Mont-Saint-Éloi: Abbey Ruins and Walking Trails

Cultural heritage and walking are two clear starting points when choosing Mont-Saint-Éloi as a destination. The restored ruins of a former abbey stand alongside named walking and pilgrimage trails; there are also sweeping views over the Scarpe Valley and Artois Plain, as well as sights in the hamlet of Ecoivres. If you are looking for a hotel for a stay in Mont-Saint-Éloi, these themes can help you decide what to focus on during your trip.

Abbey Ruins and Cultural Heritage

The two towers of Mont-Saint-Éloi are the remains of a former abbey. The ruins have now been restored. Together, the towers and ruins provide a tangible focal point for the town’s cultural heritage, without requiring you to draw on a long list of other buildings.

Mont-Saint-Éloi also bears the “Village Patrimoine©” cultural heritage label. A walking trail of this name leads to six major sights. Information panels along the trail explain the sights. This allows you to explore the town’s themes through selected stops, rather than treating them merely as a general description of the place.

Comparing Walking and Pilgrimage Trails

Two of the named walking trails offer specific points of reference for planning your time. The “Sentier des 3 Abbayes” is 16 kilometres long and takes about four hours on foot. It connects Mont-Saint-Éloi, Etrun and Maroeuil. The “Le Chemin des Pierres du Diable” trail, CUA Route No. 16, is ten kilometres long; it takes about two and a half hours to walk. It passes Les Droites Pierres in Mont-Saint-Éloi, near the hamlet of Ecoivres.

The approximate walking times and distances show the difference in how much time these two trails require. The Via Francigena offers a different thematic connection: this pilgrimage route runs from Canterbury to Rome and passes through Mont-Saint-Éloi. The three routes therefore offer different perspectives on the area—a longer connection between three places, a shorter route passing Les Droites Pierres, and a pilgrimage trail with endpoints far apart.

The “Boucle de l’Artois” event also takes place in Mont-Saint-Éloi every year. It adds a recurring event to the trails described here, without being an additional walking route itself.

Views and Geological History

The esplanade on the hill offers panoramic views over the entire Scarpe Valley and the Artois Plain. This makes it possible to consider the area’s landscape alongside its historic buildings. The two menhirs at Les Droites Pierres are made of coarse sandstone and offer an exceptional view of the abbey ruins.

The geological structure is also part of the landscape. At the foot of the hill, chalk outcrops are protected by a thick layer of sandstone. They belong to the geological strata of Artois, which formed 90 million years ago.

Sights in Ecoivres

The hamlet of Ecoivres adds further destinations to the local area. It is home to a war cemetery, where 2,400 soldiers who died in the First World War have found their final resting place.

The church in Ecoivres is also one of the sights in Mont-Saint-Éloi. Les Droites Pierres is near the hamlet; the two coarse sandstone menhirs stand there. These places are therefore all associated with Ecoivres, while the individual sights represent different themes: remembrance, the church and megalithic heritage.

Planning Your Trip

A tourist information office is located at the foot of the abbey towers. Its location provides a clear point of reference near the abbey ruins. The three walking routes, the circuit linking six sights and the other routes mentioned offer different starting points for a stay. Which ones you focus on depends on whether you would rather make the abbey ruins, landscape, trails or places of remembrance in Ecoivres the centre of your visit.

Discover more destinations: Aubrometz, Halinghen, Contes, Bermicourt, Oye-Plage, Parenty, Fruges, Beaurains.

See the broader travel guide: Pas-De-Calais.