St. Leger is 15 minutes away. To the Face Nord it's 5 minutes; the opposite cliffs are another story. It's not a particularly strenuous hike, but we take it slow when it's hot.

The view from the base of the cliffs is incredible. I believe this is from Praniania wall; the Alcove is visible as well as the Face Sud. To the right is the lavender field, and right of that is the Toulourenc.

Lavender scents the air as we climb at the Face Sud. It's incredibly pretty, what with all those purple spikes bobbing in the breeze.

A day of hard climbing (onsight! redpoint! second go! project!) ends with easy rewards: sunlit paths, good company,

and yummy cherries plucked off the tree to eat on the hike back.

The Toulourenc tempts us to cross it, instead of following the worn path between the rocks and the gîte. And so we take off our boots and socks, fold up our pants, and step in. The river rock is smooth and slippery. We giggle as we cross, weeds tickling our feet. A couple of times I stop to keep my balance, and squeal when mud squishes between my toes. This. Is. Fun.

As fun as cold, reddened feet can get. We are dirty, tired, tanned, happy. All climbing days should end like this.