The rocky expanse of the Causses de Martel, de Gramat and Limogne, dominates much of the Lot, and is host to a rich variety of flora and fauna. To appreciate them leave the main roads, which naturally follow the most level ground.

There are all sorts of strange rock formations to find with many very deep holes, some of them hundreds of metres, known as igues. The best known area is the Forêt de la Braunhie – pronounced ‘brogne’ in the triangle of land 40 kilometres west of Figeac, between the villages of Fontanes du Causse, Quissac and Caniac du Causse, with its beautiful but tiny 12th-century crypt. It is not really a forest at all, but some extremely inhospitable terrain once farmed intensively and now just used for rough sheep grazing.

Leave the footpaths – not forgetting to shut the gates. You will find the typical cloups – the deep hollows created in the limestone plateau by millions of years of rain draining through a weak spot in the rock. The rich soil collected in the bottom was once used to grow hemp – for cloth rather than hallucinations. Often the ‘Cotswold’ protective, circular, dry-stone wall surrounding the cultivated area is still intact. The contrast with the rocky grazing all around is strange.

Scattered about are the little shelters, known as cazelles or gariottes, once used by shepherds, often young children, guarding the flocks of sheep. They look like igloos made of slabs of rock. Of particular interest are the rare dragonflies and the 30 or so different types of orchid. In February and March in some parts there are thousands of wild daffodils.

Characteristic of the Braunhie are the so-called Lacs de Saint-Namphaise, actually small man-made rock pools which supply drinking water for the sheep. The legend is that Saint Namphaise, one of Charlemagne’s generals, grew tired of arson, rape and pillage and settled in the Brauhnie, where he excavated these pools to help the peasants. To date no one has been able to find out how old they really are. They have great charm in this land where water is rare everywhere except underground. On the Causse there are no streams, and every farmhouse had its own reservoir, or citerne, with a charcoal filter, to collect the water from the roof. The story goes that in times of drought men used local wine to shave, as water was so precious.

If you can find them, there are some fascinating caves, many of which were home to Prehistoric man and were places of refuge in times of trouble, right up to the last war. The high ground of the Brauhnie was occupied by English soldiers in the early part of the Hundred Years’ War. They used it as a base to raid the surrounding countryside.

Now, the Causse has the benefit of being in the Parc Regional Naturel des Causses du Quercy. It is a potholer’s paradise – the locals describe the Causse as a gruyère – full of holes and underground rivers. The atmosphere is exceptionally dry – ideal for arthritis sufferers, and, of course, sheep! The Caussenard sheep with their typical black eyes are only found in the Lot. It is one of the only two breeds of sheep in France which can lamb at any time of the year.

Saint-Cirq-Lapopie
Thirty kilometres to the east of Cahors, along the valley of the Lot is a quite exceptional village built on the cliffs overlooking the river, with the remains of its castle right at the top. It was saved from ‘improvement’ by the arrival of a group of artists from Paris in the 1950s.

Ideally, leave the car at the next village, Bouziès, and walk along the old chemin de halage – towpath – carved out of the cliff face on the south bank. The steep little path by a pigeonnier (dovecote) leading up to the village brings you right into the village square by a pleasant café where you can have a cold drink to recover. Wander through the little alleyways and savour the atmosphere of what really is one of France’s most beautiful villages.

The whole valley of the Lot right the way along towards Figeac is worth following. If you have time, visit Calvignac and Capdenac-le-Haut. In the Vallée de Vers, on the western side, near the village of Vers, with a bit of scrambling you can find the remains of the Roman aqueduct built into the cliff face. Originally 32km in length, it supplied water to Cahors. The valley itself is a beautiful drive.



Rocamadour
To the west of Gramat is the famous village, abbey and château of Rocamadour. The medieval village clings to the almost perpendicular side of the valley. The abbey is three quarters of the way up the cliff and on top is the castle.

The very old and beautifullypreserved village has great charm but is too commercial. But there is an atmosphere of deep spirituality in the religious buildings. For 900 years it has been a place of pilgrimage. The Black Madonna in the chapel was probably originally brought into sudden prominence as the Catholic answer to the appeal of Catharism.

