Back to the roots of mining

Once you’ve arrived at the Chabaud Latour nature and leisure park, your eyes are immediately drawn to this vast expanse of water, with the outline of a slag heap and an iron giant in the distance as a backdrop.

You can’t help but move closer to the water to admire the view, as a group of swans will surely be resting peacefully on the water, which will finally convince you that you’ve made the right choice in coming here.

Onward and upward!

And here we are! At the foot of this “black mountain”, your eyes lift to the sky. Up there, a beautiful sight awaits you.

Like an intimate conversation between nature and yourself, like a free pass, the slag heap invites you and shows you the way up.

In the midst of the birch trees, you’ll find yourself looking around you, in search of a horizon, for the moment hidden by the trees.

Once you’ve taken the last few steps, catch your breath and stand still.

Right in front of you is a grandiose spectacle: a 360° view, a panorama of infinite nature.

The Valenciennes region stretches out before you.

Below you, you can see the headframe, the pond, the swans and the birds putting on a show just for you.

Behind you, the Bonsecours forest and Belgium in the distance…

Sit back and contemplate the landscape.

After descending the slag heap, turn right and stroll along a path surrounded on both sides by the black dam pond. A veritable sanctuary for geese, swans and black cormorants, keep an eye out for them!

On your left, a little further on, there’s a pretty promontory offering a nice stopover for a souvenir photo!

On the other side are the Chabaud Latour and Lorette housing estates, built in 1913 and 1914 respectively, right next to the Ledoux pit. The complex is organized around strictly orthogonal streets. Two-dwelling pavilions face the street, with planted hedges enclosing the private spaces.

The white and turquoise bricks are characteristic of the housing estates built by the Anzin mining company.

Condé-sur-Escaut isn’t just about mining heritage…
The town has always been a strategic location in the County of Hainaut. Vauban understood this and built his fortifications to protect the city, visible on the outskirts of town, but also on your way in!

The cofferdams were strategically built to cope with attacks, influencing the Jard River to flood the outskirts of the town, thus keeping the enemy at bay.