Route of the hamlets south of Branne

Park in the car park at Branne Town Hall, opposite the war memorial.

(S/E) Leave the square heading north and turn right onto Rue de l’Église. Cross Rue Emmanuel Roy in front of Saint-Étienne Church, head to the right, then turn left onto Chemin de la Tannerie. Walk down to the small bridge, cross it and head up the opposite side via Chemin de la Barbonette.

Pass the Branne municipal workshop and continue uphill for about thirty metres. Leave the shed on your right and follow the path that winds between the houses. It feels as though you are on private property, but this is not the case; nevertheless, try to pass discreetly.

(1) At the cross, turn right. The road descends slightly. At the T-junction, turn left and climb for about sixty metres. After a house, turn right and take the grassy track which soon becomes a path and climbs up to a road in a wood (Chemin de Lagut).

(2) Head to the right. As you leave the woods, the road crosses through vineyards and then runs alongside another wood on the right.

(3) Turn right into the vineyard to go round this woodland. The path curves slightly to the right. Ignore a turn-off to the right and, a little further on, head down a path that leads onto a stony track until you reach a tarmac road. Turn left, walk for a good kilometre and turn right towards Pérey.

(4) At the fork, head left past the houses, then through the vineyards towards the D19E2. Once on the road, turn right, go straight on across the junction, and continue to Laubarède.

(5) At the T-junction, at the corner of a property with a high wall topped by a white gate, turn right. Cross the hamlet, then turn left towards the town hall. Turn right and then left after about 300 m to head towards the church.

(6) Walk along the church wall and round the cemetery. Take a very steep path on the right, cross the small stream then climb up the wooded embankment. At the road, turn right, heading north to the junction with the D122.

(7) Turn right, then after about 100 metres, left towards Brussac. In the hamlet, turn right at the junction. Then, at a Y-junction, take the path on the left. Head down through the undergrowth to reach a vineyard lane and then let yourself slide down to the road. Turn left.

(8) After about 180 m, turn right, cross the stream and follow it for about 350 m. Turn left, go up the grassy path to go round the vineyard. Climb a small slope that slopes down to the right, turn left to reach the road and follow it to the right. Walk gently down towards the D936.

(9) Cross the D936 with care (no pedestrian crossing), turn right then immediately left at the Renault garage. Walk up to the bend and take the path straight ahead into the woods. After the woods, walk alongside the vineyard to the electricity pylon.

(10) Turn right. After about 130 m, enter the woods, follow the path which curves to the right and descends alongside the Dordogne to reach the hamlet of Pey du Prat.

(11) Turn left at the small car park, go downhill and cross the junction. After the small bridge and the esplanade that follows it, take Rue du Port Leyron. At the end of the street, turn right to return to the starting point at the car park of Branne Town Hall (S/E).

(S/E) In Branne, you will find three restaurants, a bar-tobacconist, a butcher’s, two bakeries, a newsagent’s and various shops, including a Carrefour-Market. Market every Thursday morning, in the market hall.
Please note: closed on Mondays, except for the Carrefour Market, which is closed on Sunday afternoons.

Brannais Tourist Office: Route de Cabara, 33420 Branne, tel: 05 57 74 90 24.

(6) : Saint-Martin-de-Lugaignac Church, 12th century. As in all cemeteries, there are several water points.

(6): Saint-Martin-de-Lugaignac Church, 12th to 18th century. Beneath the bell tower wall, a porch shelters the entrance to the building. Stone benches allow visitors to view the Romanesque portal, richly carved with diamond-shaped points and fleurons. Four pointed arches rest on small columns with fluted and scaly surfaces. Unfortunately, the whole structure is in rather poor condition, as the stone is deteriorating and badly damaged.

Two chapels on the north side were added in the 17th century; one houses the baptismal font, the other is dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Curiously, their vaults have never been covered, the lean-to roofs protecting them being clearly of the ‘temporary-permanent’ sort, which gives them a modest and endearing air.

If, by chance, the church is open, you will discover a three-bay nave beneath a broken barrel vault. Of note are a 12th-century stone holy water font and an unfinished pulpit, also in stone, dating from the 17th century.
Finally, the modillions, as always, deserve special attention: in the purest medieval tradition, they form a stone book for the uneducated people of the time. Good battles Evil in all its forms: Hell, sin—particularly sexual sin—but also praiseworthy scenes from everyday life, capable of saving our souls.