Checking in from France. Been keeping plenty busy.
One day Jeff had a day off and he showed me a really cool chasm nearby. The entrance is absolutely enormous. I tried to capture the size of it but failed miserably.
Then after about 200 feet it narrows down into a small tube. For most of the year there is a river that flows into and through the chasm but in the summer it is quite dry. We were able to hike a couple hundred feet into the chasm before reaching a drop-off requiring canyoneering equipment. Here's a shot of that spot illuminated with our cell phones.
Then came the lunar eclipse! Here's the moon rising the day before.
I was fortunate to be in Europe during the eclipse as totality wasn't visible from North America. Unfortunately it was quite cloudy out. But the clouds managed to move out of the way every now and then for a few minutes, causing a panicked scramble on my end. Without a tripod photographing the moon proved difficult, but here is a shot of the eclipsed moon hanging above Mars. The eclipse was longest lunar eclipse that will occur this century. Also, Mars is the closest to Earth it has been in 17 years. It was awesome to see 2 very red celestial bodies rising over the horizon together.
Here's the moon towards the end of the penumbral phase. With no clouds the photo came out much sharper.
Camille and I also went to see some fireworks in the village of Autoire, the same place where I've been climbing a lot. In this photo you can see the climbing cliff towards the top left of the photo. They lit up the cliff and the old castle that still exists at the base of the cliff. The lights and some music were coordinated with the firework show. It was very impressive for such a small village (seen in the bottom right of the photo).
I also met Camille's parents. They live in a village 2 hours away. They have a beautiful home that was once a working farm. That night we all went out for dinner and live blues music in a nearby village. It was a really nice time. This pavilion where the band performed was built 800 years ago... The history and subsequent preservation of it is beyond impressive to me.
There's also some nice swimming holes nearby. Limestone cliffs everywhere!
A 15 minute hike from Camille's house brought us to some ruins with a nice view of the valley. And she thought my beard could use some sprucing up.
For a couple months I've been experiencing symptoms very indicative of Lyme disease. Being the more responsible person, Camille strongly encouraged me to see a doctor. We did, then I had some blood work done and it turns out that I do indeed have Lyme. No worries, I'll be getting antibiotics this week. This is the second time I've been to the doctors in 8 years (first time was contracting staph last year), both times being in Europe conveniently where health care is easier and more affordable.
Either way I've been driving around to labs and whatnot on my own, providing me with an opportunity to explore nearby villages. This village had a very nice church.
I also enjoy going to bakeries and buying baguettes and walking around as proud as can be. If I don't talk, I think people assume I'm a local!
Camille and I also paddled down the Dordogne River during one of her few days off from work. We happened to run into some of her coworkers and joined them for most of the journey down the 19km section of the river.
During the paddle we were aware of 2 different caves along the river. The first one being a dry cave which was pretty cool. The entrance was obstructed by a tree but once you passed that, there was a big room with lots of mud hand prints on the walls.
The second was a wet cave with a fresh water river running through it and emptying into the Dordogne. The cave was super cool and seemed to go for a long time. Unfortunately without proper lights and equipment we couldn't explore too far.
This week will involve more climbing (I've picked a 12c route as a project while I'm here) and who knows what else. On Friday Camille and I head out. She's flying to a wedding in Sardinia for 4 days and I'm heading to Paris to pick up Tim and Tim for a week of climbing and drinking in France and Belgium.
À plus !
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