Two Weeks in the Corrèze, Lot and Dordogne

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Friday, August 16th:

We didn't see anything great the day before so to make up for that I made sure to do a bit of research to plan today's exploration. My planning really only consisted of looking at the Michelin map and noticing there were several villages south of us that were all labeled as one star attractions so we set out to see them. Our first village was Carennac, listed among the Plus Beaux Villages de France.








From the description of Carennac on the Plus Beaux Villages website:

''On the banks of the Dordogne, Renaissance houses with sculpted windows and brown roofs are clustered around an 11C Cluniac priory where French writer and prelate Fénelon once lived. Near the Romanesque church and its cloister, the Château des Doyens invites you to discover the treasures of this Pays d’Art et d’Histoire-labelled region to which Carennac belongs.''

The church, priory and château have several examples of exceptional architectural and patrimonial heritage that can be seen by the visitor but we just sort of strolled around town to see what was up. It was livelier than most of the other small villages we saw of similar size and it seemed to be the only village where the ''Sold'' signs outnumbered the ''For Sale'' signs on the houses. In retrospect, after my vacation I thought this might have been one of the prettiest among the Plus Beaux Villages that I visited.

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The tympanum on the 11th century Eglise Saint-Pierre is one of the villages's notable patrimonial features.








After leaving Carennac and on our way to the next village of Loubressac we followed the Michelin designated scenic road along the banks of the Dordogne River. Once again, it was only designated scenic because it ran along a river and through trees so there were no exceptional views. We took a detour onto what I think was the D118 and drove uphill away from the banks of the river. This turned out to be a great scenic road, although it didn't have the scenic designation. We could see the château of Castelnau-Bretenoux off in the distance.






Shortly after we could see the ruined château of Saint-Céré

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Then Loubressac came into view.






We parked just outside the village and headed for town.

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We stopped at the tourist office and got the tourist map to take us through town. We had obviously arrived at the point on the map marked ''Scenic View''.






Loubressac is another of the Plus Beaux Villages. The area is loaded with Plus Beaux Villages and though we weren't necesarily intending on making this a ''Plus Beaux Villages Vacation'' it was impossible not to see these places because they are all fairly close together and you don't have to go out of your way to see them. They're all worth visiting too.

From the description of Loubressac on the Plus Beaux Villages website:

''Perched on a promontory that offers a wonderful panoramic view of the Dordogne valley and the surrounding castles, Loubressac invites visitors to discover its charming medieval houses built of ochre stone and capped with pointed roofs. The church of Saint Jean Baptiste and the château, a manor dating back to the 15C and 18C, are worth the short climb it takes to reach them.''


There's other historic stuff that happened in Loubressac but who cares.




Well alright, the church was interesting historically speaking because some of the original interior paint appeared to have been preserved but I don't know if that's due to restoration.






There were a number of other visitors strolling about.
















I've got a bunch more pictures of Loubressac but I think you get the idea. Looking one last time at Loubressac as we move on.

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Approaching the next Plus Beau Village of Autoire.














''Oh geez!'' you're saying to yourself, ''Do I have to look at another hundred photos of some stupid charming village?'' The answer is yes.

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We noticed that all of the towns in the area had a sign denoting the fact that ''honor should be given to the mayor'', or perhaps the elected. A unique approach to expressing communty pride and trust in elected officials. I don't think any of these signs exist in the USA at the moment (writing this while the US federal govt. is shut down).
























Enough photos of charming villages. Let's see some photos of a charming château instead, since after leaving Autoire we were driving by the Château de Montal.




From 1519 to 1534 the château was transfomed from its medieval style to an early Renaissance château and elements from both eras remain intact. I might have actually gone inside to visit but it was approaching swimming pool time so I just took a couple of photos.




Just for the heck of it I took another photo of the Château de Saint-Céré on the way home.

