It was a short train ride away and we had two nights there, eating, sleeping and reading.īack on the track, we arrived at la Châtre, the end of our walk, and then made our way by bus and train to another favourite town, Bléré, near Tours, to enjoy a second relaxing little holiday before the ordeal of the plane flight back to Australia.Ī daily diary of our month-long walk down the valley of the Allier and along the Canal of Burgundy, which covered almost 700 km. When we reached the Canal de Berry at Vallon-en-Sully, the weather was very hot and we decided to have a break in St-Amand-Montrond, a town that we had stayed in before and loved. The rest of the walk was generally westward, through rich agricultural land punctuated by classic small towns such as St-Pourçain-sur-Sioule and Hérisson. There we left the canal and headed south-west via Autun to join the Loire at Digoin. We followed this river north as far as St-Jean-de-Losne, where we turned onto the Canal of Burgundy and continued beside it to Dijon and on to Pont d’Ouche. Starting close to the Swiss border at St-Julien-en-Genevois, we spent a few days crossing the rugged Jura mountains and then pressed on to the Saône near Pont-de-Vaux. You can also see this map using Google Earth and take a virtual flight along our route.Ī daily diary of our 33-day, 750 km walk from east to west across France. Once in le Puy we still had time to spare, so as a last flourish we did a two-day circular outing via St-Paulien. However fate had other ideas and we only got as far as Diou, just short of Digoin, when we had to call the whole thing off because of a mysterious leg problem.įive days later the problem went away (although the mystery remained), so we caught a train to Saint-Julien-en-Genevois, leapfrogging the middle section of our planned walk, and proceeded from there to le Puy at a leisurely pace with no further dramas. We started walking in Burgundy, setting off from Clamecy on the Canal du Nivernais, and walking south along the canal to its final junction with the lateral canal of the Loire at Decize.Īfter that our intention was to follow the lateral canal to Digoin, then head east through Macon and Bourg-en-Bresse before crossing the Jura mountains to Geneva, where we would join the Way of Geneva going to le Puy. You'll also hear the term referred to in reference to food, and the cuisine of Périgord, characterized by truffles, foie gras, and other goose and duck products, is world renowned.A daily diary of our 26-day, 550 km walk, which was in two parts although we did not plan it that way. Périgueux, the administrative center of the Dordogne département, is in the Périgord Blanc. Périgord BlancĪnd the central Périgord Blanc, or White Périgord, is named for the abundance of white limestone in the area.

The Périgord Vert, or Green Périgord, is the northwestern part of Périgord, known for its lush green fields and valleys and beautiful gardens. The Périgord Pourpre ( Purple Périgord), so named because of the abundant wine from the area, is centered on Bergerac-et-Cazenac. The Périgord Noir ( Black Périgord) is where most places of touristic interest are, including Sarlat-la-Canéda, the prehistoric caves of Lascaux, the medieval town of Domme, and other towns on the Dordogne and Vézère Rivers. Périgord/the Dordogne is/are also part of the région of France known as Nouvelle-Aquitaine, which also includes Bordeaux.Īnd to make things more complicated, the Périgord has been further divided into four 'colorful' regions: Although the département has been known as the Dordogne for years, many people still use the term Périgord.

What we commonly refer to as the Dordogne region is also referred to as Périgord, the historic name of the area-dating back centuries. It can get confusing trying to keep the various régions of France straight, especially when some are known by more than one name.

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