Terril 125a and Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Aire-sur-la-

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Terril 125a

   On the southern edge of the coal basin, where Auberchicourt, Écaillon and Aniche run into one another, a long spoil heap rises above the brick roofs and the fields. Terril 125a is one of the many numbered heaps that the Nord-Pas de Calais inventory catalogues, and it belongs to the old concession of the Compagnie des mines d'Aniche, one of the historic coal companies of the region. Aniche itself is a reminder that the north was not only about coal: the town had a long glassmaking tradition, and the combination of fuel, sand and labour made the area an industrial hub well before the twentieth century.

   Read the complete Terril 125a write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Terril 125a is where the day begins. Next is Hôtel de ville.

2. 2. Hôtel de ville

   A town hall makes an odd target for a ride, but Carvin's is a good excuse to stop in a place most people only see from the A1. The town sits on the northern edge of the old coalfield, between Lens and Lille, and its civic buildings and squares reflect the confidence of a community that grew with the mines. Like many such places, Carvin's centre is a mix of brick, stone and post-war rebuilding, and the town hall faces a square with cafés, bakeries and a market on certain days.

   Read the complete Hôtel de ville write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Hôtel de ville comes up about 35 km into the recorded legs. Next is Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Arras.

3. 3. Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Arras

   Arras has two great squares, the Grand-Place and the Place des Héros, surrounded by tall Flemish-baroque houses with curved gables and arcades, and towering above them is the belfry of the town hall, over seventy metres high. It looks medieval, but most of it is a careful reconstruction: Arras was devastated by German artillery during the First World War, when the front line ran just east of the town for years, and the belfry was destroyed in 1914. After the war, the people of Arras rebuilt it, along with the squares, and today it is one of the belfries of Belgium and France listed by UNESCO.

   Read the complete Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Arras write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 70 km into the recorded legs you reach Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Arras. Next is Cité d’Auchy.

4. 4. Cité d’Auchy

   Rows of identical brick houses with small gardens, laid out in straight lines or gentle curves, each with its own vegetable plot and outhouse: the cité at Auchy-les-Mines is a textbook example of the miners' housing built by mining companies in northern France. The companies provided homes, schools, churches and shops, both to attract workers and to control them, and the cités, with their distinctive layouts and architecture, are a central part of the World Heritage listing of the Nord-Pas de Calais Mining Basin.

   Read the complete Cité d’Auchy write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Cité d’Auchy, about halfway. Next is Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Aire-sur-la-.

5. 5. Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Aire-sur-la-

   Aire-sur-la-Lys is the kind of small French town that rewards a slow walk with no plan. Its belfry rises from the eighteenth-century town hall on the Grand Place, an elegant classical building topped by a tall tower with a lantern and a carillon, and it is part of the UNESCO listing of belfries of Belgium and France. Across the square stands the Bailliage, a richly decorated Renaissance building from around 1600, with arches, carved figures and a little loggia, which once housed the guard and the town's officials. A few streets away, the great collegiate church of Saint-Pierre, built in a flamboyant Gothic style, rises above the rooftops.

   Read the complete Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Aire-sur-la- write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Aire-sur-la- sits at 145 km, about halfway. Next is back through Cité d’Auchy.

6. 6. back through Cité d’Auchy

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Cité d’Auchy write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Cité d’Auchy comes up about 181 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Arras.

7. 7. back through Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Arras

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Arras write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 215 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Arras. Next is back through Hôtel de ville.

8. 8. back through Hôtel de ville

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Hôtel de ville write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Hôtel de ville, late in the day. Next is Terril 125a.

9. 9. Terril 125a

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Terril 125a write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   The route ends here after 285 km.