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Saturday, August 17th:

Since we had been pretty active exploring for the last 4 days we decided to have a sort of relaxed down day. The only planned activity was to go to a local market to do some shopping for local products. To make it a bit more interesting we chose to go to the market in nearby Martel, which I knew was a pretty little medieval town.






Martel has origins dating to the 11th century when it became a new city founded by and under the control of the Counts of Turenne. As I mentioned earlier, the Counts of Turenne basically controlled an independent state not subect to taxation by the king of France. Thus, Martel was not founded around the establishment of an abbey or a religious order or for militarily strategic purposes but rather for economic reasons. This type of ''new city'', of which there were many in the Middle Ages, was known as a bastide (sorry if I'm repeating what many of you already know). The purpose was to develop a fief around a market to stimulate economic activity within the fief and create profit. Lords attracted settlers by giving them advantages, such as the right to open a market and well defined and moderate taxes. The real heyday for Martel was between the 12th and 14th centuries and the town definitely has the look and feel of that epoque with remparts, a church and a palace still remaining. It's a very nice place that is small enough to feel charming but with ample stores, restos, cafés and essential services to make it lively. It's very centrally located to many sites in the area and would make a good base to explore this region if you're interested.

We took a stroll around before heading to the market.


















The church had had some notable architectural and artistic features.








The market wasn't too large but had more than enough to stock up on basic essentials (cheese, bread, meats etc.) and offered a wide variety of local products.



We bought lots of local stuff but most importantly bloc de foie gras. For the next several days I horrified my French wife by starting each day with a breakfast of toast covered in confiture and a generous helping of foie gras. Etiquette and respect for tradition be damned, it was delicious.

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Sunday, August 18th:

We slept late today and then sort of lazed about the house discussing what we might do for an activity. Before we knew it it was 3:15PM and with not much time for a lot of exploration I picked the nearby town of Uzerches, which I had read about in one of the tourist brochures I got. It looked pretty enough in photos and being that it was labeled as a Ville d'Art et d'Histoire it seemed it should have something to keep a visitor interested so that's where we went. Uzerche is also labeled as one of the 100 Plus Beaux Detours in France (Most Beautiful Detours) as well as being a Village Etape.

At first glance it certainly looked worthy of the various touristic labels assigned to it.






Heading for town.








Built atop a spur of rock and surrounded by a meander of the Vézère river above which it dominates, Uzerche was described by the English writer Arthur Young as the "Pearl of the Limousin" due to it's picturesque site and under which nickname it is still known today. There's all kinds of really interesting historical stuff to learn about Uzerche but I really don't feel like getting into it so that's up to you. If you want you can read this French wikipedia entry about Uzerche:

fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uzerche

I mostly just wanted to kill a couple of hours wandering around and soaking up the ambiance and seeing what I might learn along the way, or what interesting things I might notice. That's pretty much my style. So far I had noticed that it was a picturesque place that had a really good medieval vibe and although not bustling there was a nice blend of locals and visitors in the street.






As you walk around town there are signs on all the notable buildings, in French and English.








I tried really hard not to learn anything but one unavoidable fact that couldn't be unlearned (is that even a word?) was that Uzerhe was a home to artists. Further, it seemed they must be serious artists since none of their shops were open to the public nor were many of their works displayed for sale in the windows of their studios. Art for art's sake, not for tourists. No mass produced nostalgia for dreamy Impressionist style paintings in this town. The preferred medium of artistic expression appeared to be metal.

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The town fosters its artists by incorporating their works into various utilitarian objects around town, such as parking barriers and trash bins.












On our wanderings we came across a local museum with an exhibit on the town's history as a Gallo-Roman site so we checked that out and it was interesting enough. Then we continued strolling around.












We had our tourist map that we picked up at the tourist office and some other written info but nowhere was it mentioned that there was a nice walk you could do along the old rail bridge on the other side of the river, yet there were all the tourists walking on this pretty bridge.




It offered a nice view of the town.






Then back into town.

