LIVE from the Camino caminka on route Figeac - Rocamadour

[caminka]

Note from the mods. Days 42-52 are here.

Day 53: transfer Toulouse - Figeac + c.3km around Figeac

Apart from the pants and the socks, other wet stuff mostly dried during the night, even shoes. Yesterday's rain left me a souvenir, however, a blister on my right heel.

I took the first train to Figeac (late, because it was a feast day). It took me back along the route I have walked which I quite liked and managed even to briefly recognize some places.
There was a bit of a scare at the train station in Toulouse when an abandoned baggage was spotted and they closed off one of the entrance halls.

I deposited my backpack at the gite d'etape (by prior arrangement) and spent the whole afternoon doing one of my favourite pastimes, wandering around a medieval town searching for mostly ignored reliefs, peeking into courtyards and visiting boulangeries.

I had a very colourful, loud, vivacious (and good) dinner in gite d'etape le Chemin des Anges. Apart from a German lady, a Belgian lady an me everyone was from Paris or its roundabouts. I heard many stories and adventures from the le Puy route. Half-pension €43, linen, duvet, garden with space for 1-2 tents €15?, washing and drying machine €4+4, wifi. And a dog who just stole one of my socks.

 

[Kirkie]

Day 53: transfer Toulouse - Figeac + c.3km around Figeac

Apart from the pants and the socks, other wet stuff mostly dried during the night, even shoes. Yesterday's rain left me a souvenir, however, a blister on my right heel.

I took the first train to Figeac (late, because it was a feast day). It took me back along the route I have walked which I quite liked and managed even to briefly recognize some places.

I deposited my backpack at the gite d'etape (by prior arrangement) and spent the whole afternoon doing one of my favourite pastimes, wandering around a medieval town searching for mostly ignored reliefs, peeking into courtyards and visiting boulangeries.

I had a very colourful, loud, vivacious (and good) dinner in gite d'etape le Chemin des Anges. Apart from a German lady, a Belgian lady an me everyone was from Paris or its roundabouts. I heard many stories and adventures from the le Puy route. Half-pension €43, washing and drying machine €4+4, wifi, garden. And a dog who just stole one of my socks.

View attachment 176243 View attachment 176244 View attachment 176245 View attachment 176246 View attachment 176247 View attachment 176248 View attachment 176249 View attachment 176250 View attachment 176251 View attachment 176252

Thanks for the guffaw, although I guess that the sock is needed!

 

[caminka]

Thanks for the guffaw, although I guess that the sock is needed!

The sock was recovered quickly and deposited safely out of his reach.

 

[lovingkindness]

Bonjour @caminka!
Rocamadour is a marvel. I can't wait to read about your arrival. I expect, being summer the sanctuary will be thronging with pilgrims and tourists and the police....

 

[caminka]

Fay 54: Figeac - Cardaillac c.12km

After a good sleep I made a slow morning because I knew I had a short day ahead. I had breakfast which did slow me down a bit and left only at 8h30. Like, really late (bit not the last!).

I went through the old town (GR bypasses it) then the route ascended a quiet shady road up a narrow valley, populated by dog-lovers and joggers. It transformed into a track then a path up to a ridge at le Bastit, then a sandy lane up to a viewpoint. A path then descended across two streams to a football stadium and became a steep street down past the church and cemetery (water) to Cardaillac.

I stopped at the bakery (no pains aux raisins anymore so I had to make do with a chocolatiere) and the shop for some fruit, then went to the medieval garden for a rest. I enjoyed the bubbling stream with vivid blue dragonflies (or damselflies) and the peacefullness for a while before I headed to gite d'etape to deposit my backpack.

Cardaillac is one of plus beaux villages de france and I took full advantage of the afternoon for exploring its medieval streets and mansions, and climbed one of the three towers for a panorama.

