Things to See in the Languedoc: Historic Towns: Espéraza
  
Espéraza is in the Aude
département, lying on a tight meander of the River
Aude, just north of the foothills of the Pyrenees. The
main arterial road, the D118, passes near the town, out of
sight and hearing.
The town is 6 km from Quillan to the South, and 15 km from
Limoux
to the north. It is the perfect base for those
interested in Cathar
Country.
  Attractions
include water
sports on the River
Aude which flows through the town, a large Sunday Market,
and a unique dinosaur
museum displaying some of the spectacular finds made
nearby. There is also a Grade I listed Church in
the town square.
 The
town lies in the very heart of Cathar
Country, the location of some of the most important events
of medieval Europe, vestiges of which can be seen everywhere.
Many of the most famous Cathar sites are only a short drive
or cycle ride away. Espéraza is less than
a two hours' walk away to the hilltop village of Rennes-le-Château.
 Popular
activities include walking,
climbing,
and caving.
The area is a delight for those seeking active holidays. Cycling,
the French national sport, is the most popular. And
there's horse
riding, hang-gliding, white-water
rafting, kayaking
and canoeing, canyoning,
hunting,
hawking and shooting, angling
and fishing, wind
surfing and kitesurfing,
paragliding,
Snowkiting
and hot air ballooning. In the winter, there's
downhill
skiing and cross-country
skiing, as well as other winter
sports in the Pyrenees, less than an hour's drive away.
  Hot
springs abound in this area and there are many naturally heated
swimming pools and natural lakes. There are also
interesting caves ("grottes") in the area and many
quality vineyards.
Things to see include
cities of historical and architectural interest,
market towns and other towns,
villages
and bastides; Fortified and grand buildings of specifically
the so-called "Cathar
Castles" and other Châteaux;
Religious buildings: cathedrals,
churches, and other
ecclesiastical buildings; Aspects of nature including:
wildlife,
and springs,
spas and grottoes
  The
surrounding countryside is beautiful and varied. To
the South are the foothills of the Pyrenees,
then the real Pyrenees,
and the Spanish border. One of the old pilgrimage
routes to Santiago (St-Jacques) de Compostella passes this
way, through the mountains and on into Spain. To
the East are the
Corbières, one of the few remaining wildernesses
in Europe, where boar still roam wild, and beyond it the Mediterranean
coast. To the West lies the Plateau de Sault,
a high plateau of forests and rolling countryside, and beyond
it Andorra. To the north are vineyards and historic
cities like Carcassonne.
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You can hire mountain bikes ("VTTs") from Thomas Loisirs,
54 Avenue de Perpignan. Tel: 04 68 74 10 97. They're
open all year 9am to noon and 2pm to 7pm Monday to Saturday,
and 10am to noon on Sundays.
Local wildlife is also an attraction. Because
of its varied terrain, the Aude
département possesses more than twice the
number of plant species than the whole of the UK, including
some 80 types of Orchid. It
is similarly rich in animal species, particularly birds.
Esperaza Dinosaur Museum - photos below: click here
for more information
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"In rememberance of the STO,
departed from here for Germany, February-March 1943.
To the memory of our comrades who died in the course
of their deportation"
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