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Another thing I couldn't unlearn is that Uzerche is noted for the fine doors and door portals on many of its buildings. I know it's a super touristy motif but since this town in particular is noted for its doors here is yet another tourist photo montage of pretty door pictures.



























After a few hours of exploration in Uzerche we headed back home, content in having learned very little.

[frenchmystiquetour]

Monday, August 19th:


Today was a tourist destination day and one of the big tourist destinations in the area is the Gouffre de Padirac, counted among France's most famous caves. This is one of those places that is so popular, and crowded, that you should really reserve your ticket ahead of time on-line, at least in high season. Making plans ahead of time doesn't fit well with my travel style but caves are pretty cool so I just accepted the fact that I was going to stand in line like all the other tourists who were too stupid to buy their ticket ahead of time.

To get to Padirac from our gîte we had to drive back near Carennac and Loubressac so I decided I would drive on the road that I had missed last time I was here. We picked up the D60 just south of Carennac and drove through the tiny village of Gintrac, which couldn't have looked any more like a post card. It was so picturesque we decided to stop and have a look around.






There is a 13th century castle ruin overlooking the town (which we didn't see) that was a Templar Commandery and refuge for lepers. A local tale recounts how the lords of the castle would communicate by means of solar signals (mirrors I assume) with the Château de Turenne (some 30km in distance as the crow flies) and the nearby Château de Castelnau-Bretonoux. At least, that's what French wikipedia says so it must be true.








As the road rises climbing up from Gintrac the landscape stretches out.






Then the tranquility of the countryside is interrupted the hords of humanity. Here we are arriving in one of the six million or so parking lots surrounding the gouffre, each one mostly full.




Walking around from the back of the building where you enter the cave I got my first glimpse at the tourist hell I was about to become part of.




Let's get a good look at this line. I'll follow it from front to back.










Wait, there's more.

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Here's a look at what everyone came to see.






Since it was going to be a while standing in line I did what any good husband would do in this situation and left my Mrs to stand in line while I went wandering around with the camera to take pictures of stuff. The only things to take pictures of were the parking lots and the various tourist eateries selling calories to the masses so that's what I did. Let's start with the parking lots.










Now let's move on to the eateries.






You can also buy your souvenirs and local food products.














Realizing that inevitably some folks would get annoyed after standing in line for over an hour some enterprising individual decided to open their own curiosity site just adjacent to the cave. If you decide to bail out on the marvels of the underworld you can pay a visit to the denizens of the microworld.

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The person who opened that place has a pretty smart business strategy because I was just about ready to ditch the line and visit Insectopia. But since the Mrs had done most of the standing and waiting in line (I did relieve her of duty from time to time) I hadn't totally lost patience and after a mere 2-1/2 hour wait we were finally inside and on our way to journey to the center of the earth.










From ground level it is a 75 meter descent to the bottom of the chasm via elevator or stairs. The chasm was created at an undetermined point in time when the roof collapsed into a large internal cavern. It is known that the cavern existed in the 3rd century, and was inhabited during the 15th and 16th centuries. The first real modern explorations of the cave took place in 1889 and the first tourists visited the cave in 1898. However, the site was officially opened for tourism in 1899. From the bottom of the cavern you decend into a series of underground passages and visit some 2km of the cave but there are at least another 38km of caves and passages that have been explored with more awaiting future exploration.










After walking for a few minutes is when you'll encounter your next line. How fun.




So we waited another 20-25 minutes in this line. The reason for this is that you need to line up to get onto one of the boats that will take you on an underground river ride through the cave. Once you board the boat you are no longer allowed to take pictures. Since I have no further pictures of the underground I'll give you my impressions. The only reason I can see that they don't want you to take pictures is proprietary. There are no delicate prehistoric paintings and I don't see how rocks could be affected by camera flashes so I'm sure it's a matter of them making money by selling pictures. This is confirmd at the end of the tour when someone takes a picture of your group in the boat and you are offered a chance to buy it.

