📝 Detailed information
🏢 About the local organisation
After the success of the international workcamps carried out between 2005 and 2008, the municipality of Chomérac wishes to renew this experience and continue the valorization and the preservation of its heritage. This summer, in collaboration with the "Chomérac Patrimoine Vivant" association, the workcamp will focus on the restoration of a calade and the improvement of an old canal located nearby.
💼 What the programme involves
Chomérac is a former medieval town located on a hillside. It is composed of many narrow streets, set up as calades. The word "calade" is mainly used in Occitanie (South West of France) and along the Rhone Valley. It means a small sloping street made with pebbles from the neighboring river, here the Rhone river. You will take part in the restoration of one of the calades located near a canal which was formerly used by the water mill.
Chomérac is the birthplace of silk production in Ardèche since the 17th century. It is known for its rich heritage related to this textile activity. The mill activity needed water, that’s why many canals can be found there. Now the canal is almost completely dry, your mission will be to clear it from invasive vegetals and sediment that accumulated in its way, in order to embellish the canal and allow water to better circulate.
In this work, you will be supervised by the volunteers from the "Chomérac Patrimoine Vivant" association who will be happy to share with you their know-how and the site’s history.
Accommodated 10 minutes walk away, you will go to the workplace on foot and will work 4 to 5 hours a day.
🏠 Accommodation on site
You will be accommodated in the Triolet area, in the gym. You will have the necessary amenities for group living (WC, shower and kitchen). Located in the city center, you will have access to local shops (bakery, butcher, extra groceries). You will be involved in the collective preparation of meals and household tasks.
📍 About the location
Chomérac is located in the center-east of the Ardèche county, on the foothills of the Massif Central and has 3,000 inhabitants. You can walk through the streets of the old town center and climb up to the old castle’s Dungeon, a vestige of the religious wars. You can also discover the industrial past of the city with a visit to the numerous old mills, including the oldest called "La Royale", the Neuve aqueduct or the marble quarries. You can also walk on the hiking trails through the valley. The volunteers of the "Chomérac Patrimoine Vivant" association will propose you activities related to the discovery of the land and its terroir: hiking, Mont Gerbier des Joncs, visit of surrounding villages, organization of picnic. You can also take part in local life (market, flea markets...).
