I Love Walking in France

16/01/2025

Walking l’Échappée Jurassienne
Day 7 – Château-Chalon to Baume-les-Messieurs (1 September 2018)

Forest between Blois-sur-Seille and Chaumois Boivin.

15/01/2025

Camino Podcast Episode 70 – Moissac to Condom

On the latest episode of the Via Podiensis Podcast, Dave Whitson (author of the Cicerone Guide) and guests Dennis and Laurie Brooke (of World Rovers) share their experiences walking from Moissac along the canal to Auvillar, and continuing on through the fields of poppies in the early spring, or sunflowers if you make the journey in summer.

He then talks with Dr. Jean Lavigne about the importance and prominence of duck and, more controversially, foie gras as common additions to the menu in most restaurants in this part of France. No matter how you feel about foie gras, it’s a fascinating discussion and well worth a listen.

Let's walk the Via Podiensis together! Whereas many of the pilgrim interviews on the podcast take a thematic approach, focusing on a few big picture issues, this series of episodes will dig more into

14/01/2025

Chemin de Saint-Jacques du-Puy
Day 9: Saint-Côme-d’Olt to Espalion (07 June 2022)

After several days of walking through truly beautiful villages, the market town of Espalion can feel less quaint and slightly disappointing. If you arrive tired after climbing the hills from Saint-Chély-d’Aubrac, and it’s late in the afternoon when the sun is low and the old bridge and the palace are in deep shade, it can be hard to imagine what all the fuss is about.

On this trip, I was keen to arrive in town early and spend some time looking for the magic.

This view of Vieux Palais and Pont-Vieux as you first reach Espalion, highlighted by the late morning sunshine, is one of my favourites. If you do arrive late in the afternoon, I recommend ducking back out the following morning to see it in all its glory!

12/01/2025

Martel to Rocamadour
Day 1: Martel to Turenne (Saturday 8 June 2024)

Inside the Guards Rooms, a collection of armour and other memorabilia from the château’s heyday bring the rooms to life.

11/01/2025

Long-Distance Walking

Criss-crossed by tens of thousands of kilometres of long-distance walking paths, France offers walking and hiking enthusiasts a lifetime of options. No matter what your fitness level, your preferred choice of landscape or how much time you have available, there is a walk to suit you.

Somewhere in France is a walk with your name on it—a walk that incorporates all the magic you are dreaming of, whether that be fairy-tale castles and most beautiful villages; wide open spaces or rugged coastlines; or an easy, flat walk (or cycle) along a canal.

Find a walk that’s right for you at https://ilovewalkinginfrance.com/long-distance-walking-in-france/

10/01/2025

Chemin de Saint-Jacques du-Puy
Day 9: Saint-Côme-d’Olt to Espalion (07 June 2022)

Inside Chapelle de P***e, stunningly beautiful frescoes cover the ceiling.

09/01/2025

Walking l’Échappée Jurassienne
Day 7 – Château-Chalon to Baume-les-Messieurs (1 September 2018)

Although the high ridges around most of the villages we’ve walked through appear daunting, they never feel as hard as they look. This climb is less than ten minutes of walking after leaving Blois-sur-Seille.

08/01/2025

Camino Podcast Episode 69 – Cahors to Moissac

On this episode, Dave Whitson (author of the Cicerone Guide) is joined by France Fehr (author of On Foot in France: An Unforgettable Adventure on the Camino de Santiago) to talk about the section of the Chemin de Saint-Jacques between Cahors and Moissac. This is a section that, at the right time of year, is covered in a blaze of sunflowers—a truly magical sight!

Later, he talks with Dr. Mark Gregory Pegg who offers a new slant on the history of the Cathars, challenging the stories you may be more familiar with.

Let's walk the Via Podiensis together! Whereas many of the pilgrim interviews on the podcast take a thematic approach, focusing on a few big picture issues, this series of episodes will dig more into

07/01/2025

Chemin de Saint-Jacques du-Puy
Day 9: Saint-Côme-d’Olt to Espalion (07 June 2022)

From the cemetery alongside Chapelle de P***e, the fortified château of Calmont-d’Olt can be seen towering over the town. The GR 65 does not climb the hill to visit the château, and if you are walking it is almost certainly one hill too far! But I had spent an afternoon there on a non-walking holiday several years earlier and found the demonstrations and the history fascinating (apparently if the château was under siege, it was common practise to hurl dead cows down into the fields of soldiers camped below).

