Spring in Fons
Spring is a delightful time in Fons outre Gardon. Between February and April daytimes are usually warm and dry (12 to 20 degrees centigrade) with cool evenings when guests can enjoy the villa’s log fire, which complements the radiator heating. Most days lunch can be taken out on the covered terrace.
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The villa is situated in the Garrigue (the ridge between the Mediterranean coast and the Cevennes with small oaks and bushy, fragrant plants such as juniper, thyme, rosemary and lavender).
It is ideal for walkers, cyclists, or tourists who want to drive their car, or use the bus or train that leave from the village for the Roman city of Nimes, or Ales to the north or to Saint Jean du Gard (where in 1878 Robert Louis Stevenson completed his 200km walk with a donkey, Modestine, immortalised in his pioneering travelogue, ‘Travels with a Donkey’).
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Walkers have thousands of kilometres of paths to explore, down in the Camargue or up in the Cevennes, or simply along Grand Randonne (GR) 63 which runs past the house.
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Cyclists can enjoy the four cycles provided at the house to explore the many off-road cycle tracks described in the House Diary by previous visitors.
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Bird watchers will be enthralled by the mass of migratory sea birds down on the Camargue (45 minutes) and especially the thousands of pink flamingos in the shallow waters. The nightingale sings in our trees and the hoopoe is a regular visitor to our lawn, along with black redstarts, finches, tits and tree-creepers. Raptors circle above.
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Naturalists will adore the garrigue. In the Spring it is full of the most wonderful wild flowers. Dozens of different orchids line the roadsides and mountain tracks. Each Spring we have over 50 wild orchids in the villa garden.
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Two kilometres from Fons lies the Clos de Gaillard, a large wild park belonging to the city of Nimes. It is rich with wild flowers, birds, butterflies and insects, with information boards on the many paths to guide the traveller. A whole new world of wild plants, animals and insects awaits you in the Camargue and higher up the Cevennes mountain range – including, if you are lucky, sighting of the sanglier (wild boar).
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Places to visit in the Spring include:
NIMES
(30 minutes)
With its Roman amphitheatre (with many large annual events), maison carre, tour magna, and Jardin de la Fontaine. There is a bull-fighting festival at Easter as part of a large festival.
PONT DU GARD
(30 minutes)
The spectacular Roman aquaduct, with an excellent hands-on audio/visual museum under the reception area on the north bank).
UZES
(30 minutes)
The seat of the dukes of Uzes (yes, France still celebrates its dukes; the Fons co-operative wine cave markets its premier wine as ‘Duche de Uzes’). Uzes is full of history and boasts an internationally famous Saturday market.
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SOMMIERES
(20 minutes)
A delightful town, the final home of the novelist, Lawrence Durell, and famed for its large Saturday market and Roman bridge over the river Vidourle.
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Summer in Fons
Summer in Fons outre Gardon is hot and dry (apart from very occasional thunderstorms that clear the air), but there is a gentle breeze from the north, called the Mistral, which keeps the atmosphere pleasant.
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The swimming pool comes into its own, reaching temperatures of 30 degrees and over by mid-July. You will want to spend lots of time in the pool, or under the shady mulberry trees, or in the hammock. There are pool toys, garden games, boules, board games and books. The wifi allows access to your own information. There are, however, plenty of other things to do:
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If you are a walker, a cyclist or just a general tourist, then Fons, situated in the Garrigue (the ridge between the Mediterranean coast and the Cevennes mountain range), is an ideal place for exploration of the delights of the department of the Gard. You can use your car, or take the bus or train that leave from the village for the Roman city of Nimes, or Ales to the north or Saint Jean du Gard (where in 1878 Robert Louis Stevenson completed his 200km walk with a donkey, Modestine, immortalised in his pioneering travelogue, ‘Travels with a Donkey’).
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Although ramblers have to be careful in summer due to the heat, there are easy walks along the along Grand Randonne (GR) 63 which runs past the house into the shady Bois de Lens. Hardier walkers can explore the thousands of kilometres of paths through the Cevennes to the north or in the Camargue to the south.
