Click on any picture below to see a larger version from our hike to Roussillon

Roussillon sits atop Mont Rouge (Red Mountain) at about 1000 feet above sea level

An enormous deposit of ochre gives the earth and buildings that distinctive red color

Every little change of sunlight and/or clouds affected the colors of everything

We actually sat down for a big lunch and enjoyed being tourists

A brilliant orange path leads through the richly colored ochre canyon

Ochre is a natural pigment mixed with sand.

Iron oxide yields yellow to purple pigments that are still used for painting

People were scooping up the pigment and putting it into plastic bags

The ancient quarries are now protected from mining

We left Rouissillon behind and passed lavender fields