Today’s ride has been well documented by other CB’ers over the last few years, and every recounting of it has remarked about how exceptional it was.
Our original plan for getting to Saint Cirq Lapopie had us climbing out of the Celé valley back to Capdenac, and then down the Lot to Saint Cirq Lapopie. After our stay in Lapopie, we were then going to cycle ‘up’ the Celé and then cut off to Rocamadour.
Re-reading the accounts of riding ‘down’ the Celé from Team Anderson and Susan Carpenter, and having some down time in Figeac to think clearly, resulted in a new plan.
This new plan is working to perfection so far after its initial day of execution. Today was one of those classic days of touring that holiday brochures are made from. The weather was perfect - a few clouds with light drifting morning fog and mist with temperatures in the mid teens. As the sun rose, the fog and mist retreated and the temperatures rose to perfect for cycling high teens. As the weather gradually changed, so did the landscape. The broad valley with lush green pastures interspersed with wood lots started to narrow into steep walled valleys and cliff bands carved out by the Celé river.
To add to the enjoyment, we were riding through a series of beautiful villages built up to, and at times, into the cliffs. Corn, Brengues, Saint Sulpice, Marcilhac-sur-Celé, Sauliac-sur-Celé and finally Cabrerets, each village seemly more stunning than the last. All of these villages had a ‘star’ rating displayed as you entered them. All were lovely but some seemed to rate two stars while others had a coveted four star rating. I’m sure there’s some intense local politics involved every year when the ‘star’ ratings are evaluated and awarded. From our perspective though, they were all beautiful.
And through all of this our bikes more or less seemed to self propel as there were no hills to speak of, just a few gradual rolling ups and down, with a net down all the way to Bouzies where the Celé flows into the Lot.
The icing on the ‘gateaux’ …. It was a Monday morning and the number of vehicles we saw over the ~60 km down the Celé could be counted on our fingers and toes.
It does not get much better than this … so we thought.
After a nice break and an ice cold smoothie in Bouziers, we started the moderate climb and last 5 km’s to get to Saint Cirq Lapopie. The majority of the climb was done in the first two km’s from Bouzies and then we were on the (sometimes balcony) road on the cliffs immediately above the Lot. A few more gradual km’s of uphill and Saint Cirq Lapopie came into view. This village gets the rating of ‘Most Beautiful Village In France’ (is there a government agency / department that does this stuff? Probably.) and it is well earned. Plastered on and into the cliffs rising above the Lot, this medieval village, the majority of which is largely intact and functioning, is amazing to see. On a warm sunny spring afternoon when there were relatively few people around, it was breathtaking.
We pulled into a quaint Brasserie on the edge of the village and had our ‘end of the ride’ bevy in one of the most spectacular settings ever. What a magical 60 km’s of riding!
The brasserie was about 200 m from our Chambre d’Hôte, the beautiful Maison Lapopie and we were soon checked in for a two night stay (this place was one of the few places that we pre-booked while still in Canmore. I doubt we would have got a room in the Village if we had tried something last minute).
We had enough time for a wander around, and take a few pics of, this amazingly well preserved village before ending the evening with a superb dinner at Le Cantou … 30 m down the lane from our room.
Days do not get much better than this. The only downside is that Aunt Betty is back with an even bigger photo album to recount the day!
