Walking in the Dordogne. Janette Norton

which has a Strawberry Festival in May. Weekly market days are listed in Appendix B.

      Colourful stalls at Sarlat market

What to take

      The Dordogne does not suffer from extreme ranges of temperature, although in general summers are hotter than those in the UK.

      The best solution is to dress in light layers and, even if the weather looks good, take a breathable windproof jacket. Lightweight, quick-drying trousers are the most comfortable for walking – those that zip down into shorts are very practical, as even on hot days you may need long trousers to avoid getting scratched by undergrowth and prickly bushes. When the sun shines the rays are intense, so sun protection is important, as is a sun hat and sunglasses.

      Walking in the Dordogne is not comparable to trekking in more rugged country, and many of the walks in this guide could be done in a good pair of training shoes. However, it is preferable and more comfortable to have a lightweight pair of boots with ankle support and soles with a good tread. Proper walking socks can also make an enormous difference to foot comfort. Most hikers now use trekking poles which help with balance, especially if you are tired. The lightest available are made of carbon fibre, and lever-lock adjustments are the easiest to use.

      As none of the walks described is long, a light-weight rucksack is quite adequate. It is wise to carry a whistle and a good quality compass, and a mobile phone can be life-saving if you have an accident, although it may not work in certain areas.

      A GPS is useful in bad weather or if you get lost, and many GPS units now incorporate a compass and an altimeter, based on barometric pressure and/or satellite trigonometry. There has been no let-up in the evolution of GPS technology over the past 20 years, with increased power of sophisticated hand-held units, including custom maps for downloading, and access to more satellites (including Russian ones). It is worth checking the market carefully before purchasing a GPS unit, putting the accent on good signal reception and battery life, good screen visibility in bright light, easy operation, robust and not too large and heavy. There is also a learning curve, but the effort is well-rewarded and Pete Hawkin’s Cicerone guide Navigating with a GPS gives a useful introduction.

      Manufacturers’ maps for GPS download are usually very expensive, and the French IGN 1:25,000 products are no exception. However, there are open software products that are surprising effective and versatile, with special mention for openmtbmap.org (‘mtb’ covers mountain biking and hiking).

      EQUIPMENT LIST

      The following is a suggested list for your rucksack on a day walk:

       the route description from this walking guide

       the IGN 1:25.000 map recommended in the walk information box

       lightweight waterproof anorak

       cape or poncho that goes over everything including your rucksack (useful in the rain and for sitting on)

       lightweight fleece or sweater

       spare socks

       sun hat, sunglasses, high-factor sun cream and lip salve

       basic first-aid kit, including insect repellent and moleskins for blisters

       picnic and snacks (sweets, chocolates, high energy bars, dried fruit and nuts)

       water bottle – it is essential to take lots of water if the weather is hot; do not drink from streams or dubious village fountains

       mobile phone, whistle, penknife and compass

       optional extras: GPS, camera, binoculars and reference books (for flowers or birds)

Waymarking

      The walks in the Dordogne area are well signed, but it is a region criss-crossed with paths and narrow roads, and one walk can sometimes cross another, marked in the same way. It is best to follow the route description carefully as when there is danger of taking the wrong turning, this is indicated.

      Most of the walks have new wooden signposts clearly showing the various destinations and distances, with a yellow plastic top and a yellow arrow indicating the direction to take. If you are on a ‘boucle’ (circular walk), named by the local tourist office, the signpost will indicate this, together with the remaining distance at each successive signpost. In the Dordogne department (although not in the Lot), the route between signposts is often waymarked by short wooden posts with a yellow plastic top and an arrow showing a right or left turn, or a cross to show the wrong way. You might also come across a yellow plastic marker stuck to a wall or tree, or an old yellow paint splash, especially on walks in the Lot. The colour yellow is used for a circular walk, and green for a liaison (connecting) path. On two walks south of the river (Walk 6 and Walk 29) you will see an extra sign on the posts, consisting of a stylised yellow scallop shell on a blue square, indicating that this is part of the pilgrimage route of St-Jacques to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

      A post with scallop shell for the route of St-Jacques (Walk 6)

      Quite a number of walks in the Dordogne are partly along sections of long-distance Grande Randonnée (GR) footpaths, which are marked by red and white horizontal stripes on posts, rocks or trees, as well as on signposts, with a red and white cross to indicate the wrong direction. In this guide you will mostly come across the GR6, which runs through the centre of the Dordogne from just east of Bordeaux, ending after 1100km near Barcelonnette in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. A few walks are partly along the GR64, which runs for 90km from les Eyzies to Rocamadour, and you will come across small sections of other GRs.

      In addition to the GR footpaths, you will come across a few Grande Randonnée de Pays (GRP or GR de Pays) footpaths which are long circuits, marked by red and yellow horizontal stripes. Where the route for a walk is on a GR or a GRP footpath, this is clearly indicated in both the text and on the accompanying sketch map.

      At the start of many walks the local tourist offices have erected large information boards, which are mentioned in the text of individual walks. These show a map of walks in the area and information on anything of historical or general interest. They are often in English as well as French, and it is worth taking the time to read them before setting off.

      Typical signpost

Maps

      A good map that gives an overall picture of the Dordogne and Lot is the Michelin Carte Routière et Touristique 1:150,000 Périgord Quercy.

      Each walk in this guide is accompanied by a sketch map with coloured contours, showing key places and numbered waypoints that are highlighted in the route description. To cope with the high density of information and the different walk lengths, we have used four scales: 1:25,000, 1:33,000, 1:40,000 and 1:50,000. For additional features and detailed navigation, the relevant 1:25,000 IGN paper map is specified in the information box at the beginning of each walk. Unfortunately, only a few of the IGN maps for the Dordogne are in the Top 25 Carte de Randonnée series, which often show the walking paths explicitly; most are in the Série Bleue series, which do not show the walking routes so clearly.

      A complete list of IGN maps can be found in Appendix B, together with details of where to buy or order them in the UK. Otherwise, it is easy to buy them in the region and they are sometimes cheaper in local supermarkets.

      For pre-walk planning and post-analysis, all the 1:25,000 and 1:100,000 IGN maps for the whole of France are available on the internet for a very small annual subscription from www.sitytrail.com. This is the best way to be sure you have the latest editions, and is accompanied by a powerful set of tools to choose the magnification, print selected areas, superimpose recorded GPS trails and record your favourite routes