Our Lady of Fournet

Park next to the wash house in the hamlet of Fournet (commune of Saint-Cernin de Larche).

(S/E) Go up and turn left at the sign for "Vierge de Fournet". Continue to a fork in the road.

(1) Turn left at the sign for "Lissac-Couze". From there, follow the yellow and red markings.

(2) At the three-way junction in the hamlet of Peyrefumade, turn left onto the yellow and red signposted path.

(3) After passing through Froidefond Haut, leave the yellow and red marked path and take the path that climbs to the right and leads to a crossroads.

(4) The path continues straight ahead towards a forest edge. Turn left onto the path that continues into the forest and you will come to a paved dead end in the hamlet of Rignac, which offers a panoramic view of Lake Chasteaux.

(5) Climb a few metres to the end of the dead-end road and take the path that starts on the right (red arrows).

(6) At the top of the hill, turn left and continue to an intersection directly below the high-voltage power lines.

(7) Turn left again, pass under the high-voltage power lines and arrive at a crossroads near the holiday village.

(8) Turn right onto Chemin du Mas-Haut, which leads to a four-way intersection.

(9) Continue straight ahead, following the yellow markings. Leave the path leading to Puy de Fournet on your right and continue straight ahead. Pass under the power line a third time and be careful not to miss the discreet path on your left, where a low wall appears at the edge of the road. A sign, but facing in the opposite direction to your walk, indicates the Vierge de Fournet.

(10) Follow this to Notre-Dame de Fournet and admire the view.

Turn back.

(10) Turn left and rejoin your original path.

(1) Turn left again to return to the car park (S/E).

In 1891, a monumental complex was erected on the tip of the Fournet plateau (in Saint-Cernin-de-Larche) in a rural area in crisis due to the phylloxera epidemic (1877-1887). At the top, Mary presents the baby Jesus to the faithful with one hand and holds a bunch of grapes in the other, both a reminder of the wine crisis and a symbol of the abundance requested through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin. At the foot of the statue is a rosary in a medallion decorated with flowers, fruit, a scythe, a hoe, a shovel and a sickle. The agricultural symbolism is clear: it is indeed a matter of entrusting to Mary the "fruit of the earth and the work of man".