As for the visit, after you board the boat you are led along the river for 5 or 10 minutes to a point where you dock and get out of the boat to continue your explorations on foot with a guide. You stay with the group that was in your boat throughout the tour as there are several boats operating and several groups at a time in the cave. Our tour was in French but the guide did do some interpretation for the few English speaking visitors in our group. I thought the guide was OK, pretty basic stuff but once you explain how a cave is formed what else is there to talk about? I gave our guide a couple euros for a tip at the end as I noticed a discreet sign, that not many people saw because it wasn't very visible, and it suggested politely (I don't remember the wording) that a tip for the guide is appreciated. The guides all looked to be about student age. Most people didn't see the sign and didn't tip the guide so here's a heads-up reminder to give a euro or two.

As for the impressiveness of the cave....well.....I thought it was OK but it didn't have a whole lot of really impressive geological features. There were a few massive columns and some other oddly shaped calcium accretions but a lot of it looked like, well, rock. In retrospect I'm not sure if I might have enjoyed Insectopia more than a cave visit.

Our visit finished we hopped back in the car and to come down from the buzz of tourist stimulation we shifted gears and took a leisurely, stress relieving scenic drive towards our second destination of the day.

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The pictures are all crooked since I was more or less waving my arm out the window and clicking away. Not much thought went into framing or composition. My technique is revealed in the next photo where you can see the shadow of my arm holding the camera.










Perhaps you've heard the horror stories about being stuck forever behind some farm tractor when driving in the countryside. If so, then to help you overcome your fear this next photo will illustrate that passing a tractor isn't such a big deal. Now you see it....



….now you don't.




Driving by the castle in Saint-Céré again.






We drove around the outskirts of the town of Saint-Céré but we didn't stop. I know it has a charming, old downtown and is worth a visit. As we drove through I could see there were some pretty streets. If you're in the area and have the time you might want to give it a look. It's a one starred attraction on the Michelin map. We were on our way to another château that you've already seen, that of Castelnau-Bretenoux, which is a two starred attraction on the Michelin map.










We arrived too late to visit the château but it was a quaint little place so we contented ourselves with a stroll through the village.

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More red stone construction, like Collonges and Meyssac.














It was early evening and we were hungry and didn't feel like driving anywhere to find a restaurant. There was a restaurant at the foot of the castle and even though it looked pretty touristy we didn't care. It had a terrace with a beautiful view and though there were several empty tables the hostess told us most of them were reserved but we still managed to get one of the few unreserved terrace tables.






Despite the touristy look of the place the food was actually pretty good. The manager was buzzing around overlooking everything and despite the crowd that they were serving the food arrived without any excessive waiting. It was well presented too. I don't remember what we ate but I think the restaurant was called Les Remparts, if you're interested. It's the only restaurant below the château so you can't miss it.







You can see the restaurant's location in the next photo, all lit up beneath the château.

[frenchmystiquetour]

Tuesday, August 20th:

Today was ''be a tourist day''. Our gîte was located in the relatively tourist free southern Corrèze department right on the border with the most highly touristed sites in the more well known department of the Dordogne. Most of our visits had centered on places within an hour's drive from our base and nowhere had we encountered what could be considered significant crowds, Gouffre de Padirac excepted. What better way to break tradition than to head to one of the most popular areas in the region, right in the vicinity of the region's top tourist town, Sarlat. I had been to Sarlat and its environs once, briefly, several years ago and I enjoyed my visit so I thought it would be nice to see some familiar places again and explore some new ones. The Mrs. had been to the area several times as a child but she likes it too and it had been a while since she had been here, the last time with me. We've got nothing against being tourists and always have fun when being one of the crowd so off we went to have some fun.

It was amazing how once we got within about 15km or 20km of Sarlat the previously empty roads produced cars as if they had just tumbled down from the steep riverbanks along the Dordogne river, where we were driving. There were little sandy beaches here and there dotting the riverbanks and each one had a group of folks enjoying it.



