The historic, legendary Via Podensis, so rich in spiritual resonance and socio-cultural encounters, “first European Cultural itinerary” and inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, is followed along its way by the GR 65 long distance trail.
The Route of Santiago de Compostela in the Tarn-et-Garonne department
Starting from Puy-en-Velay (Loire department), it crosses the Tarn-et-Garonne over a distance of 53 kms. The route is thus a visible symbol of the welcome and hospitality the department seeks to provide as it plays its part in the current renewal of interest in itinerancy.
Three towns and villages designated as “Halts of the Route of Santiago de Compostela” are dotted along the way: Lauzerte, Moissac and Auvillar . Here pilgrims will find an information centre and accommodation suited to their needs.
The GR 65 marks the entry of the Route into the department on the edge of the plateau of the commune of Sainte Juliette.
Along its entire length, the itinerary offers a great variety of distinct panoramas, reinforcing the image of the Tarn-et-Garonne as characterised by a “patchwork of landscapes”.
All the way from the hillside of Sainte Juliette, the landscape is characterised by a succession of dry, limestone plateaus. Woods of pubescent oak predominate, split by the two valleys of the Barguelonne and the Lendou which shape the site of the bastide of Lauzerte, “one of the Most Beautiful Villages of France”.
These ridge pathways breathe a sense of openness, with their distant views over the farmed valleys (cereal crops and pasture), and the wooded or cultivated hillsides (vines and orchards). The brilliantly white limestone outcrops are echoed in the walls of the traditional farms, pigeon towers, and isolated chapels.
This attractive Romanesque chapel (11th century, listed Monument Historique) nestles in a little valley aptly named Combe de Miel (honeycomb). Though small, it has some interesting features: a semi-circular apse with radiating vaulting, a triangular gable bell wall, a Romanesque cornice on corbels.
Romanesque cloister of the abbey-church
Moissac, another major halt on the Route of Santiago de Compostela, marks a point of transition. Here the gentle valleys of the Quercy Blanc Pays de Serres gradually diminish, finally giving way to the alluvial plain of the Tarn river.
The abbey-church of Saint Peter and its cloister are inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List as one of the main milestones on the Compostela Routes.
Jewel in the crown of Romansque art with its richly carved tympanum and its cloister with 76 narrative capitals.
Leaving the town behind, the pathway continues along the towpath of the canal running parallel to the Garonne river, with its striking linear views, reinforced by rows of plane trees planted along its banks. Here the pilgrim and the hiker can enjoy a fine example of natural forces at work in the confluence of the Tarn and the Garonne rivers.
Their steps guided by the natural rhythm of water, bridges, locks, the crossings of canals, the roads and pathways of the plain, they will finally reach Auvillar, a major river port on the Garonne until the 19th century and above all the final stage on the Route in the Tarn-et-Garonne department.
Auvillar corn market
Dominating the Garonne river from the height of its promontory site, the village boasts a curious circular covered market dating from the 19th century, complete with corn measures, which sits harmoniously in the middle of a pretty triangular square, built of a happy combination of river pebbles, limestone and brick.
After Auvillar, the final section of the Route in Tarn-et-Garonne prefigures the Gers department and its arable plateaus, where the results of the policy of grouping smaller farm holdings into larger units are very evident.
Practical information for pilgrims
To enjoy your halt at Lauzerte to the full and to ensure that this stage goes smoothly, prepare your journey on the Lauzerte-Durfort Lacapelette leg carefully: where to stay, where to eat and buy food, transport of luggage or people, etc.
Transport for pilgrims
- Taxi Lorette 05 63 94 77 00.
- Taxi Victor 05 63 94 65 66.
- Gerla coach transport. Lauzerte-Moissac line. All year round, Saturdays and Wednesdays. Departure: faubourg d’Auriac 0900 and 1400 (allow a little time beforehand). Telephone the day before 05 63 04 55 50 (1700 – 2000) or 06 85 90 97 30.
- Nearest SNCF railway station: Moissac, Toulouse-Bordeaux line. Recorded information 36 35.
Transport of luggage and pilgrims
- Taxi Bas Quercy Autos – Fréjabise Transport of luggage and pilgrims (between Montcuq and Auvillar) estimate on request.
Maryline Fréjabise – 82390 Durfort Lacapelette Tél. : 05 63 04 56 56 & 06 87 064 066, bqa@wanadoo.fr
- Rapid-Bag ( from Le Puy en Velay to Saint Jean Pied de Port) 05 63 04 22 98 & rapid_bag82@hotmail.fr