Vineyards, small villages and dovecotes around Château du Cayla

Description

Park on the roadside of the D1 on the way into Vieux (many parking spaces available).

PR Yellow Waymarking

(D/A) Head towards the village centre and the church. Once you've gone past the church, turn right onto the small tarmacked road and go alongside the cemetery, continue on until you reach the houses in le Chapître.

(1) Leave the road and take the wide path on the right which climbs up a valley, partially planted with vines, and joins another wide path coming from the right. Turn left and continue on to the village of Andillac.

Ignore the access road to the village centre on the right and instead, a few metres further on, turn right onto the tarmacked road going gently downhill. Keep to the left at the next two intersections until you reach the crossroads in Savignats.

(2) Follow the road to the left, going past the front of a magnificent and very well-restored dovecote, ignore the wide path which heads off the left. Coming out of the marked bend to the right, leave the road and take the path on the left which leads to a small tarmacked road.

(3) Turn right two more times. At Pausadou, ignore the road leaving off to the right, which returns to Andillac, and instead continue on the left. Go past the entrance to Château-Musée du Cayla, cross over a small bridge and you will arrive at a crossroads in the turning just after.

GR White and Red Waymarking + PR Yellow

(4) Head to the right and climb up the valley of the small Saint-Hussou river by staying on this wide, partially-paved, path.

No waymarking

(5) Turn right in the sharp bend onto a path which quickly reaches a plateau, providing beautiful views over the surrounding countryside. Once on the tarmacked road, turn right in order to reach Lintin, where you cannot fail to appreciate the magnificent dovecote, topped with a really remarkable pointed roof.

(6) Opposite the church, take the small road going downhill to the right. Go past the access road to the Mérits farm on the right. Continue on to the fork and take the right which leads to a star-shaped crossroads.

(7) Follow the tarmacked path to the left which pleasantly circles round the plateau, ignore the two roads which appear one after the other on the right.

(8) In the curve of a wide bend to the left, leave the road and continue on the slightly grassy path on the right and then turn onto the first path on the right. This path goes between the vines and heads down to a lower point. Continue on the left, ignoring the access route to the hill and the telecommunications tower on the right. The path heads into a wood and then quickly comes out of it again to go alongside a vineyard (the route shown on the IGN map is wrong at this point).

(9) Turn 90° to the left and go between two vineyards until you reach a wider, well-marked path, turn right onto this. When you reach a ruin which is nearly completely buried under moss, turn to the right and go alongside a property until you reach a tarmacked road. Follow the road to the right going downhill until you reach the D1 at the entrance to the village of Cahuzac-sur-Vère.

(10) Cross the road (be careful as it's a very busy road), go alongside the changing rooms of the football stadium and cross over the small bridge over the Vère (it is not shown on the IGN map, but is definitely there on the ground).

PR Yellow Waymarking

Turn left and follow the small tarmacked road which quickly turns into a wide, level path. This goes alongside the Vère and, past the bridge on the right, turns 90° to the left and climbs uphill going alongside a wood until it reaches a tarmacked road.

(11) Turn right, go between several beautifully-restored houses in Comberouzal and continue on for about 300 m.

(12) In the curve of a bend to the left, leave the road and take the wide path opposite you which goes downhill along the Vère and ends up on the D26.

(13) Turn right, cross the bridge over the river and re-join the D1. Follow this road to the left, taking good care walking on the very narrow pavement (a bend to the left with no visibility and the traffic can be quite heavy) to return to your vehicle (D/A).