The Robert Louis Stevenson Trail

Alan has trekked in over twenty-five countries within Europe, Asia, North and South America, Africa and Australasia, and for seventeen years led organised walking holidays in several European countries. A member of the British Outdoor Writers' Guild, he has written more than a dozen walking guidebooks, several on long distance mountain routes in France. His longest solo walks include a Grand Traverse of the European Alps between Nice and Vienna (1510 miles), the Pilgrim's Trail from Le Puy to Santiago de Compostela (960 miles) and a Coast-to-Coast across the French Pyrenees (540 miles). A Munroist and erstwhile National Secretary and Long Distance Path Information Officer of the Long Distance Walkers Association, Alan now lives at the foot of the Moffat Hills in Scotland, in the heart of the Southern Uplands. Alan's first encounter with the Southern Upland Way was in 1995, when he backpacked the full length of the trail. A decade later he repeated the complete trail a second time, this time mainly using bed and breakfast and hotel accommodation, in order to research this guidebook. He has travelled extensively on foot in most areas of the Southern Uplands, having climbed all of the Donalds and most of the other hills above 500m in height, and traversed them from south to north in 2003 as part of his walk between Land's End and John o'Groats.

INTRODUCTION The Robert Louis Stevenson Trail Robert Louis Stevenson Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes The Massif Central. Velay, Gevaudan and Vivarais The Cevennes. Le Parc National des Cevennes Climate - when to go Travelling to and from the RLS Trail Hotel Accommodation Gites d'etape Camping Facilities en route Eating out Equipment Grandes Randonnees Waymarking and Navigation Maps Stevenson's Route by Car or Cycle Modern Treks along the RLS Trail The Club Cevenol Snakes Language Photography Money; Banks Insurance Telephone to Britain Public Holidays in France Notes on using the Guidebook GUIDE THE SUMMARY TABLE Day 1: Le Puy en Velay Day 2: Le Monastier-sur-Gazeille to Costaros via Goudet Day 3: Costaros to Pradelles via Le Bouchet St Nicholas and Landos Excursions to Lac du Bouchet Day 4: Pradellas to Langogne Day 5: Langogne to Luc via Cheylard l'Eveque Day 6: Luc to Chasserades via Notre Dame des Neiges Day 7: Chasserades to Chalet du Mont Lozere via Le Bleymard Day 8: Chalet du Mont Lozere to Le Pont de Montvert via Le Col de Finiels Day 9: Le Pont de Montvert to Florac via Le Col de la Planette Day 10: Florac to Cassagnas via St Julien d'Arpaon Day 11: Cassagnas to St Germain de Calberte Day 12: St Germain de Calberte to St Jean du Gard via St Etienne-Vallee-Francaise Day 13: 'The Last Day' St Jean du Gard and Environs. Ales, Nimes APPENDIX ONE: GITES D'ETAPE ON OR IN THE VICINITY OF THE RLS TRAIL APPENDIX TWO: FURTHER DETAILS ON THE GR TRAILS ENCOUNTERED ON THE RLS TRAIL APPENDIX THREE: STEVENSON'S ITINERARY APPENDIX FOUR: USEFUL ADDRESSES BIBLIOGRAPHY