La Roque-Gageac

At the end of our trip, we stayed in the small town of La Roque-Gageac on the Dordogne River and used that as a base to explore the region.  The town faces south and has the natural advantage that the sun warms the rock cliff during the winter creating a microclimate warmer than the rest of the area.  Springs never freeze during the winter.  Because of this, the site has been lived in for thousands of years.  In earlier times people lived in troglodytic dwellings higher in the cliff to defend themselves from Viking raiders.

During the summer, this little town and others near it such as Domme across the river are overrun by visitors.  Canoeing on the Dordogne is popular and in peak season as many as 4 to 5 thousand canoes will pass by La Roque-Gageac during the day.  However, in mid October there was only handful of visitors and it was very peaceful.