At Rieulay, in the middle of the Scarpe valley, the terril des Argales is one of the largest spoil heaps in France, a vast, flat-topped plateau of mining waste stretching for well over a kilometre. Once a stark, black wasteland, it has been transformed into a nature and leisure area, with a lake at its foot, trails, viewpoints and a nature reserve where rare plants and birds have found a home. The site, together with nearby mining remains, is part of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais Mining Basin, listed by UNESCO in 2012.
The landscape around is part of the Scarpe-Escaut Regional Natural Park, a region of wetlands, forests, canals and farmland, with ponds formed by mining subsidence that now attract waterbirds. The nearby Mare à Goriaux, at Wallers, is one such lake, and the Arenberg pithead, made famous by cinema and by the cobbled forest track used in the Paris–Roubaix cycle race, is close by. Marchiennes, a short distance away, has the remains of a large abbey, and the town and villages around are full of brick houses, small churches and cafés.
Riding here means flat roads through villages, forests and farmland, with long straight stretches and frequent roundabouts. Traffic is light outside the towns, but watch for tractors, cyclists and cobbles in some villages. The roads along the canals and through the forest of Saint-Amand offer pleasant, relaxed riding, and the nearby Belgian border opens up more options, including the hills and valleys of Hainaut. Rain arrives often and the wind rarely rests, so pack accordingly.
Pecquencourt, the nearest town of any size, has fuel and shops, and Douai and Valenciennes are within easy reach. Rieulay itself has a few cafés and restaurants. The local cuisine is rich and hearty, with dishes like flamiche, a tart filled with leeks or cheese, and welsh, a dish of melted cheese, beer and ham on toast, borrowed from across the Channel and now a northern French classic. From the top of the terril the plain spreads out in every direction, and pitheads, church spires and wind turbines punctuate the horizon.