[Balade] Parcours découvertes de Sorède

Leave from the Tourist Office. Cross the Rue de la Caserne and reach the Town Hall car park. Go along this one and take the passage which passes under the hackberries. The famous hackberries that made Sorède famous at the beginning of the 20th century and still today thanks to the ESAT.
Go up a few steps and turn left to take rue de la Maréchalerie. The houses are typically attached to it. They constituted the protective enclosure of the castle because they were located less than 30 feet from the church. In the 1900s, craftsmanship was very present in the streets of our village: cooper, harness maker, mule driver, blacksmith, farrier. On the right, take Côte de l'église and stop in front of the entrance.
The parish church: Former seigniorial chapel, it became a church in the 12th century. Its typical Romanesque capital bears witness to this period. It is dedicated to St-Assiscle and Ste-Victoire whose relics were brought back from Cordoba. The inscription “Populus me fecit”: 1733 carved on the capital indicates its complete restoration in the 18th century.
On the Place de la République, go under the porch and at the end of the street turn left. Take the first street on the left to return to the square. You have just gone around the castle. The fortress building: Fortified in 1299, it belonged to the nobility until the Revolution. The porch was the large guard room and the current Place de la République was the parade ground. These are the only remains. Today it is a private domain. It houses an old oil mill which was used until the great cold of 1955/1956.
Take rue Saint-Jacques towards the Salle des Fêtes. Rue Saint-Jacques: This street crosses the old “Hortolans” district (from “hort” in Catalan which means garden). In the past, many gardens were located there. They were enjoying the water from the canal that winds nearby. A statue dedicated to Saint-Jacques is placed on the facade of a house, thus honoring the patron saint of gardeners. In front of this house, take the dead end on the right.
Rue du Rec Mayral: At the end of the street, we discover a very ancient irrigation principle “Le Rec Mayral” and its twenty secondary canals constituted the village's watering canal. Thanks to a system of valves, they allowed neighboring gardens to receive water all year round. Heavily regulated during periods of drought, it is still the source of many small conflicts today. Retrace your steps and take the street which goes down to the left of the hotel les mas: At the end of the path, you emerge between Mas Miquel (on the right) and Mas Soula (on the left). In the past, many isolated farmhouses surrounded the village, including: Mas Bassole, Mas Florenti, Mas Tarté. Turn left and take the first left, rue du Mas Soula.
Opposite No. 20, take the small path that goes down. Vicinal Road No. 8: This path ran along the foothills of the Albères from Villelongue dels Monts. It provided access to the church of Sainte-Marie de la Coberta, which has now disappeared and was washed away by the waters in the 17th century. La Font del Bisbe: This can be literally translated as the “Bishop's Fountain”. It owes its name to the Legate of Pope Martin IV, Bishop Cholet, who accompanied Philip III the Bold and his army in 1285 during the crusade against the King of Aragon. He had gone there to rest. Do the same, if you feel like it... Cross the footbridge and follow the path that goes up. Turn at the first street on your right. You are in the “Mas Félis” district. Mas Félix: This place housed one of the first grain mills.
Follow the main road. Rue du Veinat: It runs along the river and goes up to Christ. Le Veinat means “The neighborhood” in Catalan. This neighborhood remained isolated from the village for a long time and was a hamlet in its own right. At the end of the street, on your right: Le Christ des Missions: In 1893, wooden crosses were erected following the return of an Evangelical mission, hence its name. The road that goes off to the right leads to the Notre-Dame du Château chapel. On your left, a small path goes down to the river and takes you to the “Rouréde” (oak plantation). Rue des Châtaigniers: It crosses a part of the neighborhood called “Formiguer”. In the past, there were small mounds surrounded by brushwood and thickets that looked like giant anthills. These piles of plants were crushed to improve crops. At the first intersection, take the dead-end road on your right. Rue des Micocouliers: It owes its name to the tree that made Sorède famous. At the beginning of the 20th century, more than 300 Sorède residents worked to make whips, splints and horse collars from this wood. The factory, the only industry of this type still in operation in the world, is located on rue du stade. We invite you to visit it. Admission is free. Follow the passage under the trees, you are now along the irrigation channel
The Puits du Cap de la Riba: This can be translated as the “Well above the bank”. The fountain project was very developed in our town and this well was one of the most important due to its location. The water drawn from it was fresh and tasty. Many people came there and often lingered there. In front of you, the footbridge, which has been washed away several times, leads to the “Font del Sabater” (Fountain of the cobbler where he soaked his leathers). Today it no longer flows because it has been diverted. Near the well, take the inclined plane that goes up.
Opposite, take Rue du Mas del Rost and turn into the first street on the left Rue des Acacias: This is a neighborhood of typical houses, with terraces, external staircases and cellars. It was disadvantaged because no canal crossed it. It was home to old large families who made it one of the liveliest places in the village. Many of its inhabitants worked for the whip factory.
Turn left and immediately take a right. The Campet district: Literally “small field”. It took this name because each house was adjacent to a “small meadow”. Located on the right bank of the river, it is an important district, where the cradle of old Sorédian families still remains.
After 100 meters, turn on your left. La Traverse du Campet: You will discover in this small street, real Catalan houses which have retained their authentic character. There was access to the river which, like many other places, allowed people to empty their chamber pots. At the end of the street turn left. 
The bridge: It was built in 1841 over several decades. Before its construction, we used the street on the right which led to a ford, near the wash houses where we could cross the Sorède river called “Le Tassio”.
After the bridge, take the street opposite, Rue du Puits. At the end, turn right and continue to Place Combes. 
Place Combes: This is the current market square. It was previously called Place St-Pierre after a saint whose statue was located there. The grain market was held there. It was renamed in 1905 when it took the name of Emile Combes (left-wing senator advocating a militant and anticlerical policy). At the butcher's shop, continue along Rue du Centre to Place Padre Himalaya. The sundial: Unique in France,
the Sorède sundial was inaugurated in 2013. It excellently combines creation and technology. Take rue de la barracks, you are back at your starting point: the Tourist Office