"Foix with a chateau and great views" Foix by Beausoleil

You park at the bottom of the hill beside the river and start hiking up and up and up to the chateau. We stopped a few times for breath—on the pretense of taking photos. Views of the Pyrenees were spectacular. I added the round tower to my growing list of things I haven’t climbed, but knew I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t climb the square tower with the museum.

We made it to the top! Actually, you could climb up on a stone bench for a spectacular view of the valley (according to the guidebook), but between the bench and the castle wall there was an opening. I looked down a gazillion feet and decided I was not going near it. Ed climbed up and said the view wasn’t all that spectacular. I took his word for it. Heights are not my favorite thing and we were very high!

You can peak out the windows for great views (or climb on the stone bench) and the views climbing to the entrance are pretty spectacular themselves.

Ariege River in Foix

The Ariege River is lovely with a waterfall right by the parking lot. We had been camping near Belflou and the campground owner suggested a visit to Mirepoix and Foix. We scrapped our plan du jour and followed her advice and were very glad we did.

Mirepoix was magical and Foix was magnificent. We visited the chateau, had lunch in Foix and then headed toward the Grotte de Niaux. When we discovered you need reservations for the cave, we switched to Plan B and visited the Parc Pyrénéen de l’Art Préhistorique, kind of a cave-prehistoric theme park. It was great fun and we saw more fantastic views of the Pyrenees. Gorgeous country!

Foix church and clock

As you walk up from parking to the chateau, you look up (chateau), down (town) and all around (mountains). At one curve this is the view, the church and its clock tower.

Check the Things to Do Tip for photos of the Parc Pyrénéen de l’Art Préhistorique, a very French theme park, fun for kids and their parents . . . or grandparents.

• Pros:Lovely, unspoiled town in the Pyrenees
• Cons:None that we could see
• In a nutshell:Look any way you like, views are magnificent