Recreational activities in the Lot, canoeing, boat trips, fishing, walking, cycling, bird watching and horseriding.

The River Lot, in south west france, is a great attraction for many people. Water-based activities are very popular in summer, such as canoeing, boat trips and fishing. This sparsely populated area also has some fantastic tracks and lanes to explore either on foot, bike or horseback.

Canoeing
There are many places where there are canoes for hire, for exploring the Lot river at your leisure, and all are well signposted in summer.
www.portloisirs.com
www.copeyre.com

Swimming Lakes (Plan d’eau)
There are many swimming lakes to choose from and most have facilities for safe bathing, water sports, carp and trout fishing. Most also have a picnic area.

Bateaux-promenade
In Cahors, boat trips along the river Lot are readily available. These can be combined with a trip on the “Touristique Quercyrail” to make a full day outing, including lunch. A cruise down a stretch of the Lot river takes you through a varied landscape – from vineyards and chateaux to medieval Cahors with its Valentré Bridge, and upstream towards the stone-village of St Cirq Lapopie, perched high-up between towering cliffs.

Walking
Rambling in this part of the Lot region is delightful and there are many different terrains, all of them spectacular. There are hundreds of trails around the area, some of which have great religious significance such as the famed pilgrim trail to Santiago de Compostela.

Fishing
The river Lot is renowned for its fishing. There are specific sectors allocated to night fishing for carp and many large specimens have been caught. Angling is also permitted in many of the swimming lakes. Trout, carnivorous fish, carp, whitefish, black bass and migratory fish are all to be found in the Lot, in fact there are officially 20 varieties of fish to be caught.
www.pechelot.com

Cycling (VTC) and Mountain Biking (VTT)
You will find bikes for hire locally , or of course, you can bring your own. You can easily pick up a local map,(guide de la Randonnee) The trails are usually clearly marked with coloured arrows and the guides show the route in detail and describe notable sights to look out for on the way. Cycling enthusiasts may also be interested to know that the Tour de France often passes through the region.
www.letour.fr

Horse Riding
As a whole, the Lot region has over 1,500 km of bridleways and more than 25 equestrian centres most of which are open throughout the year.

Adventure Parks
At Pradines near Cahors there is an adventure park set in a wooded valley, which allows visitors to climb rope ladders, abseil and cross aerial walkways.
www.capnature.eu

Golf
There are many excellent golf courses in the area to choose from.
www.plus-de-golf.com
www.golf-montal.fr