Via Garona

It rises in the Spanish Pyrenees then quickly crosses the frontier at Pont du Roy, on the border with Val d’Aran (Espagne), and on to Saint-Béat. This village is famous for white water rafting and the white marble used for the ponds and statues in the gardens of the Château de Versailles and the facades of the Louvre. Fed by mountain streams and rivers rushing down from the Pyrenean mountains and plateau, the young river skews off towards the historic village of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges to meet the verdant plain of Comminges. At Portet-sur-Garonne, just before Toulouse, it is joined by the River Ariège in the Parc Naturel du Confluent .

In Toulouse, capital of Occitanie, the Garonne becomes much wider and forms a large meander. The position of the Roman town of Tolosa was chosen because of the Bazacle, a ford where the river could be crossed before the construction of the five bridges which are found in the city centre today. With the development of its quays, the banks of the Garonne are now a major attraction of the ‘Ville Rose’, offering wonderful views of its buildings and lovely walks in the warm sunshine. After the Bazacle, now converted into a weir, the river flows north-west through the Fronton wine-growing area, across the plains of Tarn-et-Garonne, then on to Bordeaux before ending its odyssey in the Atlantic Ocean.

The Garonne - a natural highway to Santiago de Compostela

The Garonne has long been used for river transport but also as a natural means of communication for people walking beside it. Pilgrims used to follow the ancient Roman roads along the river on their way to the tomb of Saint James the Great at Santiago de Compostela, stopping off at towns created by Rome : Toulouse, Muret, Cazères, Saint-Martory, Saint-Gaudens, Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges… before reaching the Pyrenean plateau, crossing  the Pyrenees and continuing along the famous Camino Francès (French Pilgrim’s Way) through Northern Spain. Pilgrims stopping off in Toulouse never failed to kneel before the relics of Saint-Saturnin in the Basilica of Saint-Sernin before receiving treatment for their wounds and injuries at the Hôtel Dieu Saint-Jacques hospital (founded in 1257).

Nowadays, pilgrims and walkers who still follow the pilgrim route from Arles or from Conques and Puy-en-Velay, can walk or cycle along a new route, the Via Garona. This variation on the old pilgrim way to Santiago de Compostela between Toulouse and Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges can be covered in stages in 7 - 10 days (170 kilometres in total).