Walking the Chemin de Saint-Jacques from Figeac to Cahors
There are a couple of paths that a long-distance walker can follow from Figeac to Cahors—each offers a different experience and caters to different needs.
Follow the traditional pilgrim’s trail (GR 65) from Figeac to Cahors via Cajarc
If you are following the pilgrims’ trail along the Chemin de Saint-Jacques from Le-Puy-en-Velay to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port and on to Santiago in Spain, then the traditional route of eighty-seven kilometres (54.4 miles) along the GR 65 is for you.
This route offers a glimpse into life in rural France as the locals experience it, passing through tiny hamlets and visiting the bustling market towns of Cajarc and Limogne-en-Quercy.
Back street in Cajarc, GR 65
Aside from other walkers, tourists are not as common in the towns along this path and English is less likely to be spoken. If you choose this route, keep your Useful French Phrases page handy (from the I Love Walking in France guidebook), smile a lot and give it your best shot. I have always found that any attempt to speak French is most appreciated and the locals are more than happy to help.
Follow the GR 651 and GR 36-46 via Saint-Cirq-Lapopie
If it is not important to you to follow the traditional pilgrims’ trail on this walk, then the more northerly route along the GR 651 and GR 36-46 offers some real highlights including the ‘most beautiful village’ of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, the painted caves at Pech Merle near Cabrerets and the ruins of the ancient abbey at Marcilhac-sur-Célé. This route is a little longer at 108 kilometres (67.5 miles).
If you do not need to finish your walk in Cahors, then a loop of 147 kilometres (91.9 miles), starting and finishing in Figeac, can incorporate all the highlights. This route follows the Chemin de Saint-Jacques along the GR 65 almost as far as Bach, then cuts north along the GR 36-46 to Saint-Cirq-Lapopie and returns to Figeac along the GR 651.
Roman bridge leaving Espagnac-Sainte-Eulalie, GR 651
Take a break in Figeac
Classified a ville d’art et d’histoire, Figeac is a beautiful town of almost 10,000 people spanning the River Lot. Filled with medieval stone and timbered houses, the backstreets and crooked alleys are a delight to wander through.
Figeac was the birthplace of Jean-François Champollion, the nineteenth-century French scholar who spent more than a decade deciphering the hieroglyphics of the Rosetta Stone. His home is now a museum where you can explore the history of writing.
Replica of the Rosetta Stone by artist Joseph Kosuth in Place des Écritures, Figeac
If you have been walking since Le-Puy-en-Velay and have not yet stopped for a rest day, Figeac is the perfect place to take a break. The town boasts a full range of services—dozens of cafés, patisseries, chocolateries as well as the ever-useful banks, doctors, dentists and ATMs!
Within an hour’s drive from Figeac, you can visit the village of Rocamadour whose ancient buildings cling to the side of the cliff above the River Lot. Venture north for a further one-hour drive and stop to explore one of six of France’s ‘most beautiful villages’. My pick would be Collonges-la-Rouge but you can discover them all here. For something completely different, visit the underground lakes and caves, 103 metres below the surface at Gouffre de Padirac.
Entrance to Abbaye de Saint-Pierre, Marcilhac-sur-Célé
Visit the ruins of the abbey at Marcilhac-sur-Célé
In the tenth century, Benedictine monks built an abbey—dedicated to Saint-Pierre—on the banks of the River Célé. All that remains of that abbey is the Chapter House where the monks met, but you’ll see glimpses of the original splendour in the ancient columns and the tympanum above the entrance. Take a look around here.
Visit the underground caves at Pech Merle
Located just outside the village of Cabarets is Pech Merle—widely considered to contain the most beautifully preserved historic rock paintings and natural rock formations in France. To gain entrance, take the one-hour-long guided tour (conducted in French but free booklets are available in several other languages). Visitor numbers are limited to 700 per day and advance bookings are recommended. (If you are taking each day as it comes, a booking the day before should suffice.)
Ambre et Améthyste, Saint-Cirq-Lapopie
Visit one of France’s most beautiful villages
Saint-Cirq-Lapopie is a jewel among France’s ‘most beautiful villages’ and offers a bewildering array of cafés, gift shops and impossibly pretty houses. I think it requires a full-day visit to do it justice (preferably on a Wednesday when the summer market sets up in the late afternoon), otherwise you’ll be planning a return visit as you walk out of town.
This stunning village is the main reason I recommend taking the northerly route along the GR 651 and GR 36-46 rather than the traditional pilgrims’ trail but take a sneak peek here and decide for yourself.
Visit the wineries around Cahors
Cahors is famous for its red wine, made primarily from Malbec grapes and supplemented with Merlot and Tannat. Production of the wine is governed by the AOC (Appellation d’Origine Controlée) which sets strict guidelines on care of the vines, soil and harvesting times and methods. Wines produced under these regulations are dependent on the mercy of the sunshine and local rainfall and result in vintages which vary from year to year. But they all contain a large dose of love (and none of the chemicals which give me a headache!). If you have an afternoon to spare, ask at the Tourist Office about winery tours.
You’ll find more ideas for whiling away an afternoon in Cahors here.
Saturday morning market in Cahors
Stock up on trail mix at the local markets
No matter which route you follow, you’ll find fresh food markets along the way. Some operate only during the summer months, so make the most of the plentiful seasonal produce and pack a picnic lunch for the day’s walk.
