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Le Plan de la Tour... In the Vineyards of the Maures Hills

PLAN DE LA TOUR resembles an ancient sepia-coloured postcard. It is one of those typical villages which was first built around a church, then spread out into little hamlets. Luckily, the village centre has never grown too big. So much so, that the surrounding hamlets (no less than 25!), named Reverdit, Les Pierrons, Vallaury, Le Plan, Le Revest, Gambades, etc. are not actually joined to the village, but spread out below it in a sort of circle surrounded by hills.

As you adventure along the local footpaths, tucked away in valleys or twisting around the hillsides, you will probably come across groups of three or four old cottages with smoking chimneys, a few sheep grazing in the pastures and the pretty streams supplying the fountains and wells of this fertile plain. This area of the Var region really hasn't changed much since the days when men wore hats and mixed congregations weren't allowed in the local church...

If you're not convinced, go and see the old folks sitting next to the grape scales facing the boulangerie in the village centre in the morning... A real step back into the past! Here, vines still cover most of the surrounding countryside. The village is also the venue for a superb theatre festival in July and a wine fair in October.

Originally, the inhabitants of Plan de la Tour came to shelter here after fleeing the Saracen invasions on the coast. The village was made independent from La Garde-Freinet after the Revolution. From "Col de Gratteloup" pass above Sainte-Maxime, the scenic route runs along the hilltops to the village, then on to La Garde-Freinet. This section of the village is now slowly recovering from the terrible forest fires of recent years, which have destroyed part of the local vegetation.

With its pretty bell tower and quiet streets, Plan de la Tour is a wonderfully peaceful village - the dream place for a long siesta, lulled by the song of the cicadas.

Plan de la Tour and its Basket Makers…

Among the village's local personalities, the most famous is undoubtedly Hubert Olivier, a skilled basket maker who has been practising his art in the village for some 50 years now! The baskets made by Hubert come in all shapes and sizes: big, small, square, round, they are used for gathering olives, grapes, cherries or mushrooms and are all made from chestnut cut between November and March, during the last quarter of the moon, on the shady side of the hills. True works of art!

Hubert learned his trade from his grandfather who formerly made these baskets for the grape harvest. At the age of twelve, he loved travelling on the donkey cart (his grandfather also used to transport wood and wine) to the port of Sainte-Maxime...

Hubert Olivier is the Var region's only genuine remaining chestnut basket maker. The rest are mere imitations! If you wish to meet him, you can go at his home in Hameau du Vernet, Route de La Garde Freinet, where he keeps on his activity with a lot of pleasure. Hubert Olivier was born at Plan de la Tour and has never left. For after all, isn't this a place where holidays never end?!

"Le Menhir de Médost"

"Le Menhir de Médost". Take the RD 44 road, then stop 1 km before the hamlet of "Les Vernades". You will see a road called "Chemin du Medost" opposite the "Domaine des Courruero". The heavily-leaning but wellpreserved monolith is set a bit lower down. A carved cross can be seen on one side.

"Le Menhir du Pré de la Pierre Enchantée" (or "Menhir de Prat-Bourdin")

May have been re-used in modern times as a milestone. Take the Route de Prat-Bourdin. 300 m after the hamlet, an earth track leads over a bridge and crosses the vineyards. This stone, with its evocative name, has been honoured by the local population from time immemorial. 45 mins. return.

The ruins of the ancient village of Saint-Pierre

The remains of a chapel can be seen on the forest path. The village itself was destroyed during the Religious Wars.

A Touch of History

In the 14th century, the village was ravaged by wars and the Plague, then finally abandoned. Repopulating began in 1557 on the initiative of the abbeys of Thoronet, who owned the village at the time.

In the 16th century, in these wide plains with their abundant springs - which continue to flow even during the Summer drought - several farming settlements appeared. Initially housing members of the same family, these farm buildings subsequently spread to become today's small hamlets.

Saint-Martin, which forms the centre of the current village, became the community's seat. During the Revolution, the village requested separation from La Garde Freinet and was made independent on May 26, 1792.

Monuments

"Eglise Saint-Martin"

Built in the early 19th century, the church is topped by a pretty bell tower.

"Chapelle Saint-Pierre"

Set at the village entrance on the way from Sainte-Maxime. A large fig tree has now grown on the chapel in the middle of the old stones - although the chapel was recently restored, this natural curiosity has been left intact!

Take a Walk!

Length: 2 hours on foot, 1 hour by bike

1. Starting out from the Tourist Office, in the village centre, Place du 19 mars 1962.

2. Take the RD74 road towards Sainte-Maxime. When your reach "Chapelle Saint-Pierre", turn right and follow the tarmacked road and track to the ford of Préconil river (Les Gorgues), built in the early 18th century to provide an adequate water supply to "La Ressence" oil mill.

3. Continue along the track. Head left at the next major crossroads then take the GR 51 long-distance footpath. After the menhir, you will arrive at the hamlet of "Prat-Bourdin".

4. Take the pretty path immediately on your right which runs alongside an ancient shepherd's dwelling 200 metres further on. Turn left at the next crossroads, then join up with the GR 51 again and continue on the RD44 road to the hamlet of "Préconil".

5. At the crossroads of the ancient Col de Vignon road, leave the GR 51 to head back up to your right towards the hamlet of Vernet.

6. After crossing the hamlet, take the RD74 road, which takes you through the hamlet of "La Forge" back to the starting point.