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Tues Sept 23. Licques. 16.8 km

 Today’s walk was largely on paths through woods.  Lots of mud, a bit of rain, but really lovely walking.

The one monument the Via Francigena roadmap told walkers to find today, was a column commemorating the first crossing of the Channel by airship in 1785. My sincere apologies - I know this will disappoint anyone reading this blog - I couldn’t find it. Instead here is a picture of a beech tree.  Somewhere near where the column should be.


There were larger beech trees in the forest, and my Plant App informed me that most of the other trees were Hornbeams.

After the woods, acres and acres of rutabagas, easily recognizable because their leaves smell strongly.

Although we usually think of Flanders as the Dutch-speaking region of Belgium, this area of France also calls itself Flanders and used to have quite a number of Flemish (a form of Dutch) speakers.  So here are a few poppies.

And mud. Lots of it. Nearly every day it rains on and off.

Arriving in Liques. The big building is what remains of a once large and prosperous Abbey, destroyed in the French Revolution (France’s version of Henry VIII’s destruction of Abbeys in England, but about 250 years later).

A typical French country small town scene. Nothing happening!




Comments

  1. Sullivan's FollySeptember 24, 2025 at 5:33 PM

    Glad you know your European trees! I am currently listening to Capercallie, Peat Bog Fairies, Salt House and Great Big Sea. All Scottish, Irish and Maritimes folk bands! and while I am preparing Chicken Adobo (a Mexican dish via Cuba!)

    ReplyDelete

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