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To
gain the greatest possible benefit from Mapaholics'
France it is absolutely essential you read and
print out pages 3, 4 and 5 - before printing out any one, some
or all of the 44 chapters which follow.
As
you read the ‘Introduction’
on page 3 you will then begin to fully understand my idiosyncratic,
but hugely effective, freewheeling philosophy of exploration.
Join
my unofficial club and become a fully-fledged mapaholic like me.
I guarantee satisfaction.
Go
to Introduction
Go to Map
Go to Index of Chapters
Go to Navigation Buttons
To
print a chapter either click on the map below on the area you
wish to explore or click on the description of the chapter from
the list below the map.
To
return to this page after reading a chapter click on the back
arrow in your browser. If you do not have an Acrobat Reader, go
to Reprints and New Articles to obtain
a free copy.
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Introduction
France remains the 'First Lady of Europe'. She is as beguiling as
ever, a country both deeply rural and highly civilised. An added
plus is that the tourist 'industry' is run by individuals for individuals.
And, joy of joys, Marianne still clutches to her breasts endless
delights - hidden corners where Nature's priceless legacies and
majestic man-made creations are ignored by all but a few enterprising
visitors.
How can you prise out of La Belle France your share of her cornucopia
of pleasures? One golden rule applies as much as ever: maps are
the essential key if you are to open the door to France's seductive
charms. Good large-scale maps repay their outlay a thousand times
over.
A second golden rule goes like this: 'The more you run the risk
of getting lost the more certain you are of seeing the real France.'
In Mapaholics' France I've chosen an idiosyncratic way of persuading
you to emulate my freewheeling philosophy of exploration. I've selected
44 areas, each one covering an area of approximately 40x50 miles;
2,000 square miles in total. Each area, with its aide-mémoire
map, forms the basis of a chapter, in which I detail as many as
possible of the widely differing natural and man-made treats on
the ground. The 44 chapters cover 1,001 different subjects! Though
much of the material I have unearthed is not listed in Michelin's
green guides I do not claim to have done anything more than scratch
the surface of each area.
In the section above each aide-mémoire map, where applicable,
I suggest you also refer to other articles in the France section
on my website 'Reprints' page for extra freshly researched material.
The grid reference system on my aide-mémoire maps will make
navigating from equivalent large-scale maps easy as pie; for example
the Michelin spiral-bound atlas is ideal. Indeed, if you have any
editions of the latter published from 1987 to 1997, you will find
my aide-mémoire maps coincide identically with Michelin's
map pages!
If you want to enjoy France's varied topography then you must have
a go at 'navigating'. By that I mean you must use as many of the
Michelin maps' 'yellow' and 'white' lanes as you can manage. There's
a foolproof system which helps you enormously: all but a few French
minor roads have an identifying number which is shown on both maps
and signposts. Dyed-in-the-wool readers, doing a 'Binns', will already
be familiar with the term 'mapaholic'. Join the club - the guidelines
are simple: immerse yourself in maps; get lost often; laugh over
your wrong turns; and always remember a third golden rule - the
best parts of any country are found, more often than not, at the
end of roads that go nowhere.
Important advice: use France's tourist offices. Your Maison de la
France, MDLF, (French Government Tourist Office) will provide you
with lists of the departmental and regional (22) tourist offices;
all of them are useful sources of information. Hundreds of Office
de Tourisme and Syndicat d'Initiative addresses in France (and phone
numbers) are listed under village/town names in the Michelin red
guide.
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Click
on a square for the area you are interested in. An Acrobat Pdf
file will be downloaded, time to download will vary from 30 secs
to 2 minutes, depending on the length of the chapter.
Select
the Description of the chapter you are interested in and click
on it.