At 15h I was in front of the local ethnologic museum run by an elderly lady enthusiast who really knows every piece in her vast collection. It was impressive. The guided tour lasted two hours and a half. We visited several medieval buildings with collections of agricultural equipment, cobblers, various wood craftsmen, yarn and cloth making objects, wine cellar, mill and press for nuts, chestnut and plum drying facilities, living and sleeping quarters, and an old school. Very recommended but you need to understand french a fair deal.

The third reason I decided for a short day was gite d'etape la Citadelle which is in a stone building that started as a 12C lord's mansion. I splurged on my own room with a small terrace overlooking two of the three medieval towers. €27.80 (shared room is €20.80), optional breakfast €5, dinner €15 + drinks, full kitchen, linen, duvets, washing and drying machines, wifi.

I shared dinner with a french couple and a french gentlemen who are all doing some sort of Rocamadour-cum-Cele variant.

I am writing this on my small terrace while the dusk is setting in. Just perfect.

 

[caminka]

Bonjour @caminka!
Rocamadour is a marvel. I can't wait to read about your arrival. I expect, being summer the sanctuary will be thronging with pilgrims and tourists and the police....

Yeah, I am excited and dread it a little at the same time.

 

[Kirkie]

Fay 54: Figeac - Cardaillac c.12km

After a good sleep I made a slow morning because I knew I had a short day ahead. I had breakfast which did slow me down a bit and left only at 8h30. Like, really late (bit not the last!).

I went through the old town (GR bypasses it) then the route ascended a quiet shady road up a narrow valley, populated by dog-lovers and joggers. It transformed into a track then a path up to a ridge at le Bastit, then a sandy lane up to a viewpoint. A path then descended across two streams to a football stadium and became a steep street down past the church and cemetery (water) to Cardaillac.

I stopped at the bakery (no pains aux raisins anymore so I had to make do with a chocolatiere) and the shop for some fruit, then went to the medieval garden for a rest. I enjoyed the bubbling stream with vivid blue dragonflies (or damselflies) and the peacefullness for a while before I headed to gite d'etape to deposit my backpack.

Cardaillac is one of plus beaux villages de france and I took full advantage of the afternoon for exploring its medieval streets and mansions, and climbed one of the three towers for a panorama.

At 15h I was in front of the local ethnologic museum run by an elderly lady enthusiast who really knows every piece in her vast collection. It was impressive. The guided tour lasted two hours and a half. We visited several medieval buildings with collections of agricultural equipment, cobblers, various wood craftsmen, yarn and cloth making objects, wine cellar, mill and press for nuts, chestnut and plum drying facilities, living and sleeping quarters, and an old school. Very recommended but you need to understand french a fair deal.

The third reason I decided for a short day was gite d'etape la Citadelle which is in a stone building that started as a 12C lord's mansion. I splurged on my own room with a small terrace overlooking two of the three medieval towers. €27.80 (shared room is €20.80), optional breakfast €5, dinner €15 + drinks, linen, duvets, washing machine, wifi.

I shared dinner with a french couple and a french gentlemen who are all doing some sort of Rocamadour-cum-Cele variant.

I am writing this on my small terrace while the dusk is setting in. Just perfect.

View attachment 176294 View attachment 176295 View attachment 176296 View attachment 176297 View attachment 176299 View attachment 176300 View attachment 176301 View attachment 176302 View attachment 176303 View attachment 176304

I visited an etno museo in Grandas de Salime, Asturias, in May or June and it sounds very similar to the one you visited! I have tons of photos, but will post only this one. The stumps were to help move along in mud and snow, if I understood correctly. The people wore a kind of thick sock or even inner shoe...

 

[caminka]

I visited an etno museo in Grandas de Salime, Asturias, in May or June and it sounds very similar to the one you visited! I have tons of photos, but will post only this one. The stumps were to help move along in mud and snow, if I understood correctly. The people wore a kind of thick sock or even inner shoe...
View attachment 176307

Seems like some form of clogs was in use everywhere. Hardly surprising, given their material and durability.

 

[lovingkindness]

Seems like some form of clogs was in use everywhere. Hardly surprising, given their material and durability.

