From Cognac, the landscape opens and warms. The route leaves the Charente behind with vineyards, pale stone houses and low walls, then slips into Haute-Saintonge around Jonzac: small roads, soft hills, historic lanes and a calm south-western mood. Farther on, it heads towards the Gironde via Saint-Savin and Saint-André-de-Cubzac. The bridges of Cubzac mark the shift into Bordeaux country. The finish belongs to the Garonne – wide, urban and full of light.
