The best MTB trails around Varès

Perched on the heights of the Lot valley, the Capet windmill was built before 1324, but it is found dated 1870 on a stone at the entrance to the mill. Was it demolished and rebuilt? Possible! Be that as it may, this old building was once, as its name indicates, the mill of the lords of Montpezat whose successive castles were razed, except for the vital organ it represented and which constituted the survival of the inhabitants! The Château site where the mill is located was purchased by the municipality in February 1988 and the Capet lands in 1989. In 1998, the municipality decided to restore this mill which, after remaining for many years in a state of abandonment and ruin (only the shaft remained), finally had a new project for life.

top I recommend for pretty photos

very beautiful MTB ride, be careful in winter, quite a lot of mud

« Lou Mouli del Castel » « Lou Mouli del Castel », as the elders of Montpezat familiarly called it, raises its tall stature on the rocky spur located west of the village, from where one overlooks the beautiful Lot valley. Writings in P. CHAPLAIS' book « The war of Saint SARDOS » tell us that the Capet windmill was built before 1324, but we find it dated 1870 on a stone at the entrance to the mill. Was it demolished and rebuilt? Possible! Be that as it may, this old building was once, as its name indicates, the mill of the lords of Montpezat, whose successive castles were razed, except for the vital organ it represented and which constituted the survival of the inhabitants! The site of the Castle where the mill is located was purchased by the commune in February 1988 and the Capet lands in 1989. In 1998, the municipality decided to restore this mill which, after having remained for many years in a state of abandonment and ruin (only the shaft remained), finally had a new life project. Thus, on a beautiful spring morning in 2005, our mill regained its wings. There are 3 mills in the commune, only this one is communal, the other two are private. This restoration would not have been possible without the determination of the elected officials of the time and without the various grants that were awarded. Thanks to them, we today have the most beautiful mill in the... village.

very nice for beautiful photos

Very pleasant and shady and not too crowded.

A literary monument – albeit one that seems rather bizarre in the context of the story – has been erected by the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes to the windmills with which our ancestors harnessed the energy of the wind centuries ago to move the large and heavy millstones: In one episode, his tragic novel hero Don Quixote, the “knight of the sorrowful countenance”, wants to defeat them in a duel, believing that he is fighting against giants with four arms.

Perched more than 150 meters above the Lot Valley, the fortified town of Laparade offers a spectacular view from its belvedere and public garden. Founded in 1265 by Alphonse de Poitiers, it preserves traces of its defensive past: ramparts, moats, and ancient fortified gates.