Gite de Nedé, mountain shepherds barn.

Thé Gîte de Nedé is a renovated barn nestled in a mountain farm at 850m altitude. It is in a tiny hamlet in the heart of the French Pyrenees. Surrounded by forest, meadow, river and village walks. Thé gîte has a glass fronted wood burner for cozy nights in and a private terrace for outside dining. In the summer there is an outdoor family swimming pool 10 minutes drive and in the winter skiing at Mourtis 45 minutes (Website hidden by Airbnb) is a unique place to experience all the joys of authentic mountain life. The gite de Nede is called this because it sits in a little valley where the river Nede flows. It is so quiet you can sit outside and hear the river flowing. The ground floor of the gite is approximately 40m square. It is open plan with two upper mezzanines. Each level or mezzanine is accessed by a ladder. The ground floor has a kitchen, dining area, a cozy salon around the wood burner, a shower room and dry toilet. The second mezzanine is the master bedroom with a double bed. The top attic mezzanine has two single beds. The gîte is decorated with natural eco products and the floor is mosaiced with repurposed local terracotta and marble. It took over two year to renovate from our goats barn into the beautiful gite it is today driven by a genuine desire to share our community, farm life and produce. The gite has its own private terrace, perfect for dining or relaxing. The gite has an indoor dry toilet and and outside dry toilet. This means you use sawdust rather than water. It is odeur free and hygienic. The indoor toilet will need emptying on departure if you use it. The gite has its own private parking space. We have hosted families, couples, lovers and friends! Everyone loves the Gite de Nedé and the surrounding farms, villages, forests, meadows and rivers. We hope you will too?!... The gite de Nede is situated independently. Guests are welcome to explore our gardens, farm and use the swing behind the gite. Please take care with electric fencing and close all gates. The gite comes with its own private terrace. Ideal for bbq, dinning out or relaxing. We call it the ‘Water Terrace’ because there is a wildlife pond and a mosaiced floor which represents the continuous flow of water! The gite only has one key. Please never take the key off-site. When you go out for the day please leave it either in the door or the outside toilet. We live in the last house in the hamlet Coume Duran. We are available for help or advise. We welcome our guests to visit our pigs and other animals. We speak French and English. Coume Duran is a tiny hamlet on the side of the mountain in the little valley de Nede. In the summer it is a 10 minutes drive to an outdoor pool. In winter Mourtis ski resort is 45mins drive. The gite sits on a road and has excellent access straight to the door. There is little passing traffic so it is safe for children. There are no street lights so it is possible to enjoy the stars and constellations on a clear night. There are two great local bars / cafes with Internet access. These are NostaCourtui in Orgibet and Chez Joes in Porter de Aspet. Both within 5 minutes drive. There is an epicerie/cafe/pizza bar in st Lary. It is a 45 min walk there directly through the forest along the river path or you can drive there in 5 minutes. There is a carrefour express in Castillon en couserans about 10 minutes drive and Larger shops in St Girons 30 - 45 minutes drive away. There is a weekly Saturday market in st girons and various small local village markets during the week. In the summer nearly all the villages in the valley de Bellonge host their annual fete. These are great fun for all the family. There is so much to explore here in the Ariège... I’m not sure where to begin!? Here you can leave the car outside the gite and access some amazing walks. You can head up the mountain for the magnificent views or head down to the rivers for swimming and into the pretty local villages. Of particular interest is the church at Audressein which sits on the Compostella De Santiago and the “Jjardin Pierre” in Alas which has many eccentric stone sculptures all along the river edge. There’s two local ski resorts. Guzet and Mourtis. Guzet is approx 1.30 mins and Mourtis about 45 mins drive away from the gite. Both offer ski equipment hire and are great for families.... If we have snow around us we know some great local places for sledging within walking distance of the gite. There are many local VTT tracks through woods and over meadows and the roads are great for biking too. Bi-annually the tour de france passes directly past the village Augirein. I believe it is due to pass this year 2018? Slightly further afield some of our favourite places to visit include the Riberot valley where you can see the waterfalls of mount Valier , eat at the maison de Valier or climb to the summit (in season). The caves at Mas D’Azil are of prehistoric interest and the unusual and unique Chateau de Foix is of interest due to its 3 different shaped towers and historical links to the Cathars. In true French tradition there are many markets selling local, seasonal and organic foods and other creative produce. These include:- Saturday - St Girons a large vibrant market where traders from all the valleys converge to sell their produce, including us. We sell fresh organic juices and smoothies and Indian “Dosas” or crepes. Tuesday - Castillon en couserans (seasonal) Wednesday - Augirein our very own seasonal and local market. Where our neighbours meet to sell their wares. We often sell our pork here, other vendors include locally made balms, cheeses, vegetables and wood crafts. Wednesday - Mas D’Azil. All year. A medium sized market in a beautiful place. Friday - Foix market. All year. A large vibrant market and flea market spread out around this beautiful and ancient city Sunday - Engomer. All year. A fantastic local market, where you can enjoy a drink in the bar and some delicious street food. We would like to add that there is hardly any public transport. Hitch hiking is the norm. Feel free to pick up a local. It’s a great way to hear about events and activities! Please note our cleaning fee reflects the additional work incurred due to the pandemic and pays a fair wage to our co-host. We continue to provide freshly laundered linen for the bedrooms, bathroom, salon and kitchen, so you don’t have to think about packing and washing these. We work hard to support our community, keep our standards high and your experience honest and refreshing.. Thank you for your understanding and see you soon. Juices and smoothies We run a fresh organic juice and smoothie bar at many events and the weekly Saturday st girons market. We sell delicious 1L bottles for 10€. Great for breakfast or to take on a walk. Our juices are usually orange or apple based with varying flavours e.g. berries or greens depending on the season or tastes. Please ask if you are interested. In season we sell various cuts of our exceptional organic free range mountain farm black gascon pork. Please ask if you are interested. Bonne appetite!