From Besançon to La Cluse-et-Mijoux with stops in Saóne, Ornans, and Pontarlier

I realized I needed to do a catch-up post, or I would be perpetually behind. On the plus side, though, it will force me to focus on the highlights and not to go too deep into the weeds. Was it my imagination, or did I just hear a muffled laugh from Becca?

Besançon to Saòne

Leaving Besançon and climbing the mountain known as Chapelle des Buis (in honor of the chapel that sits near its peak) provided one breathtaking vista after another.

Hotel Anxiety #1

The walk to Saóne was only 15kms, but with taking my time to leave Besançon, the elevation gain, and numerous stops for photos, I managed to take most of the day getting to Saóne. My hotel wouldn’t allow me to check in until 5:00 p.m., though, so I had the time.

As I approached Saóne, I checked my reservation to confirm the location and realized I had received a message earlier that afternoon from the hotel letting me know that they were giving me the door code to get into the hotel since no one would be there to check me in. My key would be in my room door. That was fine, but their message didn’t include the door code. I assumed it would be clear when I arrived at the hotel, but it wasn’t, and I couldn’t get a response to my email or my phone calls.

There was one restaurant open in the village, so I headed there to have dinner while hoping the hotel would get back to me. Two hours after I arrived at the hotel and just as I was thinking I might have a long night of walking ahead of me, the hotel responded apologetically with the door code, and I let myself into my room.

Saóne to Ornans

Ornans is a charming city that bills itself as the “The Little Venice of Franche-Comté”. Ornans is also known for trout fishing in the river Loue and as the home of the famous 19th-century painter, Gustave Courbet. Courbet’s painting, Burial at Ornans featured actual citizens of Ornans, and his painting, The Desperate Man, still intrigues and captivates art lovers.

Ornans to Ouhans

Just outside the village of Mouthier-Haute-Pierre, the main trail was closed, and walkers were directed to a detour trail over a mountain. The problem was that you could no longer identify your location on the trail map, and you were walking blindly through some very rugged and remote country. The compensation was that you were granted some spectacular canyon and views.

Hotel Anxiety #2

It was pouring rain when I left Ornans, and the rain continued on and off for most of the day. In addition, it was one of the most challenging days yet in terms of elevation gain with a significant hill in the last five kilometers, so I was ready for a hot shower and some rest when I arrived in Ouhans. An hour before reaching Ouhans, I checked my emails, and noticed that the gîte owner had messaged me asking when I expected to arrive. I let them know that it looked like it would be 6:15, and I then walked as fast as I could to make that time.

When I finally arrived at the house, I couldn’t get an answer at the door. As I was standing in the driveway getting ready to call the owner, a lady came out of the back yard and went into a side door and gave me a funny look. A man who spoke no English then came out, and we managed to figure out that due to a Booking.com error, the room had been double-booked (although my booking was first), and that the other guest had already checked in. Ouhans is a small village, and there was nothing else available there for the night. I began to look for other accommodations further down the trail, but the nearest room I could find was in Pontarlier, another 16kms away with a couple of challenging hills in between.

The owner didn’t offer to let me sleep on his sofa, but he did offer to drive me into Pontarlier. With no better options, I booked the room and took the ride. The next morning, I spent an hour and a half trying to find a cab, a bus, or an Uber to take me back, but there was nothing available. I resolved to walk back to Ouhans and then turn around and walk back to Pontarlier and then on to La Cluse-et-Mijoux, where I already had a room booked. I wasn’t sure if I could make it that far given the terrain, but I had no other choice, so I started walking. I walked about 4 kilometers to the edge of town and decided to try for an Uber one more time, and this time, there was a car available. He picked me up, took me back to Ouhans to a point that overlapped my walk of the previous day, and I then began the walk to La Cluse-et-Mijoux, again in the rain.

Pontarlier to La Cluse-et-Mijoux

The Chateau de Joux

The trail from Pontarlier to La Cluse-et-Mijoux runs along a high ridge of the Jura mountain range before a final steep ascent and descent in the last five kilometers. Fortunately, the rain stopped by the time I arrived in Pontarlier, and the skies began to clear as I ascended to the top of the ridge-line. Along the ridge-line, you begin to get views of the Chateau de Joux, a thousand-year-old castle that commands a strategic position over the Cluse pass below, a narrow mountain pass that served as an important military and trade route between France, Switzerland, and Italy for hundreds of years. I had not read about the chateau, so it was an almost unbelievable site.

Another kilometer or two along the same trail, I came across another fortress, Fort Mahler, that wasn’t quite as grand as the Chateau de Joux, but was, nonetheless, quite a surprising site to stumble upon when I wasn’t expecting it.

Next Up: Jougne – The last stop in France