If you’d like to visit but can’t face the climb, I suggest taking a taxi up the hill the next morning then walking back into Espalion later, or asking the taxi to return for you and take you on to Bessuéjouls.

05/01/2025

Martel to Rocamadour
Day 1: Martel to Turenne (Saturday 8 June 2024)

In 1738, in order to clear gambling debts of the then owner, the château was sold to King Louis XV who ordered that it be dismantled. Thankfully, many of the fireplaces and much of the stonework found their way into houses and other buildings in the village. All that remains of the original château is the watch tower and the Guards Rooms at either ends of the garden.

04/01/2025

Camino Le Puy – day 4: Le Sauvage to Aumont-Aubrac

Day 4 from Le Sauvage to Aumont-Aubrac, is the longest day so far for Irina at 28 kilometres (17 miles). Thankfully, the rain holds off and although the day is uneventful, the scenery is magnificent!

Hi, I’m Irina, and this time, I’m walking the Camino Le Puy – one of the oldest and most scenic pilgrimage routes in France! 🇫🇷 This journey was completely...

03/01/2025

Chemin de Saint-Jacques du-Puy
Day 9: Saint-Côme-d’Olt to Espalion (07 June 2022)

The shortcut along the river and the GR 65 path meet a short distance before Espalion at Chapelle de P***e. On my previous visits, I had walked from Saint-Chély-d’Aubrac (the village before Saint-Côme-d’Olt) that morning and taken the hilly path. I was too shattered to climb the slight hill to Chapelle de P***e, something I’d long regretted but rectified this time.

02/01/2025

Walking l’Échappée Jurassienne
Day 7 – Château-Chalon to Baume-les-Messieurs (1 September 2018)

Leaving Blois-sur-Seille with our furry friend in tow.

01/01/2025

Camino Podcast Episode 68 – Figeac to Cahors along the Célé variante

On the latest episode of the Via Podiensis Podcast, Dave Whitson (author of the Cicerone Guide) and guest Kerri Daniels walk another of my favourite sections, visiting the abbey ruins at Marcilhac-sur-Célé, the painted caves at Pech Merle and the most beautiful village of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie.

Afterwards Dave talks to Maureen Cashman, an Australian who spent three years living in the village of Espagnac-Sainte-Eulalie. What is it like to live in a small village in rural France? For many of us, it is an ongoing ‘one day’ dream but Maureen’s stories of getting to know the locals make it all seem very possible!

Let's walk the Via Podiensis together! Whereas many of the pilgrim interviews on the podcast take a thematic approach, focusing on a few big picture issues, this series of episodes will dig more into

31/12/2024

Chemin de Saint-Jacques du-Puy
Day 9: Saint-Côme-d’Olt to Espalion (07 June 2022)

Today I cheated and took the short, flat path along the river to Espalion, allowing a late start to the morning and plenty of time to capture this iconic view of Saint-Côme-d’Olt from the bridge across the river. (If you are undecided which path to take, the GR 65 climbs and descends two fairly solid hills. The second hill is topped by a statue of the Virgin Mary and offers glorious views down over Espalion and across to the fortified château of Calmont-d’Olt.)

The path along the river is rather boring with scrubby vegetation blocking most views of the river, but it does allow you to reach Espalion in a little over an hour with plenty of time and energy to explore the town.

29/12/2024

Martel to Rocamadour
Day 1: Martel to Turenne (Saturday 8 June 2024)

From every angle, the village of Turenne lives up to its ‘most beautiful’ classification.

28/12/2024

Planning an Itinerary for a Long-distance Walk
Regardless of whether you prefer to book accommodation well in advance, a few days ahead while on the walk or just see how you feel on the day and stop in the nearest campground each night, it’s always helpful to have a rough idea of how much vacation time you’ll need.

To plan an itinerary, I need to know two things—
(1) What the terrain is like—is it hilly, flat—so that I can estimate how far to walk each day.
(2) Where I’ll find accommodation.

You’ll find easy steps to map out an itinerary that suits you at https://ilovewalkinginfrance.com/planning-an-itinerary/

27/12/2024

Chemin de Saint-Jacques du-Puy
Day 8: Saint-Chély-d’Aubrac to Saint-Côme-d’Olt (06 June 2022)

Time for a well-deserved ice-cream at Café Verdier in the main square in Saint-Côme-d’Olt.

You’ll find a list of accommodation and more photos of the village of Saint- Côme-d’Olt at https://ilovewalkinginfrance.com/saint-come-dolt/