Saint-Cirq-Lapopie: an Eagle's Nest Above the Lot Valley

A natural balcony above the Lot river

There are villages you look up at from below, and others you gaze at from the summit. Saint-Cirq-Lapopie belongs to the second kind: perched a hundred metres above a bend in the Lot, this borgo of barely two hundred souls commands the valley with the silent authority of one who has been there for nearly a thousand years. André Breton, the father of surrealism, chose it as a refuge in the last years of his life, and wrote that he had ceased to desire being anywhere else.

Although classified among the «Plus Beaux Villages de France», Saint-Cirq-Lapopie preserves an intimate atmosphere, especially in the early morning and evening hours, when the coaches leave and the village returns to its inhabitants.

Between art workshops and fortified houses

The borgo is a living catalogue of medieval architecture. The merchants' and craftsmen's houses, built between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries, display Gothic and Renaissance facades with mullioned windows, turrets and external stone staircases. The steep brown-tiled roofs overlap in a vertical puzzle that seems to defy gravity.

The craftsmen's ateliers

Saint-Cirq-Lapopie has a long artisan tradition. In the Middle Ages it was famous for its wood turners (les tourneurs sur bois), who produced moulds and containers. Today the workshops are home to ceramicists, painters and jewellery makers who work in front of visitors. The Atelier-Musée du Bois tells the story of the turners with live demonstrations.

The castle and the church

Of the medieval fortress that once dominated the cliff only a few ruins remain, but the walk to the summit is unmissable for the panorama. From here the gaze takes in the entire Lot valley, with its sunflower fields, oak forests and limestone cliffs gleaming in the sun.

The Gothic church, dedicated to Saint-Cirq and Sainte-Juliette, preserves faded frescoes and a fine ribbed vault. On the forecourt, an orientation table helps identify the cardinal points of the landscape.

The chemin de halage

Descend to the river along the steep path that leads to the river port, where gabares (barges) once carried goods all the way to Bordeaux. Along the chemin de halage — the towpath that follows the bank — you walk in peace among poplars and willows, with the Lot flowing lazily past. You can also hire canoes to explore the valley from the water.

The underground Quercy

The surroundings of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie conceal geological treasures. The cave of Pech-Merle, a few kilometres away, preserves cave paintings 25,000 years old — spotted horses, bison and handprints — in a spectacular setting of stalactites and underground chambers. Unlike Lascaux, here you visit the originals.

What to eat in the Lot valley

The cuisine of the Quercy is one of the most indulgent in south-western France:

• Foie gras: produced locally, served mi-cuit with fig jam or as a pan-fried escalope
• Magret de canard: grilled duck breast, often accompanied by pommes sarladaises
• Cabécou: a small, sharp goat's cheese, perfect with chestnut honey
• Pastis quercynois: an impossibly thin filo pastry tart filled with apples and armagnac, a masterpiece of crispy lightness
• Cahors wine: the celebrated deep, tannic Malbec, ideal with meat

How to get there

The nearest railway station is Cahors (35 km), well connected to Toulouse and Paris (TGV with a change at Toulouse). From Cahors, Saint-Cirq is reached by car along the D662, a scenic road that follows the Lot. A river boat service operates in summer. Toulouse-Blagnac airport is about 130 km away.

The villages of the Lot valley

The stretch of the Lot valley between Cahors and Figeac is a string of little-known borgo pearls. Cajarc, with its old centre and the house-museum of the artist Françoise Sagan, offers a literary atmosphere. Calvignac, perched on a spur, is a stone village with just a score of permanent inhabitants. Cénevières boasts a Renaissance castle dominating the river from a vertiginous cliff, with frescoed interiors open to visitors. Exploring the valley by canoe, slipping beneath the cliffs from one village to the next, is one of the finest ways to discover this hidden corner of France.

When to go

From April to October, with a preference for May to June and September. The summer evening market (Monday evenings in July and August) is enchanting but busier. Autumn brings spectacular colours to the valley and the season of fresh foie gras. In winter many activities close but the village is magical under snow.