My Francophile Year: Pardon, where is the Verdon?

The Lac de St. Croix is a dammed lake build in the mid 1970's about an hour north of Cotignac. It is a renowned rock climbing area- something that struck a chord with several friends in Durango before I left- of course they knew where I was going- it is near the Verdon canyon.
The canyon channels the turquoise water that fills the lake, with high, dramatic limestone walls perfect for climbing, para sailing from the tops and...more our speed...peddle boating!
We had a blast. I took the advice of a new friend who recommended getting there early. We did, rented a couple of boats loaded with picnic goods and joined the thousands of others doing the same thing. It was just like Disneyland-boats were a few feet apart for the entire 1 1/2 hour paddle upstream. Everyone was as nice as could be- there were no beer cans flying or other bad behavior, just ALOT of people. Honestly, I never knew France was all that touristy- what rock have I been living under????
People were cliff diving from the side walls which my kids were thrilled to partake in. I was so proud of their landlocked backgrounds for scaling up and leaping into the big blue 20 feet below. Sadly, I don't have the photos to prove it, but they will come.
None the less, the Verdon canyon is spectacular and we will surely return before our year is up. Maybe we will wait until September - can I really complain about ALL the tourists??? I love being one of them and hope I can do it for many years to come.