Palette of Beautiful Landscapes

Wedged between two mountain ranges, bathed by rivers and the Canal du Midi, the Aude extends to the shores of the Mediterranean, providing, in a short space of time, a voyage through all the different landscapes.

Heading north from Carcassonne, in a region of scrubland and vineyards, you enter, little by little, a thick forest of oak and chestnut that gave the Black Mountain its name. A source of so much wealth, the fountains and streams which flow there irrigating the lands of the plains below which, from here, you see stretching to the Pyrenees.

You could then turn west, towards the round hills of Lauragais, sunflower fields and landscapes cut into mosaics.

We decide to turn south, towards the Pyrenees, which seem so close. Passing by Carcassonne, we reach Limoux, accompanied still by vineyards and a mixture of pines, cypresses, oaks and olive trees deployed along the Razès hills. Then we approach the first foothills of the mountain range, where the Aude has its thundering torrents in forests of pines, at the feet of steep slopes. What a contrast with elsewhere!

Turning and heading east, we enter Corbières, first a green Corbières, and then a Corbière drier and drier as we carry on. The landscape is still hilly but now it is scrubland and bush that dominate, with vineyards of course but also with stone, minerals. The landscape is breathtaking, the fragrances strong and the impression of being in the middle of nowhere inexorable.

We continue towards east, towards the Mediterranean Sea. Finally we see it, so close. But no, it isn’t the sea. It’s the ponds, lagoons, a broad sheaf of water which merge with the fine sand beaches that extend into infinity along the coast. Where does the coast end and the sea begin? This lacework coast extends to Clape, further to the north, towards Narbonne. There again the picture changes completely, the hills rise, decorated with pines and vineyards until melting away into the sea, up to the mouth of the Aude and the beginnings of the Camargue.

We return through the lovely Minervois, above the Aude, admiring its embellishment of vineyards and olive trees, its valleys open to the sky. We follow the Canal du Midi with its plane trees to guide us until Carcassonne. It’s been an extraordinary trip; we have the impression of a long voyage when in fact we’ve only toured the Aude.