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Rocamadour - pilgrimage village and ballooning capital

Deep in the Lot, this spectacular cliff village hosts a major ballooning event each September

Balloons over the chateau de RocamadourPhoto: The Château de Rocamadour

This was one of life’s surreal moments. Some locals just dropped by for a chat. I’m on a cliff-top and they’re in a laundry basket.

Balloonists stop for a chat over RocamadourIt’s a warm sunny morning and I’m socialising with some passers-by. They’ve pulled over for a moment to pass the time of the day.

Five minutes of relaxed banter later, they bid me “Bonne journée” and resume their Sunday jaunt. Nothing could be more natural.

I didn’t know balloons could do that. Surely they were helpless victims of the aerospace world, condemned to go wherever the winds took them.

Here, skillful pilots were using the complex air currents in this limestone gorge to do a circular tour.

I was expecting Around the World in 80 Days with Phileas Fogg but these were families out for a Sunday morning drive and cruising the strip.

Photo: Not quite the intrepid birdmen that I was expecting...

Close to Cahors and the Dordogne, Rocamadour is a pilgrimage village where a number of churches cling to the cliff-face and a spectacular château graces the summit. On the last weekend of September, it hosts a major hot air balloon meeting, the Montgolfiades de Rocamadour. Crews come from all over France to take part.

Ballooning relies on the heated air inside the envelope being warmer, and therefore less dense, than the air outside. Outside air temperatures are higher during the day, so there’s less lift. Worse, the rising thermals may cause a balloon to climb uncontrollably and generate turbulence near the ground which complicates take-off and landing.

So balloons fly early in the morning or late evening when air temperatures are lower and winds are calmer.

Hot air balloons take off from RocamadourPhoto: Balloons all leave together in a synchronised display

There's not enough space on the valley floor for all twenty-five balloons to launch together. They take-off in turn, on instruction from an air traffic controller. Those first airborne then hover at tree height, awaiting the others. The really bored crews while away the time chatting to people like me.

An experienced pilot can fly in circles within the gorge until the entire formation is ready to depart. A few seconds of flame from the propane burner causes the balloon to rise. When the pilot wants to descend, he tugs on a rope to open a small valve which releases air from the top of the envelope. In still wind conditions, an old hand can hover motionless while he gossips to the British journalist on a nearby cliff.

Balloon pilot stops for a chat over RocamadourPhoto: "Could he possibly trouble me for a light?"

Here at Rocamadour, they practise synchronised flying to produce a spectacular show. It's choreographed by the local club which hosts the event and has intimate knowledge of the air currents within the 150 metre high walls.

1 Balloons in formation over Rocamadour including Andros and Tout FairePhoto: Formation flying

The precision and manoeuvrability of these 2,500 cubic metre air-bags surprised me. I was sorely tempted to have a go. Only cowardice and thoughts of lunch prevented me from climbing aboard.

Many of the balloons were decorated in the colours of their sponsors. Some came in special shapes, such as Donald Duck or Obelix from the Asterix cartoon. In Europe, Bristol-based Cameron Balloons has made these one-off designs, a speciality.

Gérard Depardieu gives a characteristically over the top performance as ObelixPhoto: Gérard Depardieu plays Obelix in a characteristically over the top performance

Weather permitting Rocamadour's ballooning weekend promises four launches, one morning and evening on each day. Evening launches draw crowds of up to 20,000 spectators as this picturesque site is a popular weekend spot with local people as well as visitors from Toulouse and Bordeaux.

Rocamadour and it's château are in themselves worthwhile destinations. The nearby cliff-top village, L'Hospitalet, has ample restaurants and gift shops catering for visitors. A wider range of facilities can be found in the small market town of Gramat, only 10 minutes' drive away.

As usual, we include below links to the balloon event site, the tourist office, and a selection Pure France properties in the vicinity of Rocamadour.


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