Valareilh (Vallereuil)

Parking is available near the town hall, on the square by the Fond Rolhas stream

(S/E). From the signpost on the square, take the VC4 tarmac road towards Neuvic. Pass in front of the town hall towards the hamlet of Fissard. On the left is the municipal wash house called "la piscine". Pass in front of the buildings of the former Tisval textile factory.

(1) Immediately afterwards, turn left then right towards Sarbaillou. Follow this small tarmac road for about 300 metres before taking a very pleasant path on the left. This is a shaded climb leading to a plateau at the intersection of four forest paths, with a lovely view over Neuvic and its valley.

(2) Continue to the right and take the forest path which, after a walk through the forest, leads to the village of Clamissac.

(3) Turn left onto Chemin des Couduriers, which runs alongside an old farmhouse. Pass in front of the houses in the hamlet of Les Couduriers, then climb straight up the path for about 250 metres to reach an intersection.

(4) Turn right onto another steep forest path. At the bottom of the valley, follow the signs on the right to reach the pleasant Breuil wash house. Continue for about 100 metres to the top of the small hill.

(5) Turn left. Then take the first path on the left. After a few minutes' walk, climb up to the right to reach a larger forest road that connects the hamlets of Sarbaillou and Le Breuil. Turn right again. After about a hundred metres, on the left, you will see the^first houses of the village of Le Breuil on the edge of an unpaved road. At the next intersection, turn right and then a little further down, turn left.
After a short climb, the final part of which is crossed by large pine roots, you will come directly onto the municipal firebreak road.

(6) As soon as you leave the woods, turn left. You will quickly reach the crossroads of the road linking Vallereuil to Saint-Séverin d'Estissac. Continue straight ahead on the DFCI. After about 500 metres, turn left onto a short, fairly flat section of a new forest path.

(7) This wooded plateau is listed on the Brandes de Guibert cadastre. After a continuous descent, the path leads to the top of the hamlet of Ramon, on the tarmac road that runs from Vallereuil to Saint-Jean d'Estissac.

(8) Cross this road (take care). Opposite, take the uphill path bordered on the left by a meadow and on the right by a pine and chestnut wood.
At the end of the 200 m climb, the path continues straight ahead, crossing another tarmac road. After a short descent of about 300 m through the forest, you will arrive further downstream on the same road. Follow it to the right for barely 50 metres and turn left onto the forest path. "The hamlets indicated on the signs for Les Plagnes and Leyfourcerie are not included in the official route".
After an easy walk, the path ends at the top of the village of Pissot on another small tarmac road.

(9) Cross this road and continue straight ahead. Continue past the back of the kennels to reach the village of Le Pont.

(10) Turn left. Walk 300 metres along the tarmac road, passing one of the last farms still in operation in the commune, then continue straight ahead to the hamlet of Pontilloux. From there, walk along the beautiful path opposite, which starts off behind an old farmhouse and leads to the Lagrapheuil wash house.
Continue along the path until you reach a crossroads at a place called Tivoli. Admire the beautiful Basque house (private property).

(11) Turn left onto Chemin des Pèlerins. At the top, continue for another hundred metres on flat ground to reach a place called La Tuilière. At the end of this path, turn right onto the tarmac road to descend to the starting point of your hike, stopping first to admire the church (S/E).

See the hike and information below on the website

Abbé Lespine was born in Vallereuil on 17 September 1757 in a place called "Léfourcerie". Throughout his life, he was a seminarian, priest in Limoges, tax collector, vicar, canon of Saint-Front in Périgueux and teacher. But he made his name by taking charge of the archives in Périgueux and leaving for Paris to become a guard at the manuscript cabinet of the imperial library. Upon his death in 1831, he bequeathed his numerous and precious manuscripts to the National Library, which now form the Lespine collection.
The Loumagne fountain is on the border between the communes of Vallereuil and Saint-Jean d'Estissac. Loumagne is the name of the stream and spring that were the origin of a famous pilgrimage to Sainte-Quitterie, virgin and martyr, invoked to obtain fertility, cure the insane and find happiness.

Fissard wash house
Called "the pool" because of its two basins, this wash house was rarely used for its primary function: washing clothes. It was more often used as a watering place for cows, as washerwomen preferred the municipal wash house, despite the distance they had to travel with their heavy wooden wheelbarrows.

The Tisval factory in Vallereuil:
A weaver by trade, Jules Firmin bought a farm in Haut-Fissard, which he converted into a factory at the end of the 19th century. At that time, the Salembre valley was a producer of hemp and flax.
One of his sons went to Lille and Tourcoing to learn the trade, then returned to his father's side to develop the factory's capabilities.
In 1911, Carmel Firmin shifted production towards the manufacture of small widths of cloth (the width of a fabric between its two selvedges) but also produced large widths for making sheets and tablecloths.
As orders increased, Carmel Firmin expanded the factory in 1947, doubling its size. There were 80 people employed in the 1930s and up to 110 before the war. Most of the workers were farmers.
In 1948, Carmel Firmin went into partnership with Bideguain, supplying him with the canvas used to make "Pataugas" shoes. He also supplied the "Pantouflards" in the Nontronnais region and nearby shoe factories such as the Georges factory in Saint-Germain, Laporte at Neuvic station, and Planèze.
The 1980s saw the decline of the factories, which eventually closed in the 1990s.

The Breuil wash house:
With its irregular pentagonal shape, this wash house is like a jewel set in its green surroundings, inviting walkers to stop and soak up the charm of the place for a few minutes. It is fed by a spring at the foot of a hillside and flows into the Breuil stream, which also feeds the Font du Chat wash house, among others.

The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption:
Dating from the Romanesque period (12th-13th centuries), it was extensively renovated in the 15th and 16th centuries. The church bell, dating from 1500, is one of the oldest in the department. Thanks to the Areval association and various patrons, the church has now been restored and enjoys a pleasant green setting with a bread oven.