Through the vineyards and cellars of Rochecorbon

Depart from the car park on the banks of the Loire, at the mouth of the Saint-Georges valley, accessible by bus from Tours on the line that serves Rochecorbon.

(S/E) From the car park, take the path that runs along the Loire embankment towards Tours.

(1) Just before the Total petrol station, take the narrow staircase that climbs up the embankment. It leads out just opposite the Allée de Rochecorbon, which you take to reach the Beauregard road at the foot of the cliff.

(2) Turn right onto this street and follow the small road that winds above the Beauregard Sports Park. As you pass, note the strange diving board above a patch of grass. On the other side are a series of tuffeau stone houses, some of which are embedded in the cliff, each vying for elegance.

(3) When you reach Rue Saint-Georges, turn left to walk up through the village, whose more or less opulent houses are spread out on either side of the road.
Don't miss the chapel on one side of the small square at the top of the village.

(4) About fifty metres after the chapel, leave the road and take the path that climbs the hillside before leading into the vineyards. Go around them on the right, following the path that runs along the tree-lined edge of the hillside.
The path soon turns into a small road that runs parallel to the cliff.

(5) At the crossroads in the vineyards, continue straight ahead, keeping the slender Tour de la Lanterne, the only remaining vestige of the Château de Rochecorbon, in your sights. As you approach it, the path curves to the left and begins a steep descent.

(6) At the start of this descent, turn left onto the path that climbs back up towards the vineyards. You are now approaching the castle, which you previously passed on your left. But as you approach the park surrounding it, the path turns right. Continue straight ahead when you reach a small road, then walk alongside the housing estate until you have passed it completely.

(7) Once you have passed the last houses, turn right onto a grassy path and continue for about 150 metres. Turn left at the first opening in the neighbouring wasteland to descend towards the vineyards and the wooded hillside overlooking the Vaufoynard road. Go through the chicane that gives access to the woods and slide down the slope until you reach the road. Turn left and walk up past the houses to the Bourillon-Dorléans wine cellar.

(8) At the cellar, turn right onto Rue Elisabeth Génin, walk up past the troglodyte dwellings and continue straight ahead past the chicane that marks the end of the street. The small path leads to a street that you descend to the right to find one of the central crossroads of Rochecorbon.

(9) Pass the hairdresser's shop on your right and walk up Rue des Fontenelles to the left. You will pass under a beautiful château before walking alongside the municipal cemetery. Turn right at the first street after the cemetery.

(10) After the bridge over the Bédoire stream, turn right to walk alongside it on the recently built greenway. This pretty route, which follows the bubbling waters, leads to a roundabout, which you exit on the right to cross the stream again. Then turn immediately left to continue downhill along the stream through gardens and meadows.

(11) When you reach the road leading to the church in Rochecorbon, turn left, cross the stream again and turn left at the next crossroads. Continue up the steps on the hillside, to the right of a wooden cross. When you reach Rue des Hautes Gâtinière, turn right and follow this street, which is once again lined with beautiful houses carved into the cliff face. At the next crossroads, turn right into Rue du Peu Boulin and walk down this street until you find an alleyway branching off to the left. Take this alleyway and the path that continues for about a hundred metres, then turn right to go back down towards Rue des Clouets.

(12) Turn left and walk down the street until you leave the village. You will come to the crossroads with the road that follows the Loire. Cross the road and take the path slightly to the left that leads back to the towpath.

(13) At the towpath, turn right and follow this greenway (shared with cyclists). Cross the Bédoire where it meets the royal river, then walk alongside a succession of gardens in varying states of repair.

(14) The presence of slides and other children's play equipment indicates the proximity of Luluparc, an amusement park famous in Tours for its open-air café. Walk along the site to continue on your way. When you reach a place where various boats (gabares) typical of the Loire are moored, you are further away from the car park (S/E).

At various points along the route, we passed cliffs that had been hollowed out in places. Whether they were dwellings built entirely or partly into the rock, annexes to these houses, or cellars where Vouvray wine is aged, this rocky Swiss cheese would comprise several kilometres of galleries. And you may be lucky enough to visit one of them, as we did when we went looking for the key to the chapel. When we couldn't find it, we consoled ourselves with a visit to the cellar next to the building, which is actually carved into the cliff behind the chapel.

It's strange to see this diving board overlooking a patch of grass in the middle of the Beauregard sports park. This diving board used to be next to the swimming pool that occupied this space. And the pool was fed by a spring that flowed from the cliff.

The Rochecorbon guinguette is a place that was recommended to us by several people. Apparently, the atmosphere there is very friendly. But on this winter's day, the place was very quiet and deserted.