The abbey and the main street are linked by a long staircase. The English King Henry II came here to repent for the murder of Thomas à Beckett. His son pillaged it for money to pay his soldiers and died shortly afterwards in nearby Martel. The battlements of the castle are sensational and seem to hang over the main street of the village below.

To get the best view, approach it from the other side of the valley. Take the D32 through the typical Causse villages of Carlucet and Couzou, and the whole site is revealed from the little road which climbs down the cliff face opposite. It goes right to the bottom of the valley and then takes you up again through a short tunnel into and through Rocamadour to the carparks beyond.

For an unusual experience, come here in winter and you will have this amazing place to yourself. In May every year there is a very good cheese fair, and on the last weekend of September a hot-air balloon festival. The colourful balloons rising out of the narrow valley are quite something.

Beyond Rocamadour, the valley of the river Ouysse appears from nowhere out of the ground into a pool 95 metres deep, known as a résurgence. Great for walking but take a map. Families will enjoy an outing to the nearby Forêt des Singes where you can rub shoulders with rare monkeys and baboons.



Gramat and the Causse
Gramat is a pleasant country town in the middle of the Causse de Gramat, which fills the area between the valley of the Dordogne in the north and the valley of the Lot in the south. It is a huge limestone plateau averaging 350 metres above sea level.

Despite being a plateau it is not flat and despite being rocky it is covered with trees, mostly oak. The effect in summer is a carpet of green covering an endless series of hills and valleys. The surface is rocky and difficult to cultivate and is mostly used for sheep farming.

There are some wonderful walks along the valleys of the Alzou and the Ouysse. The path along the valley of the Alzou leading to Rocamadour from Gramat is particularly fine. On the way you pass the Moulin du Saut where the water to power the mill comes through a cleft in the rock.

The mill is on several storeys between the cliffs and is marvellous when heavy rain has just fallen and the power of the water crashing through the narrow gorge is at its most impressive.

The best way for walkers is to drive from Gramat on the D39, direction Couzou – first right after the railway bridge. Fork right after 2 or 3 km at the sign Moulin du Saut. Follow this road for two or three kilometres until you reach the car park, where the road ends. From there, you can walk all the way to Rocamadour along the bottom of the valley.

Alternatively, leave the car park via the path through the woods in front of you, without dropping down into the valley. Continue for two kilometres. When you can go no further without scrambling through the scrub, make a U-turn to the right and follow the path down into the valley. Cross the stream by the little stone bridge and follow the trail which will take you along the river back to the car. It is one of France’s great short walks. The views are dramatic – keep dogs and children on a lead at the top!

Talking of dogs, you can visit the Gendarmerie’s national police dog training centre at Gramat – FREE! and extremely interesting. It is here that dogs are taught how to find drugs etc. Centre de Cynophilie: 05 65 10 14 30, Thursdays at 3.30pm June to early September.

There are three attractive churches south of Gramat to visit: Fontanes-du-Causse, Séniergues, and Lunegarde with brilliant, recently discovered 15th-century frescoes and a guardroom in the top of the tower, complete with handsome Renaissance fireplace. Those prepared to climb a ladder and go through a trap door can see it and the view.

Vallée du Célé
The Valley of the Célé is well worth the drive down to the junction with the Lot. On the way, do not miss the abbey at Espagnac-Sainte-Eulalie where you can have tea, the abbey at Marcilhac, and the villages of Sauliac and Cabreret.

It is customary to tour the Causse on the one hand and the valleys on the other. To see both to best advantage, drive from one to the other. Go up the valley of the Vers from the village of Vers on the D653 – the road from Cahors to Figeac. After about 24km turn right and find your way down to Marcilhac-sur-Célé on the D17. You will need a good map – IGN Green series 1:100000 No. 57.

At Marcilhac, turn right on the D41 and follow the Célé valley to Sauliac-sur-Célé. Cross the river over the bridge on your left and follow the D24. You climb up again onto the Causse and then drop steeply down again into the Lot valley at Saint-Martin-Labouval. From there you can drive 6km to Saint-Cirq-Lapopie. The views are fantastic, particularly on a sunny day. The whole remarkable geology of the Causse and its valleys is fully revealed.