Europeds, European Cycling & Walking Tours ph. 415.388.2853

DAY 1: Welcome to Les Eyzies. Your EUROPEDS guides will meet you in front of the train station in Les Eyzies-de-Tayac at approximately 1:00 p.m. and escort you to Les Glycines, our hotel for the next three nights. (Please note: Exact train times for 2006 are not yet available. Please check back with us for exact Rendez-Vous information) After everyone’s luggage is settled into their rooms, we’ll get together for a bike fitting/orientation meeting before taking a short warm-up spin on a quiet local road.

We will return to Les Eyzies with plenty of time to freshen up, take a stroll around town, and meet in the hotel lounge for a welcome drink and an orientation meeting before dinner. Dinner will be in the hotel’s excellent restaurant for our first taste of the Dordogne’s delectable cuisine.

DAY 2: Cadouin Loop
This incredible day of sightseeing begins with a visit to the remarkable Font de

Gaume cave in Les Eyzies. Font de Gaume remains the only prehistoric cave in France where original polychrome paintings may still be viewed, and its l4,ooo-year-old polychrome (multicolored) paintings of animals are sure to amaze one and all. We begin the biking with a moderate climb and before long we arrive in the tiny hamlet of Carmensac where we can visit the studio of Mi Desmedt, a Belgian artist who has lived in the region for years and brilliantly captures its landscapes in her paintings and engravings.

After passing through St. Cyprien, we’ll ride along the river’s edge toward the village of Cadouin. Here we can view the 12th Century Abbey of Cadouin, famous for its carved stone cloisters and home to a shroud believed to have been wrapped around Christ’s head. The Musee du Velocipede, France’s largest bike museum, is right around the corner; cycling enthusiasts young and old are sure to be enchanted by its fascinating collection of more than one hundred models tracing technological innovations since the mid-19th century. The afternoon’s ride brings us back along the Dordogne and Vezere rivers and into the village of Limeuil, situated at the confluence of the two rivers.

We may have time back in Les Eyzies to visit the fascinating National Museum of Prehistory or take a relaxing dip in the hotel’s pool. Dinner is again in our hotel’s restaurant. Todays ride covers 36 miles over rolling hills, with a shorter option of 25 miles also available.

DAY 3: Castles Galore!
Today we’ll head east along the Dordogne River. The first leg of our ride brings us to the scenic village of St.Cyprien, site of one of the most famous abbey churches in the region. From there, the day’s ride winds us past one incredible castle after another. This stretch of the Dordogne boasts an impressive number of these stone legacies, as both the Hundred Years War between the English and French and the Wars of Religion between Protestants and Catholics raged here centuries ago.

We pass the castles of Berbiguieres, Les Milandes and Fayrac before stopping to visit the formidable Chateau de Castelnaud. This imposing stronghold, site of constant raids and skirmishes during the Hundred Years War, offers one of the finest panoramas around and features an impressive collection of weapons, armor and such in its Musee de la Guerre au Moyen Age (Middle Ages Siege Warfare Museum). Leaving Castelnaud, we’ll follow a series of peaceful country roads through miniscule villages and find our way back to Les Eyzies with time to walk in town or lounge by the pool in the hotel’s garden. Mileage for the day is about 32. Dinner tonight is “on your own” in town.

DAY 4: Les Eyzies to Montignac
Leaving Les Eyzies, the cycling route to Montignac first takes us to the

incredible Roc St. Christophe, a huge cleft in a limestone cliff above the sleepy Vezere River that has been the site of human habitation for over 50,000 years. It is an intriguing spot, and very beautiful too, perched in its setting above the river.

A short hop later brings us to the picturesque riverside village of St. Leon-sur-Vezere, where we plan to buy supplies for a picnic lunch in Montignac. In the mid-afternoon we’ll make our way to the most spectacular cave of all those to be seen in the Dordogne region: Lascaux II. It gets a “II” because it is in fact a facsimile of the original cave, which is only 200 yards away. However, the facsimile is an extraordinary achievement, and it’s our feeling that this visit is a perfect complement to the Font de Gaume cave earlier in the week. Our hotel for the evening is the lovely Chateau de Puy Robert, an estate located on the hillside just below Lascaux. Dinner tonight is in the hotel’s Michelin starred dining room. Mileage for the day is about 27, and the terrain is mostly rolling hills.

DAY 5: Montignac to Sarlat
Today’s ride mixes the best of countryside and city. The morning’s ride consists of an agreeably scenic meander through rolling hills as we head south to Sarlat. The first stop will be in the village of St. Amand de Coly, famous for its amazing church, a fortified Romanesque structure that figured prominently on a medieval pilgrimage route and as a fort in the Hundred Years War of the 14th Century. A short ride later brings us to another little village, St. Nathalene, where we will visit an ancient water-driven mill that makes walnut and hazelnut oil. The last few kilometers brings us into the regional capital city of Sarlat, famous for it’s well-preserved Old Quarter, a stroller’s delight full of little streets and 500 year old stone houses.

Sarlat is the center of the Dordogne’s foie gras industry, and it’s a great place to pick up a few cans of this delectable specialty. We shall organize a guided tour of the Old Quarter before dinner. Our hotel for the evening is the comfortable Hotel Madeleine. Tonight’s dinner is again “on your own” in one of Sarlat’s many restaurants. Mileage for the day is about 32, and the terrain is rolling hills.

DAY 6: Market Day in Sarlat
Today is Market Day in Sarlat and it is not to be missed. Sarlat hosts one of the Perigord’s finest markets and we’ll spend the morning slipping in and out of

alleyways as we search out the freshest ingredients for our picnic this afternoon. By late morning we’re back on the bikes and headed into the forested area east of Sarlat.

Our destination along the route is the tiny village of Ste. Nathalene, a virtual crossroads in this network of tiny hamlets and tertiary roads. We’ll pedal about a mile out of town to the Moulin de la Tour, a traditional water mill on the Nea River.

Walnuts, hazelnuts, and associated products have always accounted for a significant portion of the region’s economy, and here we will learn about the various stakes in the production process. After our visit, we’ll follow more serene farm roads back to our hotel for a fabulous backcountry finish to a great week of cycling and exploration. Tonight’s dinner, our farewell celebration, will be in our hotel’s dining room. There will be approximately 20 miles of cycling over rolling hills.

DAY 7: Au Revoir to the Dordogne Valley.
After breakfast at our hotel, EUROPEDS will provide a shuttle to the nearby Sarlat train station.

Of Special Note:
Any train times listed in this itinerary are based on the best information available at the time of publication and are thus subject to change. Definitive schedules will become available as the trip’s start date nears. We suggest that you check with your travel agent approximately one month prior to your trip’s start date to purchase your train tickets and make any necessary reservations.

Europeds reserves the right to modify published routes due to any unforeseen circumstances. In the event that one or another hotel is unable to accept our reservation for a given date (rare that this may be), we assure you that EUROPEDS will endeavor to book another hotel of comparable class and charm.

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