Figeac—Saturday morning
Cajarc—Saturday afternoon
Limogne-en-Quercy—Sunday morning
Varaire—Friday evening
Brengues—Thursday evening in July and August
Marcilhac-sur-Célé—Tuesday evening in July and August
Cabarets—Friday morning from May to October
Saint-Cirq-Lapopie—Wednesday evening in July and August
Vers—Thursday morning from May to September
Arcambal—Sunday morning
Cahors—Wednesday and Saturday mornings
Chemin de Saint-Jacques itinerary from Figeac to Cahors
The two paths from Figeac to Cahors offer quite different experiences and, if you are not continuing on to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, it is possible to enjoy both on a nine-day loop starting and ending in Figeac (I provide a suggested itinerary for this loop in the I Love Walking in France guidebook).
Of course, if you are walking from Le-Puy-en-Velay to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port (perhaps over several holidays), then a loop is of no use to you!
Since only a dedicated pilgrim could be this close to Saint-Cirq-Lapopie and not call in, my suggested itinerary follows the northerly GR 651 and GR 36-46 paths. It includes a mixture of long and short days and allows plenty of time to visit all the sights.
I suggest leaving Figeac on a Saturday afternoon after visiting the morning market which will also bring you to Saint-Cirq-Lapopie in time for the Wednesday evening market.
Day 1 Figeac to Espagnac-Sainte-Eulalie (25 km/15.6 mi)
Day 2 Espagnac-Sainte-Eulalie to Marcilhac-sur-Célé (15 km/9.4 mi)
Day 3 Marcilhac-sur-Célé to Cabrerets (19 km/11.9 mi)
Day 4 Cabrerets to Saint-Cirq-Lapopie (11 km/6.9 mi)
Day 5 Saint-Cirq-Lapopie to Vers (20 km/12.5 mi)
Day 6 Vers to Cahors (18 km/11.3 mi)
Accommodation along the Chemin de Saint-Jacques from Figeac to Cahors
If you prefer to stay in larger towns with a full range of services, your choices for accommodation between Figeac and Cahors are quite limited. But if you are happy to stay in a gîte or chambre d’hôte in one of the many tiny hamlets (and I find this the best way to experience rural France), then it is possible to keep all days under 15 kilometres (9 miles).
Accommodation is available in the following villages, with distances given from the starting point of Figeac.
(H—hotel; C—chambre d’hôte; G—gîte; T—camping)
Figeac to Cahors via the GR 65 Chemin de Saint-Jacques
0 km (0 mi) Figeac (H,C,G,T)
5 km (3.1 mi) La Cassagnole (C,G)
7 km (4.4 mi) La Croix Blanche (C )
8 km (5 mi) Faycelles (C )
11.5 km (7.2 mi) Mas de la Croix (G)
12.5 km (7.8 mi) Pech Rougié (G)
13.5 km (8.4 mi) Pech Ibert (T)
19.5 km (12.2 mi) Puy Clavel (G)
20.5 km (12.8 mi) Gréalou (G)
24.5 km (15.3 mi) Le Verdier (C,G)
26 km (16.3 mi) Pech Granat (C )
27 km (16.9 mi) Semberot (C,G)
30.5 km (19.1 mi) Cajarc (H,G,T)
40.5 km (25.3 mi) Mas de Jantille (G)
45.5 km (28.4 mi) Mas de Dalat (C,G)
46 km (28.8 mi) Mas de Games (C )
48.5 km (30.3 mi) Limogne-en-Quercy (C,G)
55 km (34.4 mi) Varaire (C )
61 km (38.1 mi) Bach (C )
70 km (43.8 mi) Mas de Vers (G)
75 km (46.9 mi) Mas de Graniou (G)
87 km (54.4 mi) Cahors (H,C,G,T)
Figeac to Cahors via the northerly GR 651 and GR 36-46
0 km (0 mi) Figeac (H,C,G,T)
5 km (3.1 mi) La Cassagnole (C,G)
7 km (4.4 mi) La Croix Blanche (C )
8 km (5 mi) Faycelles (C )
11.5 km (7.2 mi) Mas de la Croix (G)
12 km (7.5 mi) Béduer (C )
21.5 km (13.4 mi) Sainte-Eulalie (C )
25 km (15.6 mi) Espagnac-Sainte-Eulalie (G)
27 km (16.9 mi) Le Moulin Vieux (T)
29 km (18.1 mi) Brengues (H,C,T)
33 km (20.6 mi) Saint-Sulpice (T)
40 km (25 mi) Marcilhac-sur-Célé (C,G,T)
42 km (26.3 mi) Mas de Picarel (C )
49 km (30.6 mi) Sauliac-sur-Célé (C )
59 km (36.9 mi) Cabrerets (H,C,G,T)
65 km (40.6 mi) Conduché (G)
66 km (41.3 mi) Bouziès (H,C)
70 km (43.8 mi) Saint-Cirq-Lapopie (H,C,G,T)
85 km (53.1 mi) Pasturat (C,G)
90 km (56.3 mi) Vers (H,C,T)
95 km (59.4 mi) Les Mazuts (G)
98 km (61.3 mi) Arcambal (C )
108 km (67.5 mi) Cahors (H,C,G,T)
How to book accommodation in French
Where is the Chemin de Saint-Jacques in France?
Map of the Chemin de Saint-Jacques from Figeac to Cahors
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Tricia A. Mitchell says
September 21, 2014 at 12:54 amMarkets stalls brimming with fresh produce, Roman bridges, and window-boxes overflowing with beautiful blooms – what a stunning route. Shawn and I hope to do at least a snippet of the Chemin de Saint-Jacques someday.
Melinda Lusmore says
September 21, 2014 at 11:26 amHi Tricia,
I hope you do, I know you will love it!
Melinda
Michael says
August 27, 2013 at 5:33 amI think…after considering all options…I’d like to take them all! Wouldn’t that be nice? I would hate to miss anything you’ve described.
Melinda says
August 28, 2013 at 9:24 pmI agree Michael, it’s too hard to choose!