Jacquie GaudetThat's the route we took in 2017, less the side trip to Grotte du Pech-Merle. The first 3 weeks of that tour when we travelled together and weren't carrying camping gear was the first trip I've ever pre-booked in its entirety--all because I desperately wanted to see Lascaux IV and to stay in St-Circ-Lapopie. Reply to this comment 11 months ago
Lyle McLeodTo Jacquie GaudetHi Jacquie,
Your trip and write-up of the day resulted in us going to St Cirq Lapopie rather than staying in Bouzies like TA. We’re so glad we did, the place is amazing! We wanted to go to the same restaurant you did too, l’Oustral, but unfortunately it’s now closed and shuttered. We also considered the side trip to Peche Merle but decided not to. We are in Rocamadour now and will do a day trip to Gouffre de Padirac ( courtesy of your write up 🙏) and then head to Lascaux from here. Lapopie was one of a handful of places we pre-booked. It’s pretty clear that you’re not going to get something there ‘spur of the moment’. We are however still carrying our camping stuff! Only used three times so far though, more of a safety net to have. Reply to this comment 11 months ago
SOTD - Blue Rondo al al Turk by Dave Brubeck. An absolute classic that compliments this day … which will be one of our classic days of touring. Just look at Dave B’s expressions in the film … pure joy and at times, wonderment as he and his band produce this musical masterpiece. That’s what we felt throughout the day as well. Oh, and it’s about 8 minutes long …. Just perfect for Aunt Betty’s latest travelogue.
Starting the day on a cool slightly misty morning in Figeac
Kirsten KaarsooTo Rachael AndersonWe were not needing anything but figured we better take a spin around the parking lot! A great location at the start of a fantastic ride. Reply to this comment 11 months ago
The bridge over the Celé entering Cabrerets. When I was taking this pic, my phone rang … it was K wondering if I was ok as she had been waiting for 10 minutes at the hotel just around corner ahead. Ok… just stoping a lot for pics!
Lyle McLeodTo Scott AndersonYep! I was thinking about you …. Until my phone rang a few seconds later 🙄! Reply to this comment 11 months ago
Lyle McLeodTo Patrick ParnoYes, Orange Europe Traveller e-sims. They have worked seamlessly. Full service, phone, texts and tons of data. They are probably twice the price of buying a sim from a kiosk but the convenience is priceless. You couldn’t pay me enough to go into a phone /sim vendor ever again. How much of my time is $40 worth to do something tedious while traveling? It’s measured in seconds! Reply to this comment 11 months ago
https://www.inaturalist.org/guide_taxa/45282#:~:text=The%20Pyrenean%20rock%20lizard%20(Iberolacerta,now%20considered%20a%20distinct%20species. Reply to this comment 11 months ago
Our ‘post ride bevy’ view …. Stunning. One of the best ever. Our Chambre d’Hôte is the first building on the left on the cobblestone road going down the hill
What follows are a smattering of pics as we wandered around this amazingly beautiful and preserved medieval village. Hopefully they give you a flavour of how magical this place is …. And uncrowded on a Monday in May!
Kirsten KaarsooTo Karin KaarsooI didn’t as I didn’t see the sign until Lyle showed me the photo. But I guess I will find out come Christmas! Reply to this comment 11 months ago
The day was capped by a wonderful dinner at Le Cantou. Our revised plan has resulted in Cahors (about 20 km downstream on the Lot) being scrapped …. So instead we had this lovely bottle of AOC Cahors as a substitute … and it went amazingly well with the rest of the regional fare we had
Today's ride: 60 km (37 miles) Total: 1,238 km (769 miles)
Rate this entry's writing
Heart
6
Comment on this entry
Comment
1
Susan CarpenterGreat post and pics! It brought back lots of wonderful memories of our ride last fall. Love that you included a spin of the bike shop parking lot! Reply to this comment 11 months ago
11 months ago
Your trip and write-up of the day resulted in us going to St Cirq Lapopie rather than staying in Bouzies like TA. We’re so glad we did, the place is amazing! We wanted to go to the same restaurant you did too, l’Oustral, but unfortunately it’s now closed and shuttered. We also considered the side trip to Peche Merle but decided not to. We are in Rocamadour now and will do a day trip to Gouffre de Padirac ( courtesy of your write up 🙏) and then head to Lascaux from here. Lapopie was one of a handful of places we pre-booked. It’s pretty clear that you’re not going to get something there ‘spur of the moment’. We are however still carrying our camping stuff! Only used three times so far though, more of a safety net to have.
11 months ago
11 months ago