other activities

Walking holidays.

The Ariege-Couserans ( the 18 valleys converging on St Girons) contains some of the wildest, most remote and most spectacular scenery in the Pyrenees, as well as the gentler beauty of its lower valleys and slopes. You can walk for miles even in high season with only the sound of birds, the rustling of leaves and the sound of running water to keep you company.

Walking in the area is superb, whether you choose to go directly from Miramont, locally in the stunningly beautiful valleys of the Garbet, Ustou and Salat or to the more challenging peaks reachable from within an hour's drive. There are walks of all lengths to suit all abilities- from gentle afternoon family strolls to those requiring “Randonneur experimente” status.

The area is extremely well served by waymarked trails- the GR(Grande Randonnée)10 which runs the full length of the Pyrenees, passes at several points within 10 miles of Le Pichet and is easily accessible. The Commune d’Oust has produced a comprehensive map/guidebook of at least 20 “GR Pays” walks in the locality, and a number of more strenuous walks lead to the Spanish border, such as the wartime escape route, “le chemin de la liberté”, and those to the Ports (passes or gateways) de Salau, Aula, Couillac and Marterat. You can also arrange longer walks involving staying in mountain refuges. Le Pichet has an extensive range of guide books and maps for your use.

We are happy to help, should you wish, with any aspect of your walking holiday; to point you in the direction of suitable walks, to accompany you if required on those walks with which we are familiar, and to help with transport for any walks which benefit from the use of two cars, such as the descent (or ascent) of the GR10 from the Col de la Core into Seix, or from Guzet into Aulus. We make a nominal charge for accompanying you (we originally bought Le Pichet as a base for our own walking holidays, and consider it both a joy and a privilege to share our knowledge of this beautiful region with others) and, should you require a second vehicle we charge at cost for petrol.

Please note that we are not mountain guides; for those requiring the services of professional “accompagnateurs de montagne”, we can highly recommend our friends at www.bergtoppers.nl/ for walks at any level. There is also an office of mountain -guides based in Seix.

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Ski-ing: the small, but wonderfully family-orientated resort of Guzet-Neige is 30mins drive away. Prices are very reasonable compared with the Alps, queuing for the lifts is rare, group sizes for lessons are small and the instructors from L’Ecole du Ski Francais” are second to none. (We speak from personal experience – the enjoyment and progress of our 9 year-old son is proof in itself!)

Fishing: the rivers Garbet and Salat are excellent for trout; long and short term permits are available from Seix at very reasonable rates (details on request). There are also a number of fishing lakes within an hour’s drive.

Horse-riding: there is an excellent “Centre Equestre” near Oust, another at Massat; Donkey hire is available above Seix.

Canoeing and kayaking: in the upper and lower valley of the Salat.

Golf : Golf de L’Ariege is about 45 mins drive away.

Culture and History: The region is rich in historical associations, of which the Ariegeois are justly and fiercely proud. The beautiful Gallo-Roman town of St. Lizier adjoins St. Girons; the mediaeval chateau of Foix (the departmental capital) is less than one hour’s drive away, and the numerous castles associated with the brutal 13th century period of the Cathar heresy are within 2 hours drive, as is Europe’s largest area of prehistoric caves and paintings near Tarascon.

Local services: The villages of Oust and Seix are respectively 4 and 6k away supplying all needs. There is a doctor in Oust and pharmacy in Seix. For provisions, we particularly recommend the butchers in Oust, and the family bakers in both places. Seix has a small but very well stocked supermarket. For those wishing to eat out, the Café/bar du Garbet in Oust is outstanding, also excellent is the Auberge du Haut Salat in Seix, and the Auberge des Deux Rivieres at Pont de la Taule. The town of St. Girons, with a wide variety of shops, supermarkets and restaurants, not to mention a wonderful Saturday market, is about 20k away. For gourmet bargain–hunters, Andorra and Spain are respectively within 3 and 2h reach by car.

“Livre d’Or”: We have had some lovely comments over the past few years – click to read what our visitors have said.

The ski resort at Guzet-Neige

Riding at Coumariou

Foix castle

This site was last updated 11/02/2011