Hike to Fort Planoise and Emmaüs

On Saturday I took Callie for a quick run to the boulangerie before breakfast and then we all headed out for a hike in the woods of Planoise.  It was about a 45 minute bus ride, to be followed by a transfer to another line, but that bus was being re-routed for construction so we started our hike 2km early on the streets.  It was a beautiful day for a hike—warm, sunny, kids all in a good mood.  We slowly ascended the hill, taking advantage of every rest spot we could find.  The spring flowers have advanced from snow-drop type flowers to dandelions, asters and these purple flowers I can’t name.  We chose today’s hike because it’s the only day in the week that Emmaüs is open (a local thrift store, with a twist—it is located in what’s left of the Fort de Planoise).  It was a fun thrifting venue because everything was cheap—we wish we had known about this place when we first moved to Besançon.  We picked up a light fixture for our living room, Easter baskets, and a toy for each kid (all for €11), and wanted more but couldn’t imagine how we’d get it all back down the mountain by foot.  The inside of the fort, right, felt fairly authentic to its 200+ year history, as we could see some walls crumbling a bit.  Then we spent about an hour at the top of the hill enjoying the views and eating our picnic.  On the way home, the kids love to run up ahead of us on the trails, and as you can see here, above left, don’t mind choosing which way we should go at each fork.  Griffin was absolutely obsessed with his walking sticks and refused to let them go—even suggested that instead of giving them up as we climbed onto a bus, that we should just keep walking.  Back on the streets, we spotted this transporter, and thought it was noteworthy since we don’t see them often.  I also couldn’t resist taking a snapshot of the cherry blossoms in front of the local church (Eglise Saint Claude).   This is right next to Zander’s school but we’ve never been inside it; it always seems to be closed when we walk by.  By the end of the day, I think we had covered 6 miles by foot.