Winding along the river we could see a château in the distance.








It was marked on the map as the Cingle de Montfort, taking its name from a meander in the river above which it dominated and from Simon de Montfort, who attacked and razed the château in 1214. It was later rebuilt, three times in fact (or 4 or 5 times, depending on which source you check) and was destroyed each time. In the 19th century it was fancifully renovated. That's about all I have to say about that. We were passing through the village and pulled over to have a look at the château and check out the little village at its base.






Not too many other visitors here.










That was the last time I saw an empty village today because next we went to Domme, which was more or less packed with tourists. Climbing up from the river valley as we approached the outskirts of Domme we could see several large parking lots up to as much as 1km from the village and most of them seemed full. People were buzzing around the lots fighting for spaces but we took a chance and headed straight for the heart of the village and found a parking spot right away, about 100 meters from tourist central. Using psychology I figured that everyone approaching the town would see the packed parking lots on the outskirts and assume there was no way they'd find a spot in town so they wouldn't even try. The strategy worked. Domme is perched at the edge of a cliff high above the river valley.

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People on travel forums often ask where they can rent a canoe on the Dordgone river and the best response is, ''Where can't you rent a canoe on the Dordogne?'' It seemed like you couldn't go more than 2km along the river without finding a canoe rental place.



Domme was born in 1281 as a royal bastide. Shortly after in 1307 the village entered Templar legendry when 70 of the knights were imprisoned in the towers that served as the gate to the village and where according to legend they etched graffiti as evidence of their imprisonment that can be seen today. Apparently there are questions about the authenticity of the graffiti since the Templar persecution in Paris didn't commence until 1310. Like every other town and village in the region it played its role in the Hundred Years War and later in the Wars of Religion. Today the village is listed among the Plus Beaux Villages de France. It has a population of 1,000 inhabitants and I'd bet during high season that number at least doubles daily.

There are lots of touristy things to do in Domme, like riding on the tourist train.





Or confining yourself to the busiest street in town to marvel at the merchandise on offer.












If you are able to break the hypnotic trance of consumerism, which seems to have held sway over the majority of the visitors, you only need to walk about 2 blocks from the stores to find some solitude.












If you want to visit Domme you can have a look at the tourist office website to learn more:

www.ot-domme.com/

I didn't look at the tourist office website nor did I learn anything about Domme but I assure you there is stuff to learn and you can get a map at the tourist office that highlights the tourist trail through town and indicates the notable monuments and sites. If you are more sophisticated than I am (and who isn't?) you can indulge your intellectual curiosity.

Speaking of intellectual curiosity, who's ever wondered what it would be like to drive a jeep with a dog in the passenger seat? Wonder no more.

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Continuing on the tourist trail down the river from Domme is La Roque-Gageac, another Plus Beau Village.





La Roque was traditionally a fishing village and the traditional fisherman's boat, known as a gabarre, now hauls tourists instead of fish.




We parked at the edge of the village and set out on the tourist trail.






It's a nice town to just hang out on the river and watch the canoes and gabarres float by.








The Château de la Malartrie sits at the western extremity of the village, actually located in the adjacent village of Vézac. Originally the site of a hospital for lepers in the 12th century the present château was built in the early 20th century in a neo-Renaissance style. The château is now available for rent at the modest rate of 4,000€ per week and can accommodate 12 people.




Built into the cliff above the village is the manor of the Tarde family, a friend of Galileo.

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Sheltered by the cliff and facing south, the village has a microclimate that allows for growing of vegetation more commonly found in Mediterranean climates.








The section of the Dordogne river in this area is a real tourist honey pot and the sites are packed on top of each other. Just a few kilometers down the river lies the lovely Plus Beau Village of Beynac-et-Cazenac, another cliffside site dominated by the partial ruins of a château on the peak above the village.




