Canigou's abbay & the railway's "le Train Jaune"
... from Carcassonne to Toulouse
Castle & temple's Cathars into Catalan culture
departure point Carcassonne / Toulouse
arrival one Toulouse / Carcassonne
journey thema: hiking, Santiago pilgrimage, the Holy Land of cathari
local scenery: World Natural Heritage, Mountain Village, hand-made production
Price
per person : 600 €
Charter : 1,500 € (1-4 people) 2,100 € (5-7 people)
French driver will guide you in english.
*Customers' meals, lodging and entrance fees are not included.
Mileage 580 Km
Day 1
After leaving Carcassonne, let's have a photo break in a beautiful village, passing through vineyards spread on a dry land with a lot of generals: the Corbières land. Overlooking the Queribus Castle from the ruins of a Catharian sites, other others towers on the top of a steep rocky mountain are definitively watching for us. Vineyard on the back ground. The miller is still working as before...
Dominating but invisiblePeyrepertuse castle and its donjons. Here we are: on the bottom of the remparts.
Let's climb it! and please think about the life of believers who did not abandon their faith until the end. At the final catharies's castle were used as a strategic borderline lost and protected soo many time that France and Spain Kingdoms signed a treaty of peace.
Climb slopes, gravel roads, and stairs over 30 minutes. There are also exposed rocky areas, so please wear shoes that are comfortable to walk in. Landscape are wonders there.
France's most beautiful village of Eus, lined with stone houses on a small hill, offers panoramic views of Mount Canigou. Visit Saint Martin du Canigou Abbey, which stands quietly in the mountains.
With its beautiful Romanesque cloister, the monastery has a history of being destroyed and destroyed by the turmoil after the French Revolution.
The lives of monks who live in remote areas will be very interesting. If you climb the stairs, you can see a panoramic view with this wonder of architecture.
Since it is not possible to tour freely, we will take a tour by Sister (from 16:00).
It takes about 40 minutes to climb, so if you are confident in your physical strength, please try climbing. *Reservation required for transportation by jeep (pay).
You will stay in Villefranche de Conflans a World Heritage site built by Vauban, a military architect of Louis XIV. Classified World Heritage of Humanity. Seafoods and local farms of catalan cuisine is waiting for you.
Day 2
From the Villefranche-de-Conflent station, take the Pyrenees railway mountain "Le Petit Train jaune" to Font-Romeu, which is about 40 minutes away from the train station.
The track, which is about 62 km long and 100 years old, is included in the provisional list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
After departure, go through several short tunnels and head up to the plateau with a close view of the valley.
It crosses two historic monuments , including the beautiful arched stone bridge and the oldest suspension bridge for railways in France . Lunch will be served at Foix, the gateway to Ariege, at the foot of the Pyrenees . Count of Foix was so powerful that it was said to have ruled half of the Pyrenees along with Count Toulouse and is famous for protecting the Cathars.
Head to Montsegur Castle, the village gives a peacefull impression. When the Cathari people settled in, it was a fortified city with no castles and houses lined up on a huge rocky mountain surface.
(Castle that remains now is a castle that was built after the French king who defeated the Cathari; there took part of 10% of the inhabitants) : accessories, lifestyle and villagers of the origins in this Cathari Museum should be seen to care about minorities or society organising its own way of life but ended right here, burnt and exterminate until the last one at the end of a 45 years civil war; like a cruisade.
Arrival to Toulouse.
プログラム
Day 1
09:00 Carcassonne departure
10:00-11:30 Peyrepertus Castle
12:30-14:30Eus
15:00-17:45 Saint Martin du Canigou Abbey
18:30 Arrival Villefranche hotel)
Day 2
09:00 Villefranche de Conflans
09:30-11:30 Le Petit Train-Jaune
13: 15-15 :45 Foix (lunch)
16:30-18:00 Montsegur Castle
19:30 Arrival to Toulouse (hotel)
