After the fact, let’s talk about the TGV seat reservation debacle first. The only reason I hadn’t pre-ordered seat reservations was that I wasn’t sure if we were going to spend time in Nimes or not. I know better and should follow my own advice which is: ALWAYS MAKE TGV RESERVATIONS FOR WEEKEND TRAVEL…holiday season or not.

Second. Don’t underestimate the toll 12-16 miles is going to take on your body day after day no matter what kind of shape you’re in. We’ve been hiking and trekking for so long that this is one of my fatal flaws. “Oh…we did this last year…no problem.” Yes, it is a problem. One of these things is not like the other and there are no guarantees…. This was the first time that Steve had such terrible blister problems and the reason was, again in hindsight, his new boots were meant for a wider foot. Always impatient, he didn’t want to try on different brands at REI and suffered for this big error. By the way, REI took the boots back without any problem, and spent lots of time making sure he bought the proper size boots this time. They are a great company.

painting of Robert Louis Stevenson and Modestine along the trail in France
The Robert Louis Stevenson journey, “Chemin Stevenson,” was not what I expected for several reasons:

- It was extremely isolated. (The second half more so than the first half.)

isolated village along the RLS trail in France
- There were minimal amounts of other hikers/walkers on the trail and absolutely no bicyclists.

- A dearth of the unbelievably drop-dead gorgeous and charming medieval villages that made of the “Way of St. James” pilgrimage last year along with our inn-to-inn through Alsace so rewarding.

one of Estaing’s quaint streets in France 

One of Conques drop-dead gorgeous streets in France 

in Alsace, Colmar’s Little Venice, France 

If you crave solitude, heavily wooded mountains and hamlets, this is the walk for you. If you want companionship, hire a donkey. The cost runs around 430 Euros for two weeks. We, however, preferred the plethora of hikers on the Way of St. James. There was always someone from another country to share experiences and/or walk along together on the trail, and then there was the chance to visit incredible movie-set villages.

You walk The Stevenson Trail for its literary history. The Way of St. James is a religious pilgrimage route (even though 99% of the walkers aren’t doing it for “religious” reasons). Watch the videos and make up your own mind. Whatever you decide on, there is unpolluted air, scenery, mountains, trees, and wildflowers while getting more than your quota of exercise.
Bon Voyage…