Une maison de charme et de caractère au coeur du
PARC NATUREL REGIONAL 'ARIEGE PYRENEES'

Visits to the workshops of artisans who practice traditional crafts are a popular pastime for visitors to Ariège. Near Les Volets Bleus you can see the clog maker in the Bethmale valley, the glassblower in Le Mas d'Azil or visit traditional cheesemakers.

A museum close to Foix, Les Forges de Pyrène, has demonstrations of all the traditional trades of the region, from the distiller to the horn comb maker to the Catalan forge and the old-fashioned bakery...

The typical farmers' market on Saturday morning in Saint Girons is the best in Ariège and attracts merchants, small producers and locals who come to town from the valleys to shop and meet friends.

In early June, sheep, cows and horses are led into the mountain for the summer in the ancient tradition of the transhumance. Many valleys make a festival of it and you can accompany the flocks and herds up to the estives.

For two days in the beginning of August, Saint Girons celebrates "Autrefois the Couserans" with demonstrations of old methods of farming and craftsmanship, folk traditions and parades of antique farm vehicles and ox-drawn carts, all in period costume with the participation as well of Spanish neighbors from the Aran valley.

 

The prehistoric cave at Le Mas d'Azil