Orniac walks

A lovely circular route where you can enjoy a real Causse atmosphere. Small built heritage sites (the Bourlande spring and wash house, a cazelle, Lake Saint-Namphaise), traditional Causse houses, dry stone walls, open landscapes and views to the horizon, and the pretty little village of Orniac. An easy, family-friendly walk suitable for all seasons but one to avoid at all costs in hot weather!

Starting from the hamlet of Les Granges in Orniac, discover the lower Célé valley to its confluence with the Lot. Beautiful view of the cliffs between Bouziès and Saint-Cirq-Lapopie and return via Pech Merle and Cabrerets.

Climbing up the aptly named Combe d'Écoute-s'il-pleut, you arrive at the dry grasslands of Lentillac, where you can discover a magnificent dolmen. Descend towards the peatland, a clear river that can disappear and reappear a little further on through resurgences.

From cazelles to dolmens, above Château de Cuzals and its open-air museum, passing through old Sauliac and its cliffside houses.

This route will allow you to discover two typical villages of the Causses du Quercy: Cabrerets, a village flanked by the vertiginous cliffs of the Célé, and Orniac, a little gem of the Causses. All this while crossing some very beautiful landscapes: the peatland valley, the beautiful Combe Gelée and the descent to Cabrerets via Bout du Lieu, where you will overlook the Célé river while following theGR® 651, used by pilgrims on their way to Compostela.

This beautiful circular route will allow you to discover both banks of the Célé from the village of Cabrerets. On one side, the Montclar State Forest, planted with Atlas cedars and punctuated by an interesting human and natural heritage: Cuzouls, Lake Saint-Namphaise, cazelles (dry stone huts) and dolmens. On the other bank, Pech-Merle and its oak grove offer beautiful views of the village of Cabrerets and the Lot valley, with the added bonus of a visit to the Pech-Merle caves.

Discover the Causse and the beautiful Célé Valley around the superb Pech Merle Cave.

The twenty-ninth stage of the Way of St James. This beautiful stage begins with another climb, leading to the castle-museum of Cuzals with views over the Causses and the Célé valley, before reaching the heights of Cabrerets. The village nestles along the Célé and is dominated by its very impressive castle. This is followed by a visit to the Pech Merle cave, before discovering some of the stage’s most beautiful panoramas, with a lovely view from the Rochecourbe cliff. A lovely descent takes you away from the Célé to reach the Lot, near Bouziès, where the GR®651 ends. It is here that I suggest a detour from the Way of St James, heading upstream towards Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, a fantastic hilltop town and a must-see in the department. Passing through an incredible spot, you’ll have the chance to discover the towpath, a trail carved into the rock and originally used for horses to pass through.

A pleasant walk along the banks of a stream that disappears to reveal the tuff before reappearing.

A superb, quick, easy and family-friendly circular. This walk will allow you to discover the beautiful Causse paths lined with dry stone walls, pretty cazelles (stone huts) and the imposing Pech de Gadal dolmen. The return journey is through Old Sauliac on a path clinging to the cliff, offering superb views of the valley.

Perched on a cliff overlooking a bend in the Lot river, Saint-Cirq-Lapopie is an exceptional village that has preserved its medieval architecture. This deliberately shortened stage allows you to take a long tour of the monuments, narrow streets and shops of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie after walking along the towpath on the banks of the Lot. The short detour beyond the village to the Cirque de Vènes viewpoint is well worth the effort.

A beautiful loop along the Lot with a return trip via the plateau.

This easy circular route will allow you to discover the pretty village of Marcilhac-sur-Célé and its abbey, the peaceful, shaded banks of the Célé and, higher up, the Quercy limestone plateaus and their rural heritage: dry stone walls, caselles (stone huts), cayrou (stone shelters) and compte-moutons (stone sheep pens). This route follows theGR®651and thePR®20departmental route of the Caselles de Marcilhac at times.

A very challenging circular walk that takes you on a figure-of-eight route (allowing you to do just part of the route), showcasing both the village of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie and the area’s most beautiful UNESCO-listed geological sites: the Cirque de Vènes, the resurgence and the karstic cave of Crégols, and the Chemin de Halage. With a few sections along cliff ledges and stunning views over the Lot Valley, this route will delight lovers of beautiful landscapes and/or geology.

Thirtieth stage of the Way of St James. On this stage, you leave Saint-Cirq-Lapopie via the magnificent towpath and head for Bouziès. You leave theGR®651to follow theGR®36. You climb back up onto the Causse plateau, offering beautiful views of the Lot valley, before descending to Arcambal and its medieval castle. You then follow the tranquil course of the Lot to Cahors.

This walk allows you to discover Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, the River Lot and its towpath, then the limestone plateau above the village. I also suggest a shorter alternative route.

This hike, along cliff-top paths, offers superb views of several meanders of the Lot, which you will cross. Several small locks are used by pleasure boats. The descent to Vers allows you to discover the village and its river of the same name with its port at the confluence with the Lot.

This is an easy hike on sharp limestone pavement, offering a beautiful viewpoint with a passage near a chasm, which is not secured, so caution is required for all.

This hike takes you above the medieval village of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie and offers multiple viewpoints for beautiful photos of the village. Moderator's note Old description, GPS or Visorando app useful

Eight-shaped loop through the Cirque de Vènes and the village of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie. Remarkable towpath to Bouziès, then return via the Causse and the Chemin de Croix.

This route passes through various high points offering beautiful views of different valleys and the Lot valley.

Four villages, each with its own unique character: - Cénevières and its magnificent castle - Calvignac, perched on the cliff - Larnagol, nestled in a hollow in the cliff - La Toulzanie, a troglodyte village The River Lot flows between these four villages, with a path climbing up the cliff on the left bank and remaining on the plain on the right bank.

This circular walk, proposed by the Association 'les pierres vivent' and the commune of Cénevières, winds its way from the valley to the causse, sometimes along small wild paths, sometimes along wider paths, and very few roads. Along the way, you will discover fountains, caselles, dovecotes, chapels and wash houses, as well as the Trou Madame spring and the château, which is open to visitors

A short walk on the Larnagol plateau where you’ll see springs, caselles and dry-stone walls.

This beautiful hike will take you past the stunning Font Nègre spring to the Bout du Monde (End of the World) viewpoint, which offers magnificent views. Note dated 25/02/2023: following the closure of the communal path that bypassed the Castanet farmhouse on the left, a new communal path has been created. It bypasses the farmhouse on the right and is now correctly signposted. The description has been amended accordingly.

This route introduces you to around twenty trees, shrubs and bushes, as well as some examples of vernacular heritage, commonly referred to as "small heritage", found on the Causse. During your walk, you can enrich your knowledge by scanning the QR code on each sign to access a detailed information sheet. Approximately 8 km long, it complements the 2.5 km route (tree discovery) that already exists on Visorando, which starts at the same point.

This route takes you on a tour of various farmhouses around the village of Espédaillac, along beautiful paths lined with dry stone walls. This circular route is marked with small signs depicting a hiker in a yellow arrow.

This route invites you to discover sheep and their environment. At each stage, it reveals how sheep farming has shaped the landscapes of the Causse.