They are "sabots"...

Sabot (shoe) - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[caminka]

Day 55: Cardaillac - Soulestrain c.26km

It was such a nice town, nice gite, nice people, nice room, and nice bed that I had half a mind to stay enother day.

The route plunged into a steep wooded valley right from the square, on bottom crossed a stream and climbed out of it to a sandy track with peeks towards the silhuette of Cardaillac through the branches.

After a lake with a big shelter, toilets and possibly water (in the toilets, no alerts to its (non)drinkability) there was a longer climb on mostly roads up to St Bressou (water tap at a rest area in the crossroad). Before the ridge with St Bressou though, a couple has renovated a stone grange and put in a table, a bench and two mattresses for pilgrims to use. 400m further up they also arranged a donativo rest area with water, cooker, coffe and tea.

On the next high point at le Poteau is a new gite d'etape. From here on, the route mostly descended all the way to Lacapelle-Marival with its grand 13C castle, shop, bars, and toilets (water) behind the mairie.

The hills became gentler and the route ran more or less in a continuous line past meadows and maiz fields, past Rudelle with its cute fortified church (once chapel of a hospice)(toilets) and Themines with its cute small 13C market hall and a dry horseshoe-shaped pond (plus toilets and water tap).

I didn't see a water tap in Rudelle and after the village deviated via cemetery (with tap) then continued on local PR walk to join the GR. (It's GR 6 here.)

I encountered three girls with daypacks who decided to explore the countryside around of one of the girl's home by walking this GR. They were sleeping with this girl from Issandolous and her mother drove them to then picked them up every day.

A talkative black cat was very persistant in demanding cuddles.

The day was mostly overcast and shortly before I reached my gite there was a good shower too. Two or three more showers showed up in the afternoon.

There was a fair amount of road walking, mixed with some nice paths.

I am in gite d'etape Sansouci, enjoying my own dorm (the other two male pilgrims were put in the other dorm). The owners are very nice and we had an excellent and lively dinner with the whole family. Dorm €18.50, tent €10, optional breakfast €5, dinner €16, picnic €7, linen €2, duvets, washing and drying machines €2+2, full kitchen, tiny shop, small pool. They also have a water tap in the patio and a picnic table in the garden for the passing pilgrims.

 

[Peterexpatkiwi]

I visited an etno museo in Grandas de Salime, Asturias, in May or June and it sounds very similar to the one you visited! I have tons of photos, but will post only this one. The stumps were to help move along in mud and snow, if I understood correctly. The people wore a kind of thick sock or even inner shoe...
View attachment 176307

Yes,it's a wonderful museum, highly recommended.
A day or two prior on the Primitivo I saw an old man wearing Sabots in the cowshed.

@caminka, I'm assuming this is your last day on the trail today. Thanks so much for taking us with you, all of the wonderfully descriptive posts, and the beautiful photos.

Looking forward to your last post.

Of course should you have decided to walk on elsewhere, I would be very happy to be proved wrong!

 

[AlanSykes]

Seems like some form of clogs was in use everywhere.

As in the nursery rhyme "en passant par la Lorraine avec mes sabots"

 

[caminka]

Yes,it's a wonderful museum, highly recommended.
A day or two prior on the Primitivo I saw an old man wearing Sabots in the cowshed.

@caminka, I'm assuming this is your last day on the trail today. Thanks so much for taking us with you, all of the wonderfully descriptive posts, and the beautiful photos.

Looking forward to your last post.

Of course should you have decided to walk on elsewhere, I would be very happy to be proved wrong!

Yes, this is my last day walking. Let's hope the weather will hold!

You are very welcome.

I might continue this practice on my next caminos.

I have five days to get home by train. Apparently it is going to be a challenge because sncf is randomly cancelling trains (for example, from Rocamadour two days ago) and it's really difficult to find an affordable bed for the night.

 

[Kirkie]

Thank you for taking the time to bring us all along with you. That is a very kind thing to do, and your posts have been so concise and informative. I would love you to have an economical trip home....

