Short summary -- signs of wear and tear.
Nice place, the Gîte de Chardavon. An old farmhouse dating back, in part, to around 1600, that has been renovated over the past 12 years by a friendly Belgian couple. Very atmospheric inside, swimming pool outside, friendly welcome and a decent meal. Only drawback -- vast numbers of flies due to being next to a working farm.
The following morning, due to popular demand, we had breakfast at 7:30 with the intention of leaving around 8 so as to get a good amount of hiking done before the heat of the day. However, due to popular sluggishness, we didn't actually leave until about 8:40. We walked back up for a half an hour to Saint Geniez, then struck off along the GR953D... which turned out to be one of the trails in the Saint James' Way tree (the pilgrimage route to Santiage de Compostela in Spain). It was well signposted, and led through fields and woods up to and over a shoulder with spectacular views, before descending to the hamlets of Chateaufort and Nibles (which has our vote for best place name on the H3H so far).
By the time we got to Nibles it was after noon and getting quite hot. Suzi was starting to flag -- due both to the heat and her blisters -- and so she and Thomas decided to take the bus (which, however, didn't arrive... so they hitchhiked) the rest of the way. Reinhard, who has been having trouble with blisters and so has been hiking where possible in sandals, decided that since the rest of the day was a little too rugged for his sandals, and too long for comfort in his boots, he'd prefer to hike along the road (7+km on blacktop in a cloudless afternoon... not something I'd have chosen!).
So we were only five to hike out of Nibles -- four tough and experienced male hikers, and one heroic Sophie. We had about three and a half hours of hiking still to do -- in the heat of the afternoon and climbing up to and over another shoulder -- so it was a brave decision... and one she regretted quickly ;-).
The first indication that the hike might be a little difficult came quickly -- a signpost pointing the way to La Motte du Caire (our goal) via the intriguingly named Passage de l'Homme Mort (Passage of the Dead Man). Then came a steep climb, at the end of which Sophie was weaving a little -- probably due as much to hunger as to the heat, so we stopped for lunch. That revitalised her for a while, but a series of hot dry fields, followed by a long, steep, and nearly shadeless climb up to the shoulder left her head down and panting at various points. Nothing to be ashamed of though... even Thomas Bily (our indestructible Niederbayer) was showing signs of tiredness!
But she made it to the top, and from there all the way down (helped on by the occasional aggressive horsefly... I've never seen someone so tired move so quickly!). Not bad for a first time hiker, not bad at all.
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