If you want to combine hiking with local history in Auchy-au-Bois, you can use three landmarks as your guide: Place Sigéric, the terril and Saint-Gilles Church. Place Sigéric is a public pedestrian square in the village centre, with a rest area and a small market square. It is also a meeting place for residents and hikers following the route that passes through it on foot. If you are planning to explore the village on foot, you can use this centrally located square as a meeting point or a place to take a break.
Place Sigéric and the Via Francigena
Place Sigéric was named in June 2023 in honour of an archbishop associated with the earliest description of a Via Francigena route. Stages FR07 and FR08 also share a specific location in the village: both are at Rue de Pernes, opposite Saint-Gilles Church—at the end of stage FR07 and the starting point of FR08. Check the stage details again before setting off.
On foot around the terril and along the hiking trails
The Auchy-au-Bois terril offers views of the surrounding area, is a prominent local landmark and is designated as a site of the Chaîne des Parcs. Access is restricted to pedestrians. The 2024 maintenance agreement covers path edges, benches, picnic tables, a viewing platform with railings, and a wooden and rope structure.
The La Coqueline circular trail starts in Amettes, is 10 kilometres long, marked in yellow and rated easy; it heads towards Auchy-au-Bois. Its route includes a footbridge and a section alongside the Coqueline stream. La MĂ©roise is 16.4 kilometres long, rated moderate and listed as taking four hours. One variant starts at the car park by Auchy-au-Bois town hall. To choose a route, you can compare them easily: La Coqueline is the shorter, easy-rated walk; La MĂ©roise is the longer, moderate route with a stated duration of four hours. They also differ in their connection to the village: La Coqueline starts in Amettes and heads towards Auchy-au-Bois, while La MĂ©roise has a variant starting at the car park by the town hall.
Saint-Gilles and local history
Saint-Gilles Church houses the gravestone of parish priest Charles-François Anselin and a statue of the Virgin and Child. Both were registered as protected objects on 29 September 1982. The church is therefore both a landmark on the Via Francigena stages and home to two distinct cultural objects.
Dining and accommodation
The Le Brunehaut restaurant serves traditional cuisine made with local and seasonal produce. Check whether the restaurant is open before you arrive. La Ferme de la Vallée offers bed and breakfast in a renovated farmhouse with a square courtyard dating from the 19th century. If this accommodation suits your plans, check availability for your travel dates.
Discover more destinations: Sempy, Bainghen, Vieil-Hesdin, Coquelles, Reclinghem, Valhuon, Rang-Du-Fliers, Marenla.
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