Millau to Cahors

Millau VIaduct

From the new bridge to the old.  We exited Millau by riding under the amazing viaduct which we saw last year.  I won’t repeat the statistics on this bridge but check it out if you are interested.  We were headed for Cahors but of course took a roundabout route, passing near Rodez (another interesting city we visited last year) and then Decazville before reaching the Lot River.

We stayed along the Lot which was bordered by either farms or cliffs.  Walnut orchards were common, as they are in the nearby Dordogne.  We skipped Figeac and carried on to Cajarc where we stopped for lunch at 2PM.  This is the cutoff time for restaurants, so I asked if we could still “manger”.  Just the plat du jour was available, so we went with that—a steak (Rob said bien cuit—well done—but it looked as red as mine).  Tasty though, with roasted potatoes and a couple of veggies.  

Cahors Valentre Bridge

Next stop was the tourist mecca of St-Circ-Lapopie, a hilltop town with views of the Lot and the usual shops and restaurant. It was worth the stop though.  We carried on to Cahors, our target for tonight.  After securing a hotel we walked to the famous Valentre bridge, built in the mid 14th century.  The town is in an oxbow of the Lot and its history goes back to Celtic times.  It is also famous for its dark Malbec wine. We walked through the old town—fairly quiet and less interesting than we had expected.  The weather was comfortable today but appears to be rising in the coming days.