La gare de Sos in the sun, another year gone, another year done, a loco to fix, a station to run, Project “Sos-Main-Line” begun…
As we head into the Festive Season at la gare de Sos, Lee and Tracey are coughing their way through December – our first real colds since we moved here. We often comment on how much better our resilience has been since living here but, this year, we’ve succumbed to some horrid germ or other. Anyway, we’ve got oranges the size of footballs in the markets so we’re getting plenty of vitamin C, plus copious amounts of soothing Welsh whisky and Pyrenees mountain honey in the evenings so we hope we’ll soon shake it off. Thanks to everyone who bought us bottles of “Welsh Gold” this year – very much appreciated, and looks impressive sitting alongside our armagnac collection – might just last til the end of the year! We have the added bonus of pretty decent weather – November and December, so far, have been mainly dry & sunny. It makes such a difference when you can just throw on a hoody and pop out for a walk or a pootle on the bike, on dry, clear roads and then sip a cuppa, reading on the platform – what a grand way to recharge after the hectic summer season. Tracey had her last chilly swim mid-November before we closed the pool for winter. I’m sure that cold swimming keeps the germs away – 2 weeks without a daily dip and we’re full of respiratory nasties.
So here’s our selection of July & August summer holiday snaps – thanks a million to all our lovely guests who supported us on another year of unforgettable gastronomy and long, hot days and evenings here. July and August were baking! Many nights spent out on the platform, chinwagging and star gazing and shrieking when we spotted a shooting star. Thanks to Team Tipler, for looking after la gare while we had a night away in the camper van in the cooler mountains at Estaing – much appreciated. We plunged into the icy-cold mountain spring water to cool off after a bike ride to one of the cols and up to lac d’Estaing. We welcomed a new railway group this year to la gare de Sos – the family of Larry Bridges and the legend himself, who made it here entirely on public transport – landing at Sos bus stop with his ruck sack – “Chapeau Larry” – great to catch up and indulge in a spot of railway reminiscence.
We visited another duck farm with guests this year and can highly recommend Ferme de Lafitte at Montgaillard. If the gastronomy of South West France is your thing – you won’t be disappointed but please take an appetite with you! They have a well stocked shop where you can buy their homemade products – pates, rillettes, foie gras and a deliciously sweet fig aperitif which they serve cold with starters. Thanks to Martin & Deb for the curry and crepes over at The Pump House too.
The Wonderful-Dancing-Weavers – I can’t walk for a week after all the dancing we do with this gang!
And another trip up to the Duck Farm for a long lunch and more duck…
Estaing in The Pyrenees Mountains, August 2024
Take a look at another camper van trip we had at the start of November – we usually always head off to The Med at that time of the year for guaranteed Winter sun but, this year, The Med was wet and The Atlantic Coast was forecast warm & sunny so off to the Spanish side of The Pays Basque we popped. Oh that baked Spanish Cheesecake – we love it and hunted down a supermarket that sold the frozen versions so we could bring some home. It’s a Spanish San Sebastián speciality that simply melts on your tongue. I hear that M&S sell a version in the UK! The metre-gauge line that runs through the Spanish Basque Country is well worth riding – EuskoTren – we’ve completed the section from the Spanish border with France to Deba and hope to complete the entire line along Spain’s north coast – dogs travel free. And at the border station – Irun Ficoba – Villa fans can visit Staduim Gal, the home of Real Union, on the banks of The River Bidasoa, the border with France.
Zarautz and San Sebastián Cheesecake, November 2024
The Tour de France actually came through Sos this year so we didn’t have to pack up and join the millions of fans on the mountains like we do every year – we could watch it pass through little ol’ Sos – we had the most amazing day with our Belgium friends whose house was directly on the route – it was TdF party central all day – and to get to see Cav on his last tour , and probably G’s last tour, was special for me & Lee – we even managed to capture a photo of Cav grinding by us. So glad he delayed his retirement and beat the stage wins record. It’s the most amazing race that we’ve followed around France for nearly twenty years and to have it actually come through our village and share the day with friends was stupendous. “Merci pour les souvenirs“
We managed to get back to the UK in June for our niece’s wedding – what an excellent, happy day that was in The Cotswolds and we got to meet up with family too and then welcome the Bride & Groom back to la gare de Sos for their French honeymoon – “Lune de Miel” in French – reminded us of our happy honeymoon here way back in the thinner days of 2005! “Felicitations” to Belle & Matt. Belle & Matt are both vegan and managed to eat out several times – at the vegan restaurant in Condom and our friendly pizza chef, Jean-Claude, made vegan heart shaped pizzas for them at Cafe Galerie in Poudenas. (ps – thanks for the frock Ang!)
A few September, October, November visitors too, mainly Tracey’s family in September and our last visitors this year – Lee’s retired work colleagues – who popped in on their way back from Spain in their campervan in November – we had a lovely tipsy afternoon armagnac tasting at Domaine de Chiroulet and good brisk walk along the railway line from Sos to Mezin.
