Holidays in the Dordogne Valley, France.

The glorious Dordogne Valley around Le Roc.


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The house is in the centre of the village of Le Roc not far from the Church in the glorious countryside of the Dordogne Valley close to the small bustling town of Souillac. To the south of the house you can see the rocky outcrop that gives Le Roc its name. You can climb onto the top of the rock by taking the path through the hedge to the left as you walk up the hill past the statue of St Roch. When you are there you will also see the remains of a small chateau that used to look out over the valley.

 
The rocky outcrop that gives Le Roc its name

The Rocky Outcrop That Gives Le Roc its Name

The Dordogne Valley from the hillside above Le Roc

The Dordogne Valley From The Hillside

People often refer to our area as the Dordogne. Strictly speaking Dordogne is a department but, when thinking about holidays, it is the Dordogne Valley to which visitors usually refer, an area comprising mainly the southern part of the department of Dordogne and the northern section of Lot. In fact the upper valley goes on into Correze.

 

The valley is very fertile, the main crops being maize and walnuts. Tobacco is still grown but it is nothing like as common as it used to be. Sadly the fields of sunflowers have now virtually disappeared. At this point the valley is some 2km wide but the land rises rapidly on either side some 300 feet to the Causse de Martel in the north and the Causse de Gramat to the east.

 

 

The views from the house to the south are a fascinating tangle of roofs in a predominantly wooded environment which gives rise to a rich variety of bird life. In the picture to the right you can see our neighbour and beyond the church and the wooded side of the valley. There is a road that runs up this hillside that gives stunning views of Le Roc and the valley floor. The road also leads to the main N20 and the road to Cahors the main town of Lot and famous for the "Pont Velindre" and the "black wine" of Cahors. Cahors wine is still largely made in the traditional way and its high tanin content means that it can be kept for many years. Some winemakers are, however, taking a leaf from the New World wines and reducing the tanin content so that it can be drunk within a couple of years!!



View south from a bedroom window

View South from a Bedroom Window
Truffles

The Truffle
 The area is famous for foie gras, cepes, walnuts, duck and truffles, the truffe du Perigord being the most sought after! Most restaurants feature foie gras on both the starters and the main course. The more well known paté de foie gras is not actually a paté but the pure liver cooked and then served cold but our favourite is the foie gras poëlle cooked vey rapidly in a frying pan and served warm. It has a totally different taste! When eating in the restaurants it is not uncommon to find menus with walnuts in every course including the starters, cheese course and dessert! We have even had an omelette with little bits in that we thought were eggshell but, on closer inspection, were found to be pieces of walnut.
Generally, the air is clear but after rain, when it can be exceptionally clear, it is possible, from the Causse de Gramat to see for many kilometres in all directions. The Causse can be reached from road that leaves the village to the south, past the Church, and winds up the face of the hillside to the N20. The views from this road over Le Roc and across the valley are stunning. In the early morning, especially in spring and autumn, mists form over the river. We sometimes get up early and drive up the hill to be above the mists filling the valley. Misty Morning From the Hillside above Le Roc

Misty Morning From the Hillside Above Le Roc
The River from the Ramparts of Domme Belcastel at the confluence of the Ouysse and Dordogne
View of the River from
the Ramparts of Domme		 Chateau de Belcastel
near Rocamadour

For many it is the River that is essential to the character of the Dordogne Valley. As you travel along the river you will find signs in many of the villages pointing to "Le Port". We suspect that this will be a throw back to the times when the river, "The River of Hope" was used commercially. Logs were cut from the many wooded areas along the course of the river and tied together to form "boats" with people actually living on them as they made the one way journey down stream towards Bordeaux. The stretch of the river in the area is one of the most beautiful with many spectacular views such as the the view from the ramparts at Domme. On the road to Rocamadour you will pass Chateau de Belcastel  although this is actually on a tributary of The Dordogne.


The closest part of the river is about half a mile from the house. Today there is a series of five dams that control the water flow. Without the dams, the valley would flood every year. In fact there have been times when the rain fall in the Massive Central coupled with melting snow has beeen such that within the last ten years we have known the valley to flood. The water level rose some 12 feet higher than normal and came to within 1cm of getting in to our house!!


The Dordogne as it passes through the villgae The Dordogne at Souillac
The Dordogne River
at Le Roc
 The Dordogne River
near Souillac
Le Roc from the hillside

The Centre of Le Roc
View of Le Roc
from the Hillside		 The Centre of Le Roc
The entrance to our house is just on the left


Within the village there is the local Bar and Tabac but sadly it no longer provides meals. Most days a van will come round selling bread/cheese/milk. The time of arrival varies but they announce their arrival by loud hooting of the horn. In practice, however you will need to drive, or cycle, to Souillac about three and a half miles away.
In Souillac there are two large supermarkets Leclerc and Casino. There is also a small Casino convenience store in the town centre. Both the Casinos are open on Sunday mornings. Souillac has all the shops that one used to exepect in any small English town a few decades ago! There are around five baker’s shops, three pharmacies and even an old fashioned hardware shop. Sadly in the last two or three years we have noticed that the old fashioned shops are being forced to make way for the future but the rate of change is very much slower than over here! There is also a typical open air market in the centre of Souillac every Friday although this is very small compared to the vast market every Saturday in Sarlat. Recently a local producer's market has opened opposite Leclerc which is open every day.


The Dordogne as it passes through the villgae The village
Souillac Market The Abbey - Souillac

Click on the links below to visit other areas of our web site
Details of the house and garden
 Things to do in Dordogne and Lot Availability and Prices