The Region:
The Aveyron, named after the river, is one of the original 83 départements created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. The first historical inhabitants of the region were the Rutene tribe, but the area was inhabited more anciently and boasts many prehistoric ruins. The Aveyron is part of the current Midi-Pyrénées région. It is surrounded by the départements of the Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne, Lot, Hérault, Gard, Lozère, and Cantal. The highest point in the département is the summit of Mailhebiau at 1469 m.
Tourism:
Aveyron contains twelve of the one hundred and forty three officially listed “most beautiful villages of France” and includes the Cévennes National Park. Two well know tourist attractions are the castle of Najac, which has a truly romantic setting high on a cliff that plummets down to the Aveyron river, where a street of medieval houses leads to the keep of the great fortress castle. Conques is also very picturesque, perched on a hill above the river Dourdou, grouped around the magnificent Romanesque church of Ste Foy. About an hour away from Mas del Bosc is the Abbey of Loc-Dieu, located near Martiel in a region with many dolmens. The small city of Millau is the site for the world's tallest bridge, the viaduc de Millau, designed by Norman Foster & Associates and opened by President Chirac in December 2004. Between Entraygues and Estaing, are some of the loveliest river stretches in France.
Figeac, also about an hour away, is at the confluence of the Lot and Célé rivers and a pleasant old town to walk around. The Célé flows from there between narrow limestone cliffs dotted with mills and little waterfalls and on through a lovely valley. The Peche-Merle cave is a beautiful grotto near Cabaretes with marvellous cave paintings. Further west is St Cirq-la-Popie, an old village high above the left bank of the Lot with narrow streets that climb up to the ancient château and church, where the view is dizzying. To the south is Villefranche-de-Rouergue, a delightful 13th century bastide with a central square, which unusually, has a massive church tower built into the square itself.
Other places of interest include: Belcastel, Sauveterre-de-Rouergue, Sainte-Eulalie d'Olt, Brousse le Château, La Couvertoirade , Saint-Côme d'Olt and Peyre.
marks the location of the property in Midi-Pyrenees
