Oignies holds a special place in the story of French coal, because it was the last place in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais where a pit closed. The final coal came up at Oignies in December 1990, ending nearly three centuries of mining in the basin, and the old pit buildings there have since been turned into a concert hall and cultural centre. Fosse 13 bis, a few kilometres off, belonged to the Compagnie des mines de Courrières, one of the great names of the coalfield, and the whole district falls inside the Mining Basin World Heritage Site that UNESCO recognised in 2012.
The Courrières name carries a heavy memory. On the tenth of March 1906, a firedamp and coal dust explosion tore through the company's galleries, killing around eleven hundred men, still the worst mining disaster in Europe. Rescue teams came from Germany and elsewhere to help, and the aftermath triggered strikes, reforms and a national mourning. The cités nearby, such as Montigny and Le Moucheron, were built for the families of such men, and the monuments scattered around the district keep the memory of the community alive.
Oignies is a town of about ten thousand people, with Libercourt and Carvin close by, and fuel and food are easy to find. You are in the Pévèle plain, north of Lens, a landscape of farms, canals, brick villages and slag heaps. Further north, the cobbled sectors of the Paris–Roubaix cycle race, including the famous trench through the forest at Arenberg, are not far off, and in April the roads here are full of cycling fans.
For a rider, this is flat, open country, with long straight roads, small roundabouts and a lot of brick. In the early morning, mist hangs over the fields and the terrils appear like blue hills. The light in September, low and golden, is lovely. Cobbles can be treacherous when wet, so take care, and the weather can change quickly, with rain blowing across the plain. A plate of Flemish beef stew with a strong local beer is the ritual reward.