Next day, the rain’s stopped ! It’s grey, but not raining; so it seems like a good day for going down to see what promises to be a wonderful château — Bonaguil.

Longer trip than I realised, and I’m quite concerned that CS may be tired … But when we finally get there, we both feel it’s worth it. The Château de Bonaguil is, quite simply, wonderful. It’s not on the way from anywhere to anywhere, really; you simply have to want to visit it, and make a point of doing so. It’s a kind of summation of what we look for in castles; there is no view of it that doesn’t thrill, that doesn’t fill the soul. To stand beside your car on a wee small road winding around the side of a hill that’s verdant and bird-filled, and look across a valley to a sight like le Château de Bonaguil — you wonder how you’re going to manage with not being there for the rest of your days …

On the way back, drive through a large-ish and truly UNappealing town that seems to be nothing but narrow, writhing streets without views. Hope there aren’t too many like that in France. In my memories of driving around Italy and/or France, we always seemed to land somewhere downbeat around the time of finding a gorgeous place: Life giving us a reality check, maybe …?

AS Monaco beats Chelsea in the semis of the Champions’ League; ya boo sucks to Real Madrid for having rid themselves of the wondrous Fernando Morientes ! Next night, Marseilles beats Liverpool in the UEFA Cup; the French are on a roll …

Memory: CS throwing tantrum in kitchen of gîte and flinging jar of apricot jam on floor … (In actual fact, he spreads out a hand to make a point, knocking the jar, which rolls unreachably quickly to the table’s edge then slowly off onto a chair, from whence to the floor. It doesn’t even break. But I have a lovely time teasing him about his temper.)

Not only not raining on Wednesday, but the sun shining fiercely from a brilliant blue sky !!! We get up and get outa there, and drive off to the fabled Castelnau. We spend quite a long time here, resenting the tourists all the while and having to wait for them to get out of our shots.   ;-)   There are several châteaux called Castelnau; I’m not sure if this is the best-known of them, but I believe so … Certainly, it’s terrific; it dominates its surroundings with absolute authority, and can be seen from miles away — as, for instance, from Loubressac, where we end up, later.

This is also the day we ‘do’ Carennac; so, as usual, it’s pretty as a picture — for that’s exactly what you’re seeing. What you’re not seeing are all the untenanted houses; all those that are running down and being allowed to do so; the weeds growing unchecked in many places … I don’t think Carennac will much longer remain L’Un des Plus Beaux Villages de France unless there’s a very large injection of funds — preferably from all those absentee owners !

Memory: discovering another Leclerc just past Saint Céré — much closer to us than the one in Gramat, and also provided with an absolutely stunning view of its eponymous Château, within spitting distance (but we only have time to visit it the once) …

Later, some delightful white roads travelling, plus the first discovery that there are still (and many !) places in France like Curemonte, where the public toilets are a hole in floor and a dip on either side for you to put your feet … How do women DO this ? I mean, I’d have to remove all my lower clothing, just for starters … Beats me; but I suppose they were designed for when we wore skirts …

We would love to get out at Collonges-la-Rouge, just because it’s different; it’s not every day you come across a town built of red stone. But it’s pouring, and what appears to be the only carpark is full. We aren’t going to walk for miles in that rain, wallowing in red mud … So we drive on, finding the wonderful Turenne and wishing madly that the weather were good enough to let us up there — or to let us get good shots of it … It’s here that CS weakens, and takes some, through the wound-down window, without getting out of the car !

Save the closest of the ruined châteaux till the end of the week, as we have to pack later on that day. What a good thing we do ! — for the weather is once again lovely, and we’re able to wander amongst the silent stones of les Ruines de Taillefer in utter peace, and without needing to run to get there (it’s quite a long walk from where you have to leave your car). We feel strongly that this was an advance warning post for Castelnau; certainly, logic dictates that, and I stick to it even though someone on the Web says it was part of the templiers route. That doesn’t make sense; it’s too far from any beaten track, and it would’ve been too small for any group to stay in, it looks much more like a watchtower … CS’ photos sublime …

Drive to Loubressac afterwards, which we’ve seen from afar when wandering about Castelnau. Loubressac is truly one of France’s most beautiful villages, and there are picturesque views on all sides. To anyone trying to decide on a town anywhere near the Dordogne in which to stay, this is it !

Memory: eating a nice lunch in the restaurant-with-the-fabulous-view there; and, hearing the usual aircraft roar overhead, looking out through the huge windows to see that we’re being over-passed by something that looks like a Caribou, with its cargo-bay doors open ! A bit distracting …