Saint-Jean-de-Laur

Saint-Jean-de-Laur is a small locality in the Lot department, situated at the foot of the Causse de Limogne on the Via Podiensis route between Cajarc and Limogne-en-Quercy. The hamlet marks the point at which the route leaves the Lot river valley and begins the ascent onto the Causse de Limogne, the broad limestone plateau that occupies the central Quercy.

The transition from the wooded valley to the open causse is marked by a change in vegetation, from riverside willows and poplars to scrub oak, boxwood, and the dry aromatic limestone grassland of the plateau. The causse landscape is harsher and more exposed than the sheltered valley terrain, with white stone tracks, rare water sources, and wide horizons.