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The barn is situated
on 500 square metre plot in the centre of a pretty hamlet called Les
Clarets. There are few fences apart from functional farm fences which
keep summer cattle, horses and the occasional donkey where they are
supposed to be. We have resisted the temptation (difficult for an Englishman!)
to fence off the garden and create a plot separate from and not in character
with the hamlet. However, pets are generally very welcome in the hamlet
as long as they are reasonably well behaved. We have found the attitude
to pets in this rural region a little more relaxed than one might find
in England.
The local village is
4 kms away and has a good selection of shops such as; 2 bakers; a very
good butcher selling organically produced meat; a mini-supermarket;
a cheese co-operative; a newsagents; a hairdresser and even a cinema.
In the area of the Chartreuse,
there are a number of 'must see' tourist sites - such as the ancient
Chartreusian Monastery, the paintings of Acabas at St Hughe, the museum
of pre-historic bears and the Indian Forest activity park. The main
summer activity is hiking, horseriding and other outdoor mountain activities.
In the winter, there are downhill and cross-country skiing sites plus
numerous snow-shoe tour routes. The Chartreuse is designated as a National
Nature Park in recognition of its outstanding scenic beauty.
In les Vallées
des Entremont, there are 52 hamlets which are named after the families
who worked the alpage 50 years ago. The area is still a major producer
of organic food stuffs and the butcher in St. Pierre d'Entremont is
known all