The best MTB trails around Bout-Du-Pont-De-Larn

Clinging to a rocky outcrop almost encircled by the Jaur, Olargues is a remarkable fortified village whose medieval organization is still perfectly legible. At the summit, the former keep of the castle, transformed into a bell tower in the 17th century after the fortress was destroyed on Cardinal Richelieu's orders, still dominates the valley. Below, the Devil's Bridge, built in the 12th century, has spanned the Jaur for nearly nine centuries. Between the two, "calades" (cobbled alleyways) and old houses invite you to step back in time. It is easy to understand why Olargues is among the Most Beautiful Villages in France!

Located in the Jaur valley, in the heart of the Hauts cantons of the Hérault, Riols is a vast rural village typical of the Haut-Languedoc. The village is intimately linked to the history of the abbey of Saint-Pons-de-Thomières, founded in the 10th century, on which it long depended. From the Middle Ages onwards, Riols was part of a network of monastic possessions. Even today, the old center retains its valley setting, crossed by the Jaur, around which the main routes and activities developed. The Pont-Vieux and several structures on the river bear witness to this close relationship between the village and its watercourse.

very nice outing

Mazamet train station is ideal as a starting or finishing point for a cycling tour along the Voie Vert Passa Paiis. There are direct trains to Toulouse, for example, to continue cycling along the Canal du Midi.

Snack and water point

Mazamet and the banks of the Arnette!

Save your energy for the last 5km, be careful when it's windy.

We like to compare, the Pic de Nore is a small Ventoux, its climbs from Mazamet or Villeneuve-Minervois are not as steep as that of the Ventoux from Bédoin but they still have to be earned. They are 17 and 22 km respectively, have an average gradient of 5.5% and 4.56%, with a maximum gradient of 11.8% and 10%. For my part, I chose to join Pradelles-Cabardès via the forests from Limousis, passing in particular the Soulanes de Nore, I was treated to some good slopes with a double-digit percentage ... Two legends would explain its name: in the first it is the fairy Nore who, annoyed by the damage caused to the crops by the Cers wind, would have planted her pike in the ground there, and as if by magic the rocks would have accumulated around to form the Pique de Nore. In the second, the wind of Cers is still blamed for its damage to human crops, not only there, and it is Nore, Bug and Arach who went to complain to Jupiter. Jupiter does not like to be disturbed, he transformed Nore into a mountain and Bug and Arach into the summit of Bugarach ...