 

[caminka]

Day 56: Soulestrain - Rocamadour c.25km

I waited for my picnic a little because the bakery had to open and Jean-Luc had to go there and back first. But that meant that we got to chat a bit more.

The first kilometers were on roads past the site of a medieval hospice in l'Hopital and partly romanesque church in Issendolous (also toilets and water).

Then the route became a series of lovely lanes bordered by mossy walls, passing through oak groves and by meadows and pastures. It crossed two tiny villages with rest areas, too.

I took a longer break by Gramat's cemetery (last water till Rocamadour), observing clouds which were getting greyer and greyer. Luckily, it didn't come to rain.

More lanes and a couple of farms with horses later, I was descending into the gorge of Alzou that would lead me to Rocamadour.

The gorge is quite deep and it's cliffs tall, but it's densely wooded and very little of the cliffs is visible until the last part. It was pleasantly cool but not fresh because there was almost no water in the river.

At the start the route literally descends through the ruins of Moulin du Saut, a tall water mill built on several floors next to a waterfall. There were many arches and niches and channels, and it was really cool.

A tiny path clinged to the cliff before steeply zigzagging down to the river and becoming a (almost) flay dirt path. There were occasional steep climbs and one or two climbing sections.

I passed a romantically mossy water mill, a half-overturned footbridge, a stone bridge, more ruins, a peek to the tall cliffs and circling ravens. The sun started to chase the clouds away. The path became less shady gravely track which didn't and didn't end. I started to hear car noises. The first thing that I saw that indicated that I was getting nearer was a sea of cars. With a little peek of the castle above Rocamadour through the tree branches.

Then finally, finally a road and a big meadow with a wonderful view to the houses and churches clinging impossibly to the vertical cliff, above them a sentinel castle. I plopped down onto my mattress and enjoyed the view for a while.

After a while I - a bit reluctantly - continued on the GR below the town (toilet and water tap in a small building below first stairs) all the way to the other side and climbed up Lou Castalou 'suburb'. This was a quieter entry that somewhat prepared me for the crowded main street.

I swung by the tourist office for the stamp and the plan then headed to gite Lou Cantou de Nostro Damo in the middle section. It turned out I was very lucky and won't need to sleep on a mattress in the chapel, there was a cancellation for the dorm. Dorm €14.30, room €21.30, breakfast, full kitchen, linen, blankets, washing and drying machines, wifi. You can stay more than one night and they have extra mattresses if all the beds are taken.

After the usual business I visited the sanctuary, the chapel with the miraculous Virgin statue and frescoes, other chapels, the town. I climbed all the way to l'Hospitalet on top to admire this architectural marvel from all directions.

Here on top are the ruins of a medieval hospice and its chapel and pilgrim cemetery, a shop, a bus stop, and probably the best view of Rocamadour.

My legs fill all the extra walking but it was definitely worth finishing my camino in this amazing place.

 

[caminka]

Photos of and from Rocamadour:

 

[caminka]

To l'Hospitalet and back:

 

[Camino Chrissy]

I visited an etno museo in Grandas de Salime, Asturias, in May or June and it sounds very similar to the one you visited! I have tons of photos, but will post only this one. The stumps were to help move along in mud and snow, if I understood correctly. The people wore a kind of thick sock or even inner shoe...
View attachment 176307

When I first saw this pair of sabots outside a front door on the Norte as I walked by, I was very surprised they are still being used; not just seen in museums. I later saw an old man tromping in a pair, heading out to his garden.

 

[Peterexpatkiwi]

Your photos are just amazing as always.
You really have a very good eye

 

[Camino Chrissy]

I agree, Peter!
@caminka you do have a very good eye and your photos are quite varied and very interesting to look at.
I have been to Rocamadour when I walked the Le Puy Camino, but I went as a side trip by train from Figeac and back in one longish day. It worked out very well, for anyone planning or contemplating the Via Podiensis.

