Les Andelys is a small town in France that is located in the province of Normandy along the banks of the Seine river.
The town itself is not all that special, its basically just a typical French commune, but the hiking in and around the area is really quite superb.
A quick drive up a steeply paved road brings you to a parking lot that overlooks the ruins of an old 12th century military fortress by the name of Chateau Gaillard. You can also choose to park your car in town and walk up to the castle on foot. We chose to do the latter.
Our hike up the road brought us to a small cafe. It happened to be closed that day but we could hear people working in the yard. Through the gate we also happened to see two large peacocks hanging out in the sunshine. I know that white peacocks are common in some parts of the world but for me this was the first time that I had ever seen one in person. They are really quite beautiful.
From the parking lot at the top of the hill you can see dozens of rocky dirt trails worn into the limestone hills.
They criss-cross the landscape in various directions.
We started our hike on a circular path that took us around the old castle ruins.
We saw large stone structures scattered throughout the area, remnants of the a fortress currently worn and crumbling after centuries of wind and rain erosion. Nonetheless they stand tall and still, kind of like the grave stones within a forgotten cemetery.
The limestone walls pop up out of a heavy growth of trees and shrubbery that have long since reclaimed the landscape.
Were the structures built or did they do they grow alongside the vegetation?
The castle itself was built in a single year in 1197 by the English king and Duke of Normandy - Richard I (also know as Richard the Lionheart).
Remnants of the old fortified defensive towers as well as a 12 meter deep ditch, now filled with a plethora of shrubbery, can still be seen among the trees and crumbling stone.
The castle sits on a cliff roughly 100 meters above the Seine River.
White chalk cliffs can be seen in the distance.
Trails leading around the castle ruins and up into the hillside offer various vantage points of the area, each with their own spectacular view of the river and town below.
We spent a bit of time here looking out over the landscape before heading onto a trail leading into the woods.
There were people in the area, all out for a hike in the nice weather, but it wasn't too busy so we allowed our dog to explore the path off leash.
The trail wound its way down the mountain and then back up to a point higher than when we started. We eventually came to a large clearing in the trees that allowed us to look down on the Donjon of the old castle.
The trail that we chose was one large loop that ended back at the parking lot. If you aren't ready to head home at this point then you could continue on, exploring the many other trails leading in the opposite direction. You could also have a picnic in the grass in the large field surrounding the parking lot.
We had had enough that day so we took one last look at the castle before heading back down to our car.