You must read the Introduction and
Notes on Maps First
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Chapter
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Description |
Page
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Mapaholics'
France cover and Introduction (also see notes on page 4) |
2
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Notes
on Maps, Text and Contents page |
4
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1
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Pas-de-Calais:
crafty farmers, archers, hides and humbugs |
6
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2
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Pays
de Caux: abbayes, falaises, colombiers and a harp |
12
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3
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Pays
de Bray: beech glades, cream cheese and apple tipple |
16
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4
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Laon
and Laonnois: Gothic marvels and fortified églises |
20
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5
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Argoat
& Armorique: calvaries, myriad musées & 1,001 faces |
24
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6
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Suisse
Normande & Pays d'Auge: 5C land and no pig's squeak |
28
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7
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Vosges
du Nord: folly forts, clogs, organs and a barge lift |
32
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8
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Morbihan:
mystical megaliths and a magical 'Little Sea' |
36
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9
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Vieux
Mans, Le Perche, Alpes, cool forests and black pudding |
40
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10
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Forêt
d'Orient, lakes, ecclesiastical surprises and lapins |
44
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11
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Vosges
du Sud: Route du Vin, ballons and a Christmas buzz |
48
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12
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Sologne:
forêts, étangs, caquetoires and beware leeches |
52
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13
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Auxerrois,
Vézelay, Morvan and Tardis time travel |
56
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14
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Auxois,
architectural glories, douix and a 'sourcey' goddess |
60
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15
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Berry
and Bourges: châteaux, Romanesque églises
and oaks |
64
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16
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Morvan,
Roman Autun, TGV, Salop-style and souls still alive |
68
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17
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Jura:
cirques, reculées, sources, cascades and piped
brine |
72
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18
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Doubs.
Swiss Jura. Alps views, tuyés, bells and asphalt ham |
76
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19
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Venise
verte, sharks, barques, Pibalou and flighty Mélusine |
80
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20
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Poitou:
rivers, Romanesque glories and a silent witness |
84
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21
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Bourgogne
Romane,
Dombes, Beaujolais and bright boîtes |
88
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22
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Bresse:
musées, chéminées sarrasines and a boomerang |
94
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23
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Haute-Savoie:
dozy Mt Blanc, vistas galore and a car wash |
98
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24
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Limousin.
Millevaches. Trees, mod-cons and walls of colour |
102
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25
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Livradois
and Forez: balcons, pissoir and an eerie twist |
106
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26
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Bugey
and Chartreuse: fours, vignerons and heady elixirs |
110
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27
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Lac
d'Annecy, Bauges, Baroque exuberance and tomes |
114
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28
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Corrèze
cocktails, flat bottoms, chestnuts and honeypots |
118
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29
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Aubrac,
Cantal cones, salt-glaze, hot water, aligot burons |
122
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30
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Le
Puy, Velay Volcanique, bois tourné, echoes and donkeys |
126
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31
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Vivarais
(Ardèche): wild flowers, rail buffs and orchestras |
130
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32
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Vercors:
a chisel head, cooing doves and bungee jumps |
134
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33
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Ecrins
and Queyras: wild flowers, sundials and herb soup |
138
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34
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Tarn
to Lot: a trou, ruby-hued grès and precious
stones |
144
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35
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Tarn
Gorges: orchids, griffons, bateliers and wild
loups |
148
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36
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Captivating
Cévennes: chocs, bamboo, Modestine and crues |
154
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37
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Ventoux
& Baronnies: lime blossom and Hannibal |
158
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38
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Gers:
Artagnan, fire water, bastides and Dudley Duncan |
162
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39
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Haut
Languedoc: tennis balls, pisseurs and an elm tree |
166
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40
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Verdon
and Var: ancient oaks, Templars and a traffic light |
170
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41
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L'arrière-pays:
perched villages, clues and Turk's-cap |
174
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42
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Pays
Basque & Béarn: noble beeches, gaves and Hard Knott |
180
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43
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Ariège:
izards, grottes, colombages and Roland's myrtilles |
184
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44
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7Cs:
Canigou/Capcir/Cerdagne/Conflent/Cathars/Celia/canari
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188
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