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AROUND BERGERAC

Monbazillac château and vineyards (Walk 2)

Bergerac is situated on the banks of the Dordogne, near the end of its journey westwards to the sea. Founded in the 12th century, it was the first town to have a bridge, and it prospered when the only means of transporting goods from the hinterland to the Atlantic port of Bordeaux was along the river. Its port was the scene of bustling activity, and it soon became an important commercial centre for the entire area. The wine trade was particularly lucrative, especially after the tax exemptions granted by Henry III of England, and wealthy merchants built large houses, many of which have been lovingly restored. In the 18th century it became the largest tobacco producing area of France, its history illustrated in the town’s Musée de Tabac.

Statue of Cyrano de Bergerac (walk 1): photo Richard Saynor

Now the main town of Périgord Pourpre, Bergerac still retains its original old quarter, with winding cobbled streets, half-timbered houses and the church of St-Jacques, on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. In the central square is the famous statue of Cyrano de Bergerac, the intrepid knight with the long nose immortalised in theatre and film − despite the fact that there is no evidence that he ever set foot in the town!

The river at Bergerac is wide and gentle, flowing lazily through the town, its waters now the home of ducks, swans and canoeists. The first walk in this guide is a delightfully easy stroll along its banks, starting at the oldest port of Cale de l’Alba and passing the Vieux Port to end at the modern dam. This is the way to see the river at its best, for the path is quiet and peaceful, with no cars and only a few dog walkers to share it with.

Bergerac is also renowned as a wine-growing area, the climate here being warmer and drier than north of the river. Some of the most prestigious vineyards surround the château of Monbazillac immediately to the south, where there is an easy walk through the vineyards. This is where the sweet white Monbazillac wine is produced, and if you visit the château afterwards, there is free wine tasting with a choice of all the region’s vintages.

The rest of the walks in this section lie mostly to the south of Bergerac, where there are countless picturesque towns and villages, many with distinctive churches topped by a high wall with three bells. The walks around the sleepy little villages of Flaugeac, Monestier, Conne-de-Labarde and St-Aubin are through open meadowland past wide fields of wheat and barley, in and out of woodland and over rivulets and streams, through hamlets where time seems to have stood still. The countryside here is tranquil and pastoral, and you will find old windmills and water mills once used to grind the corn, and elaborate dovecotes, the birds being bred for meat and their droppings used for fertiliser.

Two of the best known towns here are Issigeac and the bastide town of Eymet, their winding streets lined with half-timbered houses. Issigeac has a lively Sunday market, worth visiting before the walk in the surrounding countryside, and near Eymet is the man-made Lac de l’Escourou, where many varieties of birds, fish and flowers are to be found as you walk around it.

The countryside to the north of Bergerac is less well known but no less attractive, and a circular walk winds up through woods and fields from the village of Monclard, with its medieval castle and covered market hall, to the smaller hamlet of St-Georges.

There are plenty of places to stay in Bergerac and the surrounding villages, and the driving directions for all walks in this section are from Bergerac.