On Tuesday night we had a thunderstorm that started around 9 p.m., and lasted most of the night. Wednesday was forecast to rain all day, and lived up to expectations! On Monday we’d taken the burst tyre to a local garage recommended by Didier the campsite owner, who had kindly phoned ahead for us as Monsieur Delmas doesn’t speak English. However he is lovely and very kind, he understood me anyway, and told us to phone him on Wednesday for an update.
We tried unsuccessfully to phone on Wednesday morning, but had decided that we’d also like him to try and fix the spare wheel frame which had seized and caused so much trouble on Saturday. We turned up with said frame and he immediately saw what the problem was and suggested we went back with the caravan that afternoon.
Now, bear in mind that it hasn’t stopped raining for over 15 hours and in order to take the caravan with us we had to effectively pack it as if we were on the move – all whilst everything was soaked through.
We waited until around 3.30 and then packed everything away in the rain and towed Stavvers to the garage. Monsieur Delmas was ready for us and duly fitted the frame, and replaced the wheel.


Once we got back to the site the rain had slowed down but as the pitch was so wet we took the precaution of resiting the caravan on ou pitch so the jockey wheel wouldn’t get stuck, with the added bonus that we can now pipe our own waste water! This has confused the other campers considerably!
Thursday was a lovely day (as forecast!) so we’d decided to visit Rocamadour which is a couple of hours drive away, as my friend Mervyn had said it’s one of his favourite places, and my Mum and Dad have also been, so we felt it was probably worth the effort. And it was! It was also a lovely drive through some spectacular countryside.
After a brief stop at Tourist Information for a map, and a quick chat with a Dutch couple who stopped us to ask where Rocamadour was (!) and in English (how did they know?) we set off for the chateau along the cliff top.
What a view! You can see from the pictures exactly how spectacular it is, but I’m afraid they don’t really do it justice. It is simply breathtaking. We were able to walk the ramparts for 2 euros each which gave a real birds-eye and vertigo-inducing view of the valley and village below. Again the photos can’t really do it justice.





From there we walked down the cliff by a path which has 14 monuments to the Stations of the Cross, to the Chappelle Saint-Michel and Chappelle Notre-Dame. While Grant had a sit down and rest I had a look in the chapels, both incredibly beautiful, and cut into the rock face. I was however a bit surprised to see an unusual display of rugby shirts in a glass case on the wall of the Chappelle Saint-Michel! We then continued down the ‘Great Stairway’ to the village below.

By now we were both a bit peckish having skipped breakfast so we could get an early start so we had lunch (menu du jour – chicken, chips and a glass of wine) at a bar/restaurant on the terrace overhanging the valley below. Suitably refreshed we leisurely explored the village main street and then walked back up the cliff paths to the top – steep but good for the calves!
We then set off for Les Jardins de Marqueyssac which are situated near Beynac on our way back. It was about 4pm by this time and still really hot, but we had been recommended the gardens by our neighbours Peter and Roe, and we are so glad they did. The gardens are privately owned and located on the top of a cliff. We walked all the way round, up to the Belvedere (highest point (130m above the river) with a fabulous view of the Dordogne and the small town of La Roque-Gageac) and along the shaded path to the Poets Hut. The views of Chateau Beynac are wonderful and the gardens are manicured, especially the boxwood hedges.




We were getting quite tired by this time so we set off back with a short stop at La Roque-Gageac to buy some bread for tea.


Glad to hear Stavvers is all mended – love the sad photo of him at the garage (it reminds me of when one of the trains in Thomas the Tank Engine had to return to the engine shed to be fixed!)
Those views really are stunning. Thanks for the food updates but you forgot to put that you have been eating a lot of bread and cheese! I need to know what type of cheese you have been eating and if you have a favourite, this is all vital research you seem to have excluded from your blog!
Lots of love,
Debi & Ed xx xx
OK, for you foodies, current favourite cheeses are Comte and Cantal but also loving Caprice des Dieux. The rule of thumb is the stinkier the better (at least for me, but Karol insists on them being kept away from the caravan?!)
I guessed mum had written this blog after the first paragraph – there’s no way dad could have made anyone who doesn’t speak English understand his French!