📝 Detailed information
🏢 About the local organisation
Today, in the village of Agnielles, there are many houses in ruins due to the lack of means to restore them. The old school of the village is being rehabilitated to set up an inn and an equestrian farm. The National Office of the Forest (NOF), owner of the village, has entirely restored some rooms for night stop-overs, which are part of one of the Haut Büech trails. The NOF, encouraged by a local association, wants to restore dry stone paths and walls in the village, in order to restore the heritage in a coherent landscape.
💼 What the programme involves
The hamlet of Agnielles is located on the edge of a path that winds along the Agnielles torrent in a deep and beautiful valley. Several stone buildings were built on the south-east slope, but a lof them are now, in ruins. To access the houses, there are access ramps and dry stone retaining walls. You will help to restore these retaining walls along the path before reaching the hamlet, as well as the one located near the old school and to create dry stone steps.
The following work will be undertaken: dismantling and sorting of the stones, earthworks and reconstruction of the walls according to the very precise technique of dry stone construction (theoretical and practical input).
The workcamp will be supervised by a professional in dry stone construction techniques. A daily work of 6 hours is planned, the organization of the days will be discussed and decided by the group of participants. The pedagogical objective is to discover a traditional construction technique which does not require any material, except stones from the stoning of fields intended for agriculture or recovered from old buildings. Theoretical, historical and practical contributions will be disseminated. It should be noted that this workcamp is part of a more global action to enhance the site of the chapel.
🏠 Accommodation on site
You will be accommodated in the rooms that were restored by the National Office of the Forest. An animation team will be present to help you in the organization of the collective life: planning of household chores, elaboration of menus and preparation of meals in turn, organization of leisure activities and outings. The purchase of local products is widely favoured.
📍 About the location
You will be able to discover the natural treasures and heritage (history and heritage linked to the river, discovery of animals and vegetation…) of the Büech valley, integrated into the Natura 2000 site (network of core breeding and resting sites for rare and threatened species, and some rare natural habitat types), where the hamlet of Agnielles is located. The Natura 2000 animator of the site will be ablo to propose you a discovery of these treasures! Near Agnielles, you can swim in the Büech and the Agnielles torrent, discover major sites in the Hautes-Alpes : Claussone abbey, Saint-Genis mountain, Vaunières’ village...