But on the way there you can stop and visit Marqueyssac, known for its suspended gardens which are the most visited in the region.




It is worth a visit but there are so many other places nearby that are also worth a visit that we didn't have time to see them all in one day. Should you want to learn more about the gardens and/or pay a visit here is the website:

www.marqueyssac.com/










Beynac is yet another Plus Beau Village. I swear I wasn't trying to follow the Plus Beaux Villages trail but you can't throw a rock in this area without hitting a Plus Beau Something or Other. Beynac is beautiful, like you'd expect, but it has some sort of presence about it that makes it more than just cute. I suppose having a mighty looking fortress on a commanding position atop a cliff with sweeping majestic views might be the reason for that but it does exude a sense of historical importance so here's a bit about that.

The Dordogne is famous for its prehistoric sites and many of the caves and shelters in the region's cliffs have evidence of human occupation for thousands of years and such places are near Beynac. After the Barbarian invasions a castrum developed in 1050 and when Eleanor of Acquitaine married Henri II the region became English controlled, governed by the local Count of Toulouse who was a vassal to the King of France. Richard the Lionhearted didn't accept this alliance and seized the castle in 1197, but it was retaken two years later. In 1214 Simon de Montfort put Beynac under seige during the Albigensian crusades. During the 13th and 14th centuries, the warlike power of Beynac permitted it to become an important influence within the region. The Hundred Years War had its usual effect of devastation on the town and château and after the fighting it was rebuit as the Renaissance period took hold. But that didn't last long as it was only a matter of time until the Wars of Religion again devastated the region. Despite the centuries of attack and devastation the heritage of the line of the lords and barons of Beynac was unbroken from the 11th century until 1811 when Marie-Claude, the last heiress of the lineage, died.

We got a late start to the day, not leaving the gîte until 1:30PM, and it was late afternoon by the time we arrived in Beynac so the tourist crowds were thinning. But there were still enough people to make it lively and the stores and shops were still open so it was more or less the perfect time to show up. We parked below the village next to the river.



Then off to see the village.

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If you've got cranky knees or some other kind of aches and pains then strolling the seemingly vertical streets of Beynac may not be for you.






From a scenic terrace on the way you can see the Château de Fayrac in the foreground and the Château de Castelnaud over its shoulder.








Really, forget this if you can't walk uphill. People must have had really strong legs back in the day, or perhaps it's just because they didn't have office jobs.








It's at about this point that what was once smooth and modern stone paved roads reverted a century or two to rough cobbles and uneven stone steps.








Despite the rough uneven surface and steep incline we saw some people pushing babies in strollers up the road and they were all laughing at themselves for being in their predicament. The surface gets smoother again near the top but it's no less inclined.






You eventually do arrive at flat terrain once you're in the square at the gates of the château.

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And then the reward for the climb is the scenic overlook.








It was too late to visit the castle so nothing to do but go back down.






Really though, if you're half way in shape a climb like this shouldn't be a problem. As you can see in the next photo even little kids were doing it.






The next destination on our whistle stop tour of Plus Beaux Places was Castelnaud-la-Chapelle. We were actually going to go there before Beynac but the huge line of traffic on the road leading there made us put it off. It still wasn't quite gone as we approached the castle.










We were a bit hungry and spied a crêperie and thought we might get one.






If you have a crêperie and that is your specialty you should never have this sign in front of your restaurant.




The crowds were starting to empty when we arrived as the castle had just closed for visits.












Our exhaustive exploration of Castelnaud lasted about 25 minutes. It would take me longer to research the history of the place than the amount of time I spent visiting so I won't bother with that. I'll briefly mention that the town has two châteaux and one of them was owned by Josephine Baker (Château des Milandes). Here's a link to the local tourist office site if you want to learn more (in French):

www.tourisme-ceou.com/fr/rubrique/Castelnaud/b40d3ee7d7b274e883bdaa1455d843d6/