The Moulin de Bélard route in Saint-Lys

A circular route within the town of Saint-Lys and its bastide

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.17 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 66 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 72 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 715 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 636 ft

Photos

Description of the walk

Park on Place de la Liberté, between the church and Saint-Lys Town Hall.

(S/E) With your back to the church, cross the square and turn right onto Avenue du Languedoc. Pass between the town hall and the market hall, cross Avenue de Toulouse (D632) with care and take Rue du Chapeau Rouge opposite. Follow this street down, cross the D12 (Avenue de la Gascogne) with care and continue downhill to the junction towards Saiguède.

(1) At the crossroads, turn left onto Boulevard de la Piscine, leaving the park on your right. Turn onto Rue du Pigeonnier de Delhom, which climbs to the right and then, at the fork, to the left towards the Moulin de Bélard. When the road ends, take the footpath in the same direction, then head up to the right to admire the mill. Turn your back on the mill and head down towards the swimming pool junction. Cross the junction and take Rue du Moulin, which leads uphill opposite, until you reachthe first junction.

(2) Turn right onto Rue du 11 Novembre 1918 and follow it to the end. When you reach the D632 (Avenue des Pyrénées), cross carefully and continue towards Sainte-Foy-de-Peyrolières until you reach the first junction on the left. Leave the D632 and turn left onto Chemin de Barcelone until you reach Allée des Albizias.

(3) Turn left into the cul-de-sac and go right to the end. Then follow the small path which leads out onto Rue des Alouettes opposite, which joins Route de Cambernard (D37).

(4) Turn left onto the D37 and continue to the next Y-junction, where you should turn right onto Chemin des Nauzes. Continue to the end of the tarmac road and carry on along the dirt track that continues from there. Keep following this track, ignoring a branch coming from the right, until you reach a tarmac road.

(5) Turn left onto Chemin de Bartas, then immediately turn right onto Chemin de Mathieu au Prim. Follow this road to the end, remembering to look back to enjoy the scenery and perhaps catch a glimpse of the Pyrenees.

(6) The road joins the Route de Saint-Clar, which you take to the right but quickly leave behind, taking thefirst left onto the Route de la Souliguères (D19A). Follow this road to the junction with the D19, Route de Lamasquère.

(7) At the junction, turn left onto the D19 and head up towards Saint-Lys until you reach the path leading to the new cemetery.

(8) Leave the Route de Lamasquère and turn right onto the Chemin de la Moutonne. Pass the dog training facilities, then the new cemetery, until you can see the D12, Route de Muret.

(9) Just before the junction with the D12, turn left onto the footpath running alongside the main road. Continue towards Saint-Lys until you reach the crossroads leading to the industrial and commercial estate. Use the pedestrian crossings to cross the crossroads carefully and take the footpath on the other side of the main road, still heading towards Saint-Lys, until you reach the sign for Le Lac des Pêcheurs.

(10) At the end of the Roland Garros housing estate, turn right onto the dirt track leading to Lac des Pêcheurs. Stay on this path until you reach the lake. Ignore the path continuing straight ahead and turn right to walk round the lake, following the shore. Return to the path and continue to the right to cross over the Aiguebelle, then follow this stream through the municipal park until you reach the Route de Toulouse.

(11) Cross the D632 (Route de Toulouse) with care and turn left towards the town centre.
Cross Rue de l’Ayguebelle at the pedestrian crossing and continue towards the church, passing the skate park and the boules courts. Before Rue des Lilas, cross the departmental road with care to reach the church forecourt. Then cross the D19 using the pedestrian crossing to reach Place de la Liberté, the end of the walk (A/D)

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 702 ft - Place de la Liberté - Église Saint-Julien (Saint-Lys)
  2. 1 : mi 0.19 - alt. 663 ft - Boulevard de la Piscine - Ayguebelle (cours d'eau) - Affluent du Ruisseau de Goudourg
  3. 2 : mi 0.6 - alt. 682 ft - Rue du 11 Novembre 1918
  4. 3 : mi 1.29 - alt. 705 ft - Allée des Albizias
  5. 4 : mi 1.48 - alt. 705 ft - Route de Cambernard – D37
  6. 5 : mi 2.85 - alt. 705 ft - Bartas Path
  7. 6 : mi 3.57 - alt. 705 ft - Route de Saint-Clar
  8. 7 : mi 4.3 - alt. 689 ft - Route de Lamasquère – D19
  9. 8 : mi 4.69 - alt. 705 ft - Chemin de la Moutonne
  10. 9 : mi 5.34 - alt. 692 ft - Route de Muret – D12
  11. 10 : mi 5.69 - alt. 679 ft - Chemin du Lac des Pêcheurs
  12. 11 : mi 6.91 - alt. 659 ft - Toulouse Road – D632
  13. S/E : mi 7.17 - alt. 702 ft - Place de la Liberté - Église Saint-Julien (Saint-Lys)

Notes

There are no water points along the route.
An easy route but with sections on the road. Remember to wear a high-visibility vest.

Worth a visit

The centre of Saint-Lys is a bastide with a beautiful, recently restored market hall and a lovely church visible from afar. There are numerous shops in the town centre, including a café with a terrace overlooking the market hall.
The mill, restored by volunteers, can be visited by appointment.
Between points (4) and (6), there are some stunning views of the Saint-Lys countryside and the Pyrenees.
Children’s playground next to the skate park.
The green corridor running from Saint-Lys to Fonsorbes along the River Ayguebelle, with a fitness trail on the Saint-Lys side.

Reviews and comments

3.7 / 5
Based on 5 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.4 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
2.2 / 5
dudesanddudette
dudesanddudette

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 01, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Very busy route : No

There’s nothing to it – this walk is almost entirely on tarmac and the roads can be very busy on a Sunday morning.
The only highlight is the view of the Pyrenees for about 100 metres along the route.
The beautiful mill has disappeared...

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Bernard CONDAMINES
Bernard CONDAMINES

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 10, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Very busy route : No

Apart from the mill and the views of the Pyrenees, there’s very little of interest.
Too much of the route goes through housing estates and built-up areas.
The only attractions are that the path stays relatively dry in wet weather and its proximity to local residents.
It’s worth noting that, upon arriving at number 5, we were stopped by a gentleman who told us the path was private. He said that the signs he’d put up had been torn down and that he was therefore going to have the plot fenced off. For your information, this section of the path is in the municipality of Sainte-Foy.

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rando-dr
rando-dr

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 06, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Very busy route : No

The walk is a bit monotonous, with too much tarmac for my liking. It’s a bit tricky to find the Lac des Pêcheurs towards the end of the route.
Best done on a very clear day to enjoy the magnificent view of the snow-capped Pyrenees. I’d recommend this walk to anyone who’s taken a break from walking and wants to get back into it with an easy route.

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sequoia1
sequoia1

Overall rating : 3.5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 22, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Very busy route : No

Too many busy roads for my liking.
We were still lucky enough to enjoy a lovely view of the Pyrenees and to spot a hare.
It’s still a nice walk in the immediate vicinity of St Lys in the event of a lockdown.

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AJT-31
AJT-31

Hello,
Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment – and a positive one at that; it’s always nice to hear.
We’ll be doing this tour again in two weeks’ time with our group.
You’ll be able to read the report
on our blog http://caf31.canalblog.com/archives/sort...
or on our Facebook page, Marche à Fontenilles
Best regards
André TRIAES

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francois alazard
francois alazard

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 16, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely, fairly accurate description of a route of moderate interest. But there’s a beautiful view from the heights

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