Callabout loop in Marquay

During this hike, you will discover a hilly, wooded area dotted with hamlets that bear witness to a rich farming history. The forest, composed of oak, hornbeam and chestnut trees, offers a rich palette of colours. Here and there, small islands of meadow add to this mosaic.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.40 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 192 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 199 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 226 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 99 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Departure from the large car park next to the town hall in Marquay.

(S/E) Leave the car park and take the D6 on the right, pass the town hall and head towards the large Place Jean Tilho.

(1) At the crossroads, turn right onto the paved road towards Tamniès.

(2) At the Martellie crossroads, turn left towards "Boucle de Callabout" and pass between the houses, keeping to the left. Go down the path between the meadows, climb into the woods and follow the walnut grove. The path branches off to the right and enters the woods. It winds its way down to a crossroads. Turn left. Still in the woods, the path stretches along a wet area of the Grande Beune valley, dominated by limestone cliffs eroded by the Ice Age.

(3) When you reach a car park along the D6, turn left onto the D6 for about 80 metres and climb up the grassy path on the right, which leads to Pavadelle. The terraced path is dominated by a cliff. At its end, the trail winds through oak and hornbeam woods to a crossroads of four paths (the route is slightly different from the map).

(4) Turn left. At the edge of the woods, go up through the farmland to Le Pont farm, higher up.

(5) At the top, between the sheds, turn left. The small road is dominant. Go down the first road on the right towards Lancement. At the bottom, in the bend, take the left-hand track leading up to the hamlet of La Gafferie.

(6) Follow the signs for Boucle de Callabout on the left, going down the path towards Le Marenal. It enters a chestnut grove and passes in front of the fountain hut.

(7) Turn left, then right along the field before turning left onto a shaded sunken lane.

(8) At the top, on the road, turn left.

(9) After a scenic stretch, at the next crossroads, descend to the right towards the hamlet of Callabout. (Pay attention to the signposts). There is a large yellow cross on the left and this is where you need to turn to find the yellow signposts again, about 200 metres further on, and turn right to reach Callabout via the road.

(10) In Callabout, turn right at the large house towards La Croix d'Alix. At the cross, turn left. The grassy path continues straight ahead and becomes a footpath. On the D6, turn left and then immediately right. The path plunges into the woods, climbs back up alongside a sawmill and skirts the D6. Opposite, the path descends between chestnut trees, turns left and climbs back up towards the D6, at the corner of a house. Take the D6 on the left until you reach the crossroads.

(1) Cross the large square to return to the car park near the town hall (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 224 m - Parking at the town hall
  2. 1 : km 0.18 - alt. 225 m - At the crossroads, take the road on the right
  3. 2 : km 0.51 - alt. 208 m - At the Calvary, turn left onto a small path
  4. 3 : km 2.82 - alt. 103 m - Junction D6. Towards - Beune (rivière) - Affluent de la Vézère
  5. 4 : km 3.96 - alt. 125 m - Path on the left
  6. 5 : km 4.71 - alt. 172 m - On the left between the two sheds, paved road
  7. 6 : km 5.87 - alt. 183 m - On the left, paved road
  8. 7 : km 6.24 - alt. 210 m - Path on the left
  9. 8 : km 7.02 - alt. 215 m - On the left
  10. 9 : km 7.43 - alt. 204 m - On the right, paved road
  11. 10 : km 8.15 - alt. 205 m - On the right, paved road
  12. S/E : km 9.4 - alt. 224 m - Parking at the town hall

Notes

Some paths are made of stones and others have holes, so hiking boots are essential.
There is no water along the route, so you will need to bring your own supplies.
The weather can be unpredictable, so bring rain gear and, above all, a hat depending on the weather on the day of your hike.

Worth a visit

At the start of the walk, you can visit the church in Marquay.
Along the way, you will come across shepherds' huts, known as gariottes, which are typical of the region but also found throughout Quercy under different names.

Slightly off the route:
- The Cap Blanc shelter
- The Laussel archaeological site
- The Château de Laussel
- The Château de Commarque (troglodyte village) - A short detour of 2.3 km there and back
- The Grande Beune river.
- The rich heritage
- The houses with slate roofs

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 31 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
4.4 / 5
User 2727033

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 04, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

the first part of the route is in the forest, very shaded, running alongside the Beune river and then limestone cliffs sculpted by erosion.
Then there are many paved roads with restored farms of interest.

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Alain_42
Alain_42

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 20, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful paths, shaded, which must be lovely when it's hot in summer.
We didn't make it back to Commarque Castle due to lack of time.

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RANDO4662
RANDO4662

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 23, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very well marked trail up to number 9. After that, nothing

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vero44130
vero44130

a beautiful hike, already done three times.
the first part consists of paths and woods, very shady, but watch out for horseflies, they are everywhere in the woods (we knew this so we brought insect repellent for horses/riders/dogs, which works very well)

be sure to make the detour at point 6 to see the Château de Comarque. There are picnic areas and a restaurant/bar.

the second part is more on a small road with no traffic but more exposed to the sun

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titoux_fr
titoux_fr

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 16, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Nice hike and route.

The only downside...and this is in no way the fault of the route, is that during the summer (at least this year), we were literally attacked by flies and horseflies in the wooded areas.
There were dozens of them around us as soon as we stepped into the shade.

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Marc Vandevelde
Marc Vandevelde

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 01, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Most of the route is uninteresting. Lots of tarmac. However, the Château de Commarques is a must-see.

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Chantal&Olivier
Chantal&Olivier

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 02, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Varied hike. We didn't understand the term "aerial trail"

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lecomminges
lecomminges

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 11, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The route is fairly shaded but there are many paved roads.

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SM BISCHE
SM BISCHE

Good evening and thank you for your prompt response.
Your correction will be useful to future hikers, especially if (like us) they are not from the area.
Personally, apart from the futile search for the right route and an unnecessary detour (which was frustrating when you think you're not too bad at finding your way around), it wasn't a big deal. I could see the hamlet of CALLABOUT in the distance, which was our destination. In the middle of the day with good weather, it's fine. But in the rain or fog, it would certainly have been tricky.

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alainmartin77
alainmartin77

Good evening
Thank you for pointing that out. I will review the explanations as there are indeed a few errors. Fortunately, you are an experienced hiker.
I apologise for the inconvenience caused.
Have a safe trip
@lain

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SM BISCHE
SM BISCHE

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 07, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

After about thirty hikes based on the routes suggested by VISORANDO, this is the first one that has disappointed me a little. I should point out that I am not from the area at all, so I relied on the explanations and the map.
In the instructions for point 8, it says 'turn left', but there is a yellow cross on the left! So I searched in vain for the right path (which, according to the map, should have turned left), and after several 'detours' I ended up going straight on towards CALLABOUT (with its beautiful houses). It was only afterwards that I saw that point 9 said to watch out for a 'large yellow cross'... but this actually referred to point 8.
As for the rest, there were some beautiful views of the surrounding area and some magnificent houses

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FLOCH
FLOCH ★

Thank you on behalf of the authors and moderators.

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gilda
gilda

To date, all the hikes I have done with Visiorando, whether in the south of France, the Massif Central, the Alps or elsewhere, have been perfect: the explanations are clear and precise enough to prevent you from getting lost. I haven't used all the hikes I printed out, particularly the one in the Dordogne, as we went cycling there instead.
Thank you for your valuable information.
Best wishes for the future.

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dominique80455180
dominique80455180

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 12, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike with a wide variety of landscapes.

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alainmartin77
alainmartin77
• Edited:

Hello
Yes, it's true that Comarques is a prehistoric gem.

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