Caussols: Walking on the Moon

(Photos by Esme)

The Caussols Plateau

stretches across the top

of the hills -- kilometers

of open, scrubby,

moonscape with troglodyte

caves, fossils and rock

formations that resemble

the mysterious Hoodoos

of the western U.S. You

expect a dinosaur

to show up, like the

tarrascoaurus salluvicus,

who roamed these parts.

The Police wrote about walking in the footsteps of the mighty brontosaurus, but I had another of their songs

in my head.

We could walk

forever
Walking on

the moon
We could live

together
Walking on,

walking

on the moon

Police, 1979, Reggatta de blanc

To complete the surreal experience, the plateau leads to a collection of buildings, telescopes, and moon lasers that look like the place where Luke Skywalker grew up.

The CERGA Observatory, perched on top of the hill, collects data about asteroids (thousands have been discovered there) and tracks the rotation of the earth using massive beams aimed at pieces of equipment left on the moon by U.S. and Russian astronauts.

(I don't know how this squares with my mother's theory that the moon landing was a hoax, but, "they" could definitely have shot the entire alleged moon footage right here on the Caussols Plateau and none would be the wiser.)

There were danger signs as we approached the observatory, mostly to warn about the sharp drop over the edge. Not that that stopped our photographer from going closer to take a look, and a few more shots. But she's got her mother's eye for beauty and her father's doggedness (not to mention an amazing sister and friends), so I guess we don't have to worry too much about her.