Help preparing land and care for plants in Saint-Paul, France

Details

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  Description

  Old farm house located in the central Hautes Pyrenees with about a hectare of land which I need help clearing. Beautiful location with 180 degree uninterrupted view of the mountain range. An easy half hour walk to the foothills, 10 minutes to the river Neste and 15 minutesto the nearest small town with supermarche. Several family members visit covering about 8 weeks a year and we need extra hands on site to help with maintaining the land. The old 1860 house which is very basic sits on the edge of the Lannemezan plateau and about 2km from the first foot hill which is about 800m in height. Behind that, the next hill is around 1800m. Snow on the hills during winter and 40 degrees at the house in the summer. The work will mostly be helping with copicing and clearing scrub. The community is about as mountain rural as it gets in France and is about 3hrs cycle to the Spannish border. Spain can also reached on foot in a couple of days. Good access to the local towns train station is one hours walk and then an hours train ride to Tolouse. Gr10 trail is a few hours walk. Looking to clear an area of ground which is south facing to plant about 500 vines. The soil type is acidic. The rocks in the soil are metamorphic and left by the last ice age. The house is build from these rocks. We are a down to earth people, more interested in the natural world than renovating property. We have basic solar for charging usb devices and cellular mobile signal is full 4g with hints of 5g.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Language practice

  Help with Eco Projects

  Light gardening

  Creative DIY projects

  Farmstay help

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Light maintenance
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  Interests

  

  Sustainability

  

  Culture

  

  Politics / Social justice

  

  Self development

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Writing

  

  Drawing & painting

  

  Art & design

  

  History

  

  Books

  

  Yoga / Wellness

  

  Water sports

  

  Outdoor activities

  

  Cycling

  

  Hiking

  

  Mountain

  

  Nature

  

  Camping

  

  Beach

  

  Adventure sports
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  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

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  What's this?
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  We are English who own an old French Pyrenean farm house with a little land. Our family members have skills that include art, technology, psychology, mountaineering/expedition leading and planning, life coaching, chefing and anthropology and phenomenology. We have indepth pratical experience of helping care for neuro-diversity spanning decades. Our French is around A1 level. Philosophy and ethics are a worthy talking point, comparing analytical and continental approaches. We are passionate cyclists, only using the bicycle at the farmhouse - with the beautiful hills of the green French Pyrenees to the longitudinal flat roads spanning east and west along the foot hills this is a great healthy location. We hope to show others how we energise and fuel our lives with the natural world and simultaneously, learn how other cultures synthesise theirs.

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  Help

  To help the host with copicing and clearing scrub to maintain field boundaries. Helping make fence posts from the coppiced timber; preparing logs for the winters fuel; building small timber ricks for kindling; making brushes from broom; mulching smaller branches; perhaps some strimming, pruning, hedge trimming and clipping. You will do tasks with the hosts and if happy to do so, independently at times . Preparing a small area to plant vines which means clearing root systems from the locally invasive species of plants. This requires some shallow digging to find the bulb, then tracing through the entire root system. There maybe opportunity to use some of the coppiced tree stems to build teepee structures further up the field.. These could become a place for workawayers to stay overnight if they would like the experience. The land is also a passage for wild animals including deer, boar, badgers, edible door mice, some species of european reptiles, fire salamanders, red kites, cuckoo's, redstarts, praying mantis, crickets, beetles, wasps, hornets, flies etc. The volunteer will need to accept that they may encounter any of these during their stay. Allbeit, most mammals keep a good distance beyond sight. Due to the changing hot climate, work will commence very early during the hot months and consist mostly of non machinery - which is a local restriction. As such manual dexterity will be required. The help is not heavy where the rapid growing invasive trees range between 1 and 5 cm and grow very straight and rapidly. Once cut and seasoned, they may perfect poles and can last up to 100years. Trees include Faux Acacia, European oak, Cheery, Horse Chestnut. They all spread using underground root runners. We aim to strike a balance between species. If the volunteer would prefer to have a change, other lighter opportunities include painting, or possibly helping with laying out floor boarding in the barn.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  French: Beginner

  This host offers a language exchange
  Very interested in learning the different cultural inflections of the French spoken language. We are English, with one family member having taught English to children under 11 years in schools.
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  Accommodation

  Caravan under open barn adjoining owners house will be the volunteers for the length of their stay. We can prepare the meals and eat together or prepare a packed lunch for the evening if volunteers wishes to go out after working hours. If the volunteer wishes to suppliment their meals then supermarche's are 20 minute cycle ride or an hours walk through the lanes and fields. The couryard within which the house and barn are located is gated and locked overnight. There is the one and only street light along this country road outside the gated entrance.

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  What else ...

  Swim, cycle, walk. Train station 1.5hrs walk with onwards destinations of Toulouse 1.5 hours and Luchon 30mins. Old Nistos ski slopes 3.5hrs on bicycle uphill!! Montrejeau, Lannemezan next towns east and west - both accessible by bicycle. No busses anywhere. Few taxi's.

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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  My animals / pets

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