Sis arrived in September with our Aunt & Uncle – so lovely to get family here for a chill out and catch up. Another lovely meal in The Sotiate that week and we tried out the vegetarian tearoom at Castelnau d’Auzan for lunch. The owner is delightful and explains everything that she has prepared, using local produce. We weren’t sure how the journey would be for Tracey’s disabled father, flying into Toulouse, but Ryanair, and wife Val, did a sterling job looking after him. A couple of regular Station summer guests decided to try out the Pump House for a short winter break and thoroughly enjoyed themselves – once that fire is going in the Pump House, it’s very cosy & snug and Lee’s sister also did the same. We enjoy seeing the lights on over in The Pump House – it’s just the two of us here all through Autumn / Winter so it’s been grand having some temporary neighbours.
See the painting of Christ on the Cross in the gallery below – a 1631 oil-on-canvas by Rembrandt – just quietly hanging in Église Saint-Vincent in a town called Le Mas-d’Agenais, where we took Tracey’s parents for a visit as well as a walk along the old railway line at Gabarret.
Project “Sos-Main-Line” – Lee’s had help this year with moving his track and old army tent out of the overgrown grass, thanks Sean & Mary for mucking in on your holiday. The plan for the track is to depart from the engine shed, up the “garden” towards our neighbours, then a ballon loop and back again and through the Engine Shed to the buffer stops. We still have loads of infrastructure stuff to do involving laying a load more stone for the track bed, setting up the S&C (the points) and building the main line signal.
Chief Engineer Green has been spending every day down at the Engine Shed of late – the loco has had a full service and is now in the process of having new windows fitted and a new paint job. The loco has had a full engine service, a gearbox and final drives inspection & service, brake gear adjustment, and an electric control panel re-wire. He made new inspection plates, a new bracket for the rear light and sourced 3 reclaimed windows from a salvage ship – 2 for the front windows because the existing surrounds were rotten – the rear didn’t have a window when we acquired it , just a hole, so you can see how good it will look once it’s fitted in the pic of Lee & loco below. The Glyn Valley replica brake van project is underway assisted by a retired German carpenter who lives in the forest and did a lot of the joinery in the station years ago – he can skillfully construct the wooden frame and body work. If you’ve seen the Facebook page updates you’ll know that Lee had a bit of trouble down there one day – came huffing & puffing into the Warehouse with much eye-rolling and head-shaking exclaiming ” I can’t get the bolts off the top of the differentials” – honestly, I was somewhat relieved, but completely in the dark ofcourse, I really thought something catastrophic had happened! I have, however, learnt not to ask.
Ah, Summer gone but living on in our memories of 2024. We’re trying not to get concerned about the current state of French politics but the fires are burning again around here with the still angry farmers dumping their tyres & muck & hay bales all around us, especially on traffic islands it seems at the moment. There’s one pile continually smouldering on a big island near Mont de Marsan, directly opposite the Fire Brigade’s HQ and, as I type, there are demonstrations in Agen and Toulouse. I started writing this newsletter when Storm Darragh was wreaking havoc in the UK – we were also watching Macron on TV that weekend at the opening of the restored Notre Dame – what a light show – looked like Disneyland with all the characters arriving. Can’t help but consider all that money, all those donations – Notre Dame maybe rising from the ashes, but France, we think, is in the mire. We sincerely hope that all of our UK friends are safe after the devasting storms, managing to get the fence panels back up, working around the disruption and chaos, getting on with it as Brits do. (Wouldn’t surprise us to see the tyres, muck and hay bales still sitting on that traffic island a year from now).
The Pets Gallery
We had to cope with a few chunks of sad news this year and first lost our friendly neighbour Philippe to cancer – our first French funeral. Then Tracey lost a dear work colleague from her days working with Shropshire Council Transport Buses and had remained in contact since leaving the UK over very long telephone calls – I am already missing those chats so much – Rest in Peace Dear Gwen – her last journey made on a double decker bus through Shrewsbury, wow and very fitting – one of the first female bus drivers on the former Midland Red buses.
Our little dog Daphne had surgery to remove cancerous lumps but they returned within a few months and she’s had a recent second lot of surgery – we’re devastated. We have an absolutely amazing vet who always gives us hope and has performed some incredibly complex surgery above Daphne’s eye. We cuddle her lots and are making the most of her time shared with us at la gare de Sos. Our wonderful Yorkshire friends, (the Yorkshire hairdresser) who supported us with so many things here and with whom we shared so many fun nights, have had to leave & return to the UK – a reminder that it’s not always easy to transfer your life to France and make a living here. We miss them – our hair misses them! Only seems like yesterday that we were all scoffing Christmas dinner in the station, with a roaring fire and glugging the local pink fizz, then the local red and then, excessively gluttonously, Karen’s huge tin of homemade mince pies.
And on that festive note, I’ve got a Christmas Wreath to finish so we wish all our friends, family, holiday makers old & new, “a bostin’ Christmas” and all our very best wishes for a healthy 2025. Santé! Lee & Tracey, la gare de Sos xxx
