Day 9: Rocamadour to St Céré - 45 kms

A shorter day today, although the first 15 km are uphill, as we had planned to visit Gouffre de Padirac and we figured that would take a while (though we didn't expect it to take as long as it did)

It was a cooler day today with some showers expected this afternoon, so there was no delay in heading off. UP the hill from Rocamodour then steadily climbing till Padirac. We just made it to Gouffre de Padirac before it started to shower. Apart from the waiting (for the tickets and for a boat) this is a great stop. It is a underground river and caves. You can head down stairs or take an evaluator and then get into a boat and head along an underground river. At one point you get out and walk and view the great limestone formations. This description does not do it justice at all but as you cannot take photos you'll have to check out the website.

After the caves we had light misty rain for a period. This introduced a change in mood for the countryside. Still great riding conditions though. We were riding through the heart of Quercy today. Quite different countryside to what we've experienced over the last couple of days.

Down the hillside through the little village of Magnagues and onto the beautiful village of Carennac. This gave us a chance to renew our friendship with the Dordogne River. Coming down the hill I was really glad for the front hub drag brake. It was pretty steep.

We entered St Céré with the impressive view of a ruined Chateau (Saint-Laurent-les-Tours) on a hilltop with a storm brewing behind it. Glad we were stopping at St Céré.