We drove 4 hours (and about 5000 feet of elevation) from the sea to the ski - a resort town called Le Devoluy. The temperature got higher before it got lower, so it was a bit of a struggle to enjoy our mid-way stop in the town of Sisteron. We loved the views from its Citadel, but would have preferred jumping in that river or pool.

Le Devoluy is divided into six ‘communes’ and ours, “La Joue Du Loup” was pure ski village, with condos not unlike the one in Andorra, but more set up for summer sports as well. Mountain biking and climbing are both big, and there are plenty of hikes that didn’t require a drive.

We took a few in the area around our house and to a neighboring village within Devoluy.

+2

The best was a steep and difficult climb to ‘collet du tat’ with sweeping Alpine views.

Another day, we took the chairlift even higher for some more casual walks and a scenic lunch at the restaurant.

+1

We happened upon the world qualifiers of Stihl Timbersports competition with a big barbecue and vendors onsite. We met quite a few actual locals over lunch.

We had invited this friend to celebrate her 40th birthday, and for that, she and I tried another new activity - Via Ferrata. It is a mix between a hike and a mountain climb, using a rented harness and ropes to clip into existing cables on rocks. We chose one of the easiest routes and probably could have done a little more, but wanted to be cautious on our first try. It was still a bit scary and very beautiful!

Later that night we celebrated with some homemade fondue. Cheese is a specialty of this region, especially melty ones, and our house had a pot just crying out to be used. We also enjoyed local blueberries, sausages, potato croquettes, and ’tautons’ which are like a fried ravioli. It was everything I hoped the Alps would be!