Cahors - Lascabanes

(S) From the campsite, head south along Rue de la Rivière. Pass the rugby pitches and the stadium entrance. Follow the signs for Cahors Centre (Please note: do not follow the red and white markings, which are for the^GR®36!). Follow the River Lot to the Pont de Cabessus. Cross the bridge over the River Lot. (For your information, in the large car park after the stadium, you can take the free shuttle bus which takes you to the tourist office and follows the same route).

(1) Turn left towards the tourist office, then right onto Place Champollion. Walk to the right of Saint-Étienne Cathedral onto Rue Maréchal Foch. Cross Place Jean Jacques Chapou and continue straight ahead to stay on Rue Maréchal Foch. Continue to the traffic lights.

(2) Turn left onto Boulevard Léon Gambetta. Walk past the tourist office and continue to the roundabout.

(3) Turn right towards Pont Valentrė and continue along the banks of the Lot. Walk on until you reach Pont Valentré. (You are now back on the^GR®65; from here on, follow the red and white markings)

(4) Cross this beautiful bridge, carefully cross the Chemin de la Chartreuse, then begin the first climb of the day by heading left onto a narrow path that climbs the cliff via a few concrete steps, to reach the plateau near the Croix Magne.

(5) Continue to the right along the Chemin de Magne and pass through a residential area before reaching a ‘give way’ sign.

(6) Turn left, then left again, onto the Chemin de Peyrolis, and follow the D820 for about 800 m.

(7) At the bottom, in the bend, turn right to go under the D820, then turn left to follow the D820 in the opposite direction along the Route de Fontanet. Walk for 1.3 km along a tarmac road, heading towards La Rosière then Les Mathieux. Continue to La Fourche, where you’ll find the gate of house number 187 in the middle.

(8) Head left onto a stony path, slightly uphill, crossing the meadows, towards the village of La Rosière.

(9) Continue left onto the Chemin des Amandiers and follow the dead-end track to the end of the road. After the last house (No. 882), carry straight on along the narrow path through the woods to reach a T-junction at a place called Pech de Baulut.

(10) Turn right onto Chemin de Couaillou and continue to the junction with Route de la Rosière.

(11) Turn left, pass a garage, then head right onto the small path running alongside the Route de Montcucq before crossing it carefully. Follow the signs for Labastide-Marnhac. Continue to the D7 after crossing the Ruisseau de Bartassec.

(12) Turn immediately right onto the stony Chemin des Uclades, which climbs gently towards the scrubland. Continue to the hamlet of Les Uclades.

(13) Turn left and continue past the primary school in Labastide-Marnhac before reaching the D7. Continue along this road to the right.

(14) Cross the D7 with care and follow signs for Labastide-Marnhac. Ride through the village and continue to the Stop sign. Pass the church, then the town hall, before reaching the Stop sign at the junction with the D67. Cross the D67 carefully and continue in the same direction on the D7 for a few metres, until you reach a small stone building known as a cazelle.

(15) Turn left onto the path between the cazelle and a large beech tree.

(16) Ignore the alternative route leading to Lhospitalet and continue straight ahead on the^GR®65, through woods and meadows, to the Trigondina stopover lodge.

(17) Where the Lhospitalet alternative route joins the GR® 65, at the entrance to the lodge, turn right to rejoin the tarmac on the road to Labouriète and continue to the small hamlet of Le Pouget.

(18) After a sharp left-hand bend, continue to the junction with the Chemin des Gaussères.

(19) Head left, then follow the path on the right. Cross the Las Cordès valleys, then Pech Del Clerc before arriving at a picnic area on the Route de Belcastel.

(20) First turn right then left onto Route de Belbastel, cross the hamlet of Terre Rouge and continue along Chemin de Marannes.

(21) Head right, towards Baffalie, along the stony, downhill path. Cross the hamlet of Baffalie and continue to the cross.

(22) Keep left and continue to the wash house on the banks of the Verdensson. At the small bridge, turn left onto Chemin de la Gravelle. Continue to the hamlet of La Gravelle.

(23) Turn right and walk to Lascabanes Town Hall. Continue along Rue de l’Église, pass the cemetery and carry on, turning right onto Chemin de Saint-Gery, a steep climb, following the red and white markings of^{the GR®65}.

(24) Turn right onto Route Saint-Jean-l-Froid and head towards the chapel of the same name, your campsite for the night (E).

Provisions. Please note that for this stage, the only place to stock up on provisions is in Cahors. Plan for 2 days. Evening meals are available in Lascabanes (23) at La P’tite Pause.
Campsite: at the Saint-Jean le Froid chapel. Toilets and water point on site. Option to sleep in the chapel in case of bad weather.
Lodges in Lascabanes (23)
Le Nid Des Anges: tel 05 65 31 86 38
Lanies guest rooms: tel 05 65 35 06 47
Bed and Breakfast "La grange des 2 vallées" Lascabanes: tel 06 22 66 32 81

(4) The Valentré Bridge. Built during the Anglo-French wars, it is a rare example of French military architecture from that period; it is one of the finest surviving fortified medieval bridges. Commissioned by the town’s consuls in 1306, it was intended to defend the town against attacks from the south. However, neither the English nor the troops of Henry IV ever attacked it. This 138-metre-long humpback bridge features six large arches, each 16.50 metres wide; it is flanked by crenellated bastions and topped by three square towers with battlements and machicolations rising 40 metres above the water. Two barbicans protected its access, but only the one on the town side has been preserved.

(14) Labastide-Marnhac and its castle, built on a hilltop at an altitude of 318 metres. This castle (late 14th, early 15th century) was built after the Hundred Years’ War on the ruins of its predecessor; it suffered extensive damage during the Revolution and was subsequently used as a farm building.

(15) Buildings, also known as ‘cazelles’, constructed from dry stone in a corbelled style (each course of stone projects over the one below) with roofs covered in slate, most of which date from the late 19th century.

(23) Lascabanes is a picturesque village with its row of houses typical of the small farmers of yesteryear.