Terril 32 and Paysage et ensemble miniers de Barlin

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Terril 32

   Out on the western fringe of the coal basin, where the mining country fades into the farmland of the Lys valley and the edge of the Artois hills, Terril 32 rises near Norrent-Fontes, Mametz and Thérouanne. This is the far end of the seam, a long way from the dense cités around Lens and Douai, and the countryside feels it: smaller villages, more fields, more trees, and pits that were fewer and further between. The heap stands almost like a lone hill above the cropland, a reminder that coal reached even here.

   Read the complete Terril 32 write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Terril 32 is where the day begins. Next is Monument aux morts.

2. 2. Monument aux morts

   In the centre of Auchel, the war memorial stands as it does in every French town and village, listing the names of the men who died in the First and Second World Wars, and in mining towns these lists are often heartbreakingly long. But the memorials of the coalfield have a particular resonance, because the front line of the First World War ran through the edge of the mining basin, only a few kilometres east of here. The Germans occupied Lens and the eastern pits for most of the war, and when they withdrew in 1918, they flooded and sabotaged the mines, which took years to restore. Auchel and the western towns, on the Allied side, kept producing coal for the war effort under constant pressure.

   Read the complete Monument aux morts write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Monument aux morts comes up 17 km in. Next is Paysage et ensemble miniers de Barlin.

3. 3. Paysage et ensemble miniers de Barlin

   Barlin is where the coalfield starts to run into hills. To the west, the land rises gently into the Artois uplands, and the mining town sits at the transition, its slag heaps, workers' houses and pit buildings now part of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais Mining Basin World Heritage site. It is a quieter corner than Lens or Douai, and the mix of industrial history and rolling countryside makes it a pleasant place to pause.

   Read the complete Paysage et ensemble miniers de Barlin write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   34 km in you reach Paysage et ensemble miniers de Barlin. Next is back through Monument aux morts.

4. 4. back through Monument aux morts

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Monument aux morts write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through Monument aux morts, late in the day. Next is Terril 32.

5. 5. Terril 32

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Terril 32 write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Terril 32. That is the ride.