It all started with silver
From Gallo-Roman times and throughout the Middle Ages, silver-bearing lead and antimony were mined here: seven shafts, it is said, made the site rich, to the point of making it the seat of the largest bailiwick in the Rouergue, with 106 parishes under its authority. This mining wealth explains the surprising grandeur of some of the remains you still discover today in the middle of the forest: a five-storey refuge tower known as "the Synagogue", a twenty-metre belfry, the ruins of the church of Notre-Dame-de-Laval, a Romanesque bridge called the Pont de Parayre, and even a former hospital that took in pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela. Then the mines ran out, activity moved elsewhere and the village gradually lost its inhabitants, until a local committee stepped in in 1956 to save what could still be saved.
The keep of the Roc del Talhuc
The image that stays with you most is that of the lower castle: two watchtowers perched about a hundred metres up on an isolated rocky pinnacle, the Roc del Talhuc, which seems to have grown straight out of the cliff. It is our favourite photo of the area, and by far the most photogenic of the three villages we feature on this blog. At the top of the village there are also traces of the upper castle, with the fortified Barbacane gate and the Place des Treize Vents (Square of the Thirteen Winds). Today the site covers about ten hectares of unspoilt nature and holds the "Sites Remarquables de France et d'Europe" label, which recognises authentic places restored with respect for the original buildings.
A visit you have to earn, and savour slowly
Our advice, if you only visit one of the three historic villages we love: bring good shoes. The trail includes a few ladders to climb up to the Roc del Talhuc and comes back down through woodland to the Pont de Parayre: nothing technical, but it is not a walk for flip-flops. We recommend setting off in the late morning to enjoy the light on the towers at the end of your visit, and bringing a picnic: once up there, the views over the valley are perfect for a break. It is precisely this pause, sitting facing the ruins with no other aim than to look, that makes the difference between a visit you tick off a list and a memory you really keep.
We strongly advise against combining Peyrusse-le-Roc with another visit on the same day: between the climb, the descent and the many viewpoints that make you want to stop, a full half-day goes by without you noticing. If you want to extend the day, a stop in Conques is better suited to another day of your stay than to the same afternoon.