Randonnée de l'observatoire de la Libertade

A hike in the region Midi-Pyrénées

The trail to Libertade leads to a look-out post, located near a "lavogne" (a washing-place). Maybe you will have the chance to see animals there... Two panels of the Regional Nature Park of Grands Causses will present plants and the landscape evolution. The third panel, at the look-out post, provides information for identifying animals. Perhaps you will be surprised to find small piles of stones on the way. These are "clapas" whose presence denotes former cultivated fields.

Information

General points

• Geographic situation. District : La Couvertoirade (department Aveyron, canton Nant)
                                     Road map with
• Starting point : Car park at the entrance of the village, Porte Nord (North Gate), on the road D55.
• The length of the stroll is estimated at 2,6 Km and the walk duration is about 1 h 15 mn.
• The stroll is marked out all along
• Stroll form : linear
  Remark about linear strolls : the duration of walk and the road-book are presented for one-way direction. Distance and time should be doubled when one goes and back.
• Stroll relief : flat (alt. mini = 790 m ; alt. maxi = 850 m)
• Maintenance : regular (right brushwood clearing)
• Exposure : open (a sun protection might be foreseen)

Events and information

Worth seeing. Visit Couvertoirade, one of the places of Larzac occupied by Knights Templar and Knights Hospitalar. If you walk in the alleys of the village, you will see that it is still inhabited. In summer, several Mondays are up to children with trail games, and also the medieval camp with exhibitions and concerts during the Estivales of Larzac. The program is available on the Web site www.lacouvertoirade.com, or you can get information at 05 65 58 55 59.

Noteworthy places

Clapas. Presence of small piles of stones (called "clapas") indicates a place which was formerly cultivated. Their origin lies in a traditional agricultural work: the clearing of stones from cultivated lands. These stones being heavy, they were not carried away and were piled on the edges of fields, either in low walls or in small mounds.

Cazelle. Cazelle is the local word for a dry-stone hut used as a shelter by sheepherders when it rains.

Pelouses sèches. The dry grasslands on the limestone plateau of Larzac constitute typical landscapes shaped by agricultural processes. Originally, this country was covered by forests, but it was cleared and kept cleared by sheep grazing. In spring, orchids cover the plateau, but, as several species are protected, you should not pick them.

Maps

IGN 2641 O, IGN 2641 E.