The Good Life France Magazine




The Good Life France Magazine brings you the best of France - inspirational and exclusive features, fabulous photos, mouth-watering recipes, tips, guides, ideas and much more...


Published by the award winning team at The Good Life France

Views
2 years ago

Issue No. 23

Welcome to the summer! In this issue discover Dijon in Burgundy, sensational Strasbourg (and a secret speakeasy), and lovely Cognac. We'll tell you where the locals go on holiday, the secret places. Visit Versailles and the Paris Opera, Le Touquet - the "Monaco" of northern France and wild Provence. Guides, recipes and more - your trip to France without leaving home...

Photo: Sue

Photo: Sue Chapple

quiet and serene and once you’ve dried off, just stroll down to the beach and listen to the sounds of the river as dusk takes a hold. There’s a main cabin, with quiet views back over the gorge and a really good restaurant. You can connect to Wifi there if you need to or stay in one of their rooms. But why would you want to? And as you slip down under your luxurious covers in the snug of your yurt, the sounds of nature at night gently soothes you to sleep. The Pont d’Arc The Pont d’Arc is a 54 m high and 60 m wide, natural bridge carved out of the rock face of the gorge over the Ardèche River, and it happens to be just around the corner from the Loges. If you can, visit early in the morning, by which I mean about 8.30am to 9am and after a feast of freshly cooked breads and pastries on your yurt’s balcony. Or you could try one for the Loges’ Paniers Gourmand for your day’s exploring. A yurt to remember The Loges is one of those places that takes you slightly by surprise. There are 5 yurts tucked away from each other in amongst the trees on the slopes which lead down to one of the private beaches of the River Ardèche. And as you’ve already realised, they’re not any old yurts. Mine had a 4 poster bed (as well as a bunk bed), luxuriously dressed in leopard skin blankets and in the corner, my fabulously indulgent round bathtub. The bathroom area was created out of reclaimed wood (presumably from the gorge) giving it a rustic but still luxury feel. And because of the carefully secluded position, you can raise the external flaps of your yurt and enjoy the privacy of a bath while watching the sun slowly slip down the face of the gorge on the opposite side of the river. It’s Early morning is not the best time to get photos as the sun isn’t quite up over the cliffs yet, (well not in September) but something rather magical happens. I was the only person there that early, surrounded by a vast amphitheatre of cliffs as I strolled down passed a little circle of vines in the silence. But as I approached the Pont D’Arc, thousands of birds who live in the rock face, started swirling around and singing an exotic song. You can climb right down to the river and with the lush vegetative and still warm air, it felt tropical and almost magical. I went back later in the day when I got some great photos, but the hushed reverence and the birds had gone and without them, the sense of mystic wasn’t quite as intense. Photos: Top left Pont d'Arc a natural bridge carved out of the rock; above yurts with a luxury feel