The Hill from Hell and the Sugar Loaf - a Normandy ramble

By Keith Kellett

It’s only a short walk from the cross-Channel ferry terminal at Ouistreham to the start of a very long one. Just outside the dock gates is the start of the grande randonnée walking route, the GR36.

Step out along this, and, several months later, several kilos lighter, several shades browner, and with hair (and beard, if applicable) several inches longer, you’ll arrive in the Pyrenees.

If you don’t have so much time to spend, two days along the path ....... or two hours away by car or bus ........ lies Switzerland!

Someone decided that the low rolling hills and the cliffs in the Orne valley looked vaguely Alpine. Many houses are built from the rough, locally-quarried Pont de la Mousse slate. This, despite the modest height of the area, gives them something of the air of mountain villages. So, to attract visitors, they called the area Suisse Normande, or Norman Switzerland.

There aren’t any Alps, lakes, cuckoo clocks or fondue here, though. The Norman version of Switzerland doesn’t even boast the highest point in Normandy. One advantage is its easy access from some of the Channel ports. Another is that it’s nothing like as expensive as the "real" Switzerland.

Visitors could base themselves at Thury-Harcourt (‘The Gateway to Suisse Normande’) or at Clécy (‘The Heart of Suisse Normande’). There’s accommodation to suit all pockets, from comfortable, welcoming auberges, down to well-equipped camping sites ........ and some not so well-equipped, for campers on a really tight budget ....... for those who really want to get to know la France profonde.

Camping du Traspy is a good kilometre from Thury-Harcourt. But, early one morning, a nose outside the tent, investigating the clatter of clogs from even earlier risers heading for the shower, could detect the aroma of freshly-baked bread from the boulangerie, even from that distance. Who could sleep through that?

The first rays of the early sun lit up the slopes of the Colline d’Enfer, a low hill beyond Thury-Harcourt. It looked like the start of another excellent August day; but first, to the bakery for breakfast croissants and the lunch-time baguette!

To explore the area, it’s better to walk, cycle or hire a horse than to drive. A network of routes caters for most levels of ability. For canoeists, the placid River Orne, often claimed as one of the cleanest rivers in France, shows an occasional fit of bad temper for those who like a more exciting ride! For more relaxed visitors, there’s a fishing weir and salmon ladder at nearby L’Hom.

For serious walkers, Suisse Normande lies at the intersection of three grande the randonnée (GR) routes. Intertwined, and sometimes sharing a path with these are two medium-distance route (GR’s de Pays), the Tour de la Suisse Normande and the Tour de la Pays de Falaise.

For those not so committed, those with young families and those whose idea of a heavy load is a bottle of water, a camera, a baguette and some cheese, there are many short routes called petites randonnées.

The petites randonnées, or PRs are all way-marked, and easy to follow. A useful little guide-book, with excellent maps, can be bought at local Tourist Offices. You’ll rarely see other randonneurs along these routes, although there’s plenty of evidence of their passing in the form of boot-prints, fat-tyre tracks and "horse-exhaust".

From Thury-Harcourt, the best walks usually start by heading up the Colline d’Enfer. This translates as "the Hill from Hell". I don’t know why; it’s really a pleasant walk past pastures and orchards. The apples, however, aren’t for eating.

This is Calvados country. The best of these apples go for cider, and the best of the cider is distilled into Calvados. And, to ensure that the apples don’t get scrumped by passing randonneurs, it seems that the orchards with the most tempting apples are grazed by the biggest, ugliest and meanest-looking bulls!

In Autumn, the blackberries provide a delicious feast. I met a couple from Le Havre gathering blackberries, which they made into jam in their tent on the site! They claimed that the jam wouldn’t turn out as nice if they waited till they got home.

I planned to stay in Thury-Harcourt for two days, then move to Clécy. But Camping du Traspy was pleasant, and had a swimming pool close by. Besides, Clécy was only half a day’s walk down the GR36 and, by rising early, I ensured I was there by lunch-time.

After a leisurely déjeuner ......... there’s no other kind of lunch in Normandy ...... I was off along the PR up the Pain de Sucre, or Sugar Loaf. That’s a low, wooded cliff, giving good views across the river to Clécy. There was time for one circuit from many possible; there was even time for "stopping and staring", and still get back to Clécy to look around the Model Railway Museum before catching the bus back to Thury-Harcourt.

Photos copyright Keith Kellett 2002

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