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Cyclists can enjoy the four bikes provided at the house (dad, mum, teenage and 8-10 year-old sizes) to explore the many safe off-road cycle tracks described in the House Diary by previous visitors. There is every level of difficulty provided for and we offer helmets for safety too.
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Bird watchers will be enthralled by the summer migrants, the sea birds down on the Camargue (45 minutes) and especially the pink flamingos in the shallow waters. The nightingale sings in our trees and the hoopoe is a regular visitor to our lawn, along with black redstarts, finches, tits and tree-creepers. Raptors circle above.
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Naturalists can enjoy the summer flora of the garrigue. Orchids abound in early summer. But in this season the land is generally dry and brown, ideal for the growth of the vines and olive trees that surround the area around the house. Numerous beautiful butterflies and dragon flies inhabit the garden.
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During the summer nearly all the villages around Fons hold village festivals – mainly centred on the culture of the bull. Bulls are driven through village streets by superb horsemen and women called ‘guardians’. Read more about them here.
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The youngsters' 'job' is to catch hold of a bull and wrestle it to the floor! The whole atmosphere is full of good humour and gaiety. Fons outre Gardon holds one bull ‘abbrivado’ on the 13th July, the eve of Bastille day, and a four-day festival over the last weekend in August. Watch a video here.
There are also nearby bull-rings which house 'Course Camarguaise' meetings. This is another non-deadly bull festival in which people known as 'razeteurs' dressed in white attempt to steal cockades from between the ears of the bull using a comb (a ‘razet’). Read more here.
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For the music lover there are opera and music festivals in:
Avignon Drama Festival in July - see webpages here.
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Uzes in late July - see webpages here.
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Orange opera and music festival (throughout the summer) - see webpages here.
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Montpellier’s Festival Radio France - see webpages here.
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Autumn in Fons
Autumn in Fons is a mixture of late summer heat and mild autumnal sun and blue sky.
The swimming pool can normally be used until late September. In October and early November daytimes are usually warm and dry ( temperatures between 13 and 20 degrees centigrade) with cool evenings when guests can enjoy the villa’s log fire, which complements the radiator heating. Most days lunch can be taken out on the covered terrace.
​
The villa is situated in the Garrigue (the ridge between the Mediterranean coast and the Cevennes with small oaks and bushy, fragrant plants). It is ideal for walkers, cyclists, or tourists who just want to drive their car, or use the bus or train that leave from the village for the Roman city of Nimes, or Ales to the north or to Saint Jean du Gard (where in 1878 Robert Louis Stevenson completed his 200km walk with a donkey, Modestine, immortalised in his pioneering travelogue, ‘Travels with a Donkey’).
​
Walkers have thousands of kilometres of paths to explore, down in the Camargue or up in the Cevennes, or simply along Grand Randonne (GR) 63 which runs past the house.
​
Cyclists can enjoy the four cycles provided at the house to explore the many off-road cycle tracks described in the House Diary by previous visitors
​
Bird watchers will be enthralled by the autumnal migration of thousands of sea birds down on the Camargue (45 minutes), including thousands of pink flamingos. There are many other species dropping in on our garden or flying overhead looking for prey.
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Naturalists will adore the autumnal berries of the garrigue. The ‘Garrigues’ reference book in our bookcase will amaze you by the sheer variety of wild flowers, butterflies and small animals that abound there. There are usually five or six different varieties of orchids poking up from our lawn.
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Two kilometres from Fons lies the Clos de Gaillard, a large wild park belonging to the city of Nimes. It is rich with wild flowers, birds, butterflies and insects, with information boards on the myriad paths to guide the traveller. A whole new world of wild plants, animals and insects awaits you in the Camargue and higher up the Cevennes mountain range – including, if you are lucky, sighting of the sanglier (wild boar).
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In September the last of the Garrigue village fetes takes place, with their bull-running and dancing and the final competitions of the Course Camarguaise – where man is pitted against bull without aiming to kill it.
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