published tomorrow.

After the exertions of yesterday, it was a relief to be walking almost totally on the flat today. There is choice of routes leaving Moissac, or one can follow the canal towpath. Having walked so long and so far yesterday, I felt entitled to take the easier route this morning. The towpath route is shorter by about 1.5km, but more importantly, it avoids the hills.

The towpath is on a kind of levee that separates the canal from the Garonne. At times the levee is an island in the waterway system, and at times the levee is not much wider than the towpath itself. The route follows this towpath for more than 10km, and after a while, I must confess that it becomes a little bit boring.

It passes the village of Maluase where houseboats provided some interest, but in general, there is not much to see on this section. Later the route crosses to the north bank of the canal, and goes into the village of Pommevic. On leaving the village it turns south and crosses the northern arm of the Garonne, which at this stage is in two channels.

The route crosses that island in the river to reach the village of Espalier. Once through Espalier, the route turns south again and crosses the southern arm of the river, before turning left and entering Auvillar.

Auvillar is a pretty little village with its origins more than a millennium ago. It is known for the hall in the market place and the nearby tower. I had lunch there. It being Sunday, when it seems like everything is closed, I was unsure what I would get later on, so a burger and chips with beer was very welcome. Then it was time to get back on the trail and leave Auvillar. The route from there is mostly on small roads, passing the village of Bardigues to reach Saint Antoine.

Saint Antoine also has its roots in medieval times. Before it was a village there was just the monastery, dedicated to Saint Anthony with a hospital run by the Antonin order. The hospital was dedicated to treatment of ergotism, which was a scourge of communities in the middle ages. The ddisease was known as Saint Anthony’s Fire. Much of the monastic structures remain, but now they are houses rather than parts of a monastery.

I left the village to reach the gite La Ferme de Villneuve, which I can thoroughly recommend. There were 12 people staying there, and though strangers, we have had an excellent meal there this evening. There was soup, a main course of courgette gratin with meat and potatoes, cheese, dessert, Armagnac and tea or coffee. Everyone was well satisfied.

And today’s step count was 43323