Notre-Dame-De-Sanilhac: Hiking and Heritage

Notre-Dame-De-Sanilhac caters to a range of interests with its circular hiking trails, the Sur les traces de Piafou geocaching game and an art history attraction. If you are planning time outdoors, there are eight circular trails with different walking times; the Circuit des Mottes has a specified length and approximate duration. If you are interested in cultural heritage, you can explore the statue of Saint Front in the Notre-Dame Church in Sanilhac. This selection gives your stay several clear focal points without requiring you to combine hiking and cultural heritage.

Hiking trails with different time frames

Notre-Dame-De-Sanilhac has eight circular hiking trails of varying durations. The Circuit des Mottes is an easy 7.5 km circular hike; it takes about two and a half hours to walk. Its focus is on fauna and flora. The details on distance, difficulty and walking time give you different points of reference for planning: the length for the distance, the rating for the level of difficulty and the approximate walking time for the time required.

Route and wayfinding

The Circuit des Mottes starts at the signpost in the car park near the multiservice centre. From there, it climbs towards the village and follows yellow markings. The hiking trails in Notre-Dame-De-Sanilhac are well marked, but markings may change. So check the trail conditions on site.

Another route is called Sur les Pas de Piafou. It starts at the car park near the multiservice centre, runs behind the recycling containers and follows yellow markings through the residential area. The routes described differ: the Circuit des Mottes climbs towards the village, while Sur les Pas de Piafou passes through the residential area.

Geocaching with Piafou

The geocaching game is called Sur les traces de Piafou. The clearly defined route is in Sanilhac and can be completed entirely on foot. You can download the clues or get them free of charge at the town hall. This lets you decide in advance whether to use the clues digitally or pick them up there in paper form.

Note the different names: Sur les traces de Piafou is the geocaching route; Sur les Pas de Piafou refers to the described route through the residential area. When planning, this lets you distinguish between the clue-based game and this hiking route without treating the similar-sounding names as if they were the same.

The statue of Saint Front

The statue of Saint Front is in the north side chapel of the Notre-Dame Church in Sanilhac. The wooden sculpture, carved in the 17th century, is polychrome-painted and gilded. Polychrome means multicoloured; together with the gilding, this describes the carved work’s design in greater detail. The statue is protected as movable cultural heritage; it was listed on 24 January 1974.

The site formerly belonged to the municipality of Notre-Dame-de-Sanilhac. This distinguishes the statue’s present location in Sanilhac from its former municipal affiliation. The subject combines a specific location in the church with an artisanally described sculpture and its protected status.

Accommodation with a history

Le Manoir de Sanilhac is also connected to the local history of accommodation: the former monastery dates from 1780 and has been converted into guest rooms. This history of the building adds another aspect of the destination to the hiking and cultural heritage themes.

Discover more destinations: Bourgnac, Saint-Jory-De-Chalais, Liorac-Sur-Louyre, Saint-Antoine-Cumond, Sourzac, Augignac, Valeuil, Saint-Marcel-Du-Périgord.

For the broader travel overview: Dordogne.