The early light casts lovely colours under the yellow leaved walnut orchard which numbers around 100 trees. Ali and Grete say goodbye to the owners and we set off alongside the Dordogne towards Beynac. Roadwork signs say maximum width 2.2m so we pull into a carpark to think but there is a Municipal Policeman there who tells us it is OK to carry on. The roadworks are narrow but no problem and we find another carpark below the towering chateau at Castelnaud, whi...

ThIck mist envelopes the landscape this morning but visibility has improved a little when we drive down to Monbazellac and find the chateau carpark amid the woods. The chateau would make a good visit another time with warmer, clearer conditions but after a look through the mist we carry on. The ethereal mist is actually quite relevant for it is the damp mist that forms the mould that give Monbazallic and Bererag wines their distict flavour. As we descend on th...

The first sound is a honking swan flying over to land in the lake. We open the screens to a blue sky with high fluffy clouds. Late morning we take the 11 mile drive to Bergerac and easily find a large carpark with plenty of space for MoHo's a few hundred meteres from the historic centre. The old town spreads back from the banks of the Dordogne. Beside the water one of the traditional flat-bottomed boats, called garberes, is on display. Starting up one of the...

Torrential rain in the night found a weak point in the roof letting water in by one of the skylights. Nick W removes the inner frame and finds the leak which he temporarily repairs with tank tape. Grete walks into town and returns with a large caramel and cream eclair that we share with coffee. Amidst all this we pause for a two minute silence in respect of Remembrance Day. The sun is out as we leave La Reole and follow rge picturesque route to Monsegur, wher...

Heavy rain in the night. We're in no particular rush to move but when we open the blinds we see Claudie has put out a home-made union flag. Before we leave she gives us tourism maps and tells us a long list of places we may find interesting. We decide to follow the canal back to where it meet the river Garonne. The grey day means it's not as attractive as might have been but still nice to see. At one lock a man is clearing leaves from the lock, sending them ...