Day 2 - Arriving at the Beginning : Lyon to Le Puy en Velay

We awoke to another gorgeous day in Lyon, and after a buffet breakfast of baguettes, jam, coffee, and orange juice at the hotel, we again headed out to the old section of Lyon for another look around. The city was mostly asleep when we set out, with only a few joggers enjoying the morning. 

 

 

However, once we came to the river we found a wonderful market set up along its banks, with delicious looking local produce and mouth-watering baked goods. We wandered around the old section of town again, and before heading back to the train station stopped at a boulangerie for some brioche aux pralines.

 

We caught the train to St. Etienne Chateaucreux from Lyon Gare Part Dieu without any trouble, and from there caught a bus to Le Puy. We began to recognize fellow pilgrims and hikers on the train, and quite a few got off the train with us.

 

 

In fact, there were so many of us that the direct bus to Le Puy was completely full, and we had to take the local one instead, which took an hour longer. At first we were a bit disappointed by this, because it meant less time to explore Le Puy, but we soon discovered that the bus followed La Route des Gorges de la Loire, which is a scenic route along a (very!) narrow winding road that followed the Loire River valley. We passed through some stunningly beautiful little towns, some of which had markets of their own.

When we arrived in Le Puy we had a very steep walk, first down and then up narrow cobblestone streets to the Grand Seminaire Saint-George, which is a former seminary located in the old town, where we are staying.

 

 

We arrived about 15 minutes before we were able to check in to our room, so we sat in the shade and enjoyed an ice cream. After a little confusion caused mostly by our lack of French language skills, we managed to get everything sorted out, and we again headed out to explore.

 

Our first stop was to climb the Corneille Peak, which is the tallest volcanic peak in Le Puy, and which has a 16 m tall rose-coloured statue of the Madonna and Child atop it. Our Lady of France is made from 213 cannons that were taken during the battle of Sebastopol, which seems like one of the nicer uses for cannons.

 

 

The climb up to the top was a narrow stone staircase, which afforded a panoramic view of Le Puy on one side, and an array of brightly coloured mosses, lichens, ferns, and wildflowers on the other. We even saw a few lizards on the top. From atop the peak we could see Le Puy and the mountains beyond, which presumably we will be crossing tomorrow.

 

 

Our next exploration was of the Chapel of Saint Michel, which is also on top of a volcanic peak, albeit a slightly shorter one. It was a beautiful chapel, very simple inside, with a semi-circle of pillars inside holding up a rounded roof decorated with fading paintings.

 

 

It was very peaceful, and the way the light came in through the small stained glass windows was very magical. The views from atop the peak were also well worth the climb.

 

After this adventure we headed back to the seminary for dinner, which consisted of bread, wine, soup, chicken, the famous green lentils of velay, rice, salad, cheese, and apple tarts, shared as a communal meal. It was a huge and delicious meal, and the company was good. We were the only pilgrims at the table who did not speak French, but after dinner we met a couple of retired Australians who are also likely heading out tomorrow.

 

After dinner we wandered down to the cathedral. It was extremely interesting, and not like any of the cathedrals we previously saw along the Camino in Spain.

 

 

The Cathedral of Our Lady of Le Puy is a Romanesque monument that also has eastern influences, including a facade that is composed of alternating light and dark bricks. It was closed, so we sat on the steps for a while and watched the sunset, and then wandered around the old town some more.

 

 

 

At dusk we returned to the cathedral to watch a nightly light show that is running from mid-May to the end of September this year. Coloured lights were projected onto the face of the cathedral, and used to tell pieces of the history of the Le Puy region.

 

 

The show was set to music, and was very well done. After the light show at the cathedral we walked down the hill and watched the second part, which featured scenes of the volcanic history of the region told in lights and set to music. Apparently there is a route which takes about an hour to walk which features 5 or 6 light shows. However, we were tired and have an early start tomorrow, so we called it a night.

 

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Practical Information: 
Distance: 135 km

Accommodations: Le Grand Séminaire-Accueil Saint-Georges

Comments: Le Grand Seminaire provided simple, clean accommodations and the opportunity to meet many other pilgrims at the communal dinner.  The staff were very friendly, and I would definitely recommend staying here.