 

[Dani7]

Great posts and beautiful pictures. You write beautifully and paint such vivid images with your writings. Thank you for sharing with us

 

[caminka]

When I first saw this pair of sabots outside a front door on the Norte as I walked by, I was very surprised they are still being used; not just seen in museums. I later saw an old man tromping in a pair, heading out to his garden.
View attachment 176441

I remember having wooden clogs when I was little. They were quite comfortable.

 

[caminka]

Your photos are just amazing as always.
You really have a very good eye

That is very kind of you. I just take photos of what I find beautiful or interesting, and hope they will turn up good.

 

[caminka]

I agree, Peter!
@caminka you do have a very good eye and your photos are quite varied and very interesting to look at.
I have been to Rocamadour when I walked the Le Puy Camino, but I went as a side trip by train from Figeac and back in one longish day. It worked out very well, for anyone planning or contemplating the Via Podiensis.

Thank you! I like interesting and different things. Sometimes I am to tired to take a photo then later brat myself over not taking it

 

[peregrina2000]

It’s hard to keep up with you, @caminka! As you may have seen, I stuck in a link to your posts on the Via Occitana up top in your first post on this thread.

I am sure these threads have produced a LOT of envidia sana - we all are delighted you are having such a marvelous camino, but would just love to be doing it ourselves! Thanks so much for all the details and the pictures. They always produce a “wow” response.

 

[caminka]

It’s hard to keep up with you, @caminka! As you may have seen, I stuck in a link to your posts on the Via Occitana up top in your first post on this thread.

I am sure these threads have produced a LOT of envidia sana - we all are delighted you are having such a marvelous camino, but would just love to be doing it ourselves! Thanks so much for all the details and the pictures. They always produce a “wow” response.

Much appreciated, thank you!

When I get going, I usually really get going.

I am really glad so many people took time to read and enjoy and comment on my reports. Thank you and love you all!

 

[caminka]

Day 57: leaving Rocamadour

I thought this might be useful info for people leaving Rocamadour.

If you are leaving on foot, be sure to pick the correct GR. There are GRs going in four directions, among them GR 46 south to Vers and Cahors, and GR 6 west, coinciding with GR 652 towards La Romieu.

If you are leaving by bus, there are two summer lines serving the town. Both stop at the upper funicular station and in l'Hospitalet. Bus 877 links Souillac train station and Bretenoux-Biars-sur-Cere train station and bus 876 links Figeac train station and gouffre de Padirac. Both also stop at Rocamadour-Padirac train station but pay attenion to stand at the correct bus stop. The first run is at 9h16. Either costs €2, you buy the ticket on the bus.
Don't count on taking the funicular for the first ride, it starts running at 9h30.

If you are leaving by train, you can walk to the train station Rocamadour-Padirac on a PR. It's about 6km. Or take a bus.

The shortest way from Rocamadour to l'Hospitalet is by direct Voie Sainte which is a continuation of the main street.

Possibly the least steep way to l'Hospitalet is by Chemin du Photographe which starts past the lower funicular station and climbs to the top of the cliff at viewpoint Photographe. It's then a flat panoramic walk to l'Hospitalet.

In l'Hospitalet are toilets, water tap, shop and restaurants.

On the other note, I am heading to Beaune to visit the huge preserved medieval Hotel-Dieu de Beaune (hospice/hospital), another one on my wish list. I have four more hours on a train. I managed to arrange with camping municipal in Beaune to arive after check-in hours!

 

[andycohn]

Not only was it fun following your wonderful journey, but now you've given us great directions to get back to civilization. Thanks for taking us with you.

 

[caminka]

Not only was it fun following your wonderful journey, but now you've given us great directions to get back to civilization. Thanks for taking us with you.

It is always a bit of a shock for me when I have to change gears from the simple camino life and start thinking in real life terms. That's why I like taking a train home, it gives me time to adjust. (But can in itself be a different challenge, like this year.)

 

[lovingkindness]

Rocamadour....YES!!! Caminka, you are there!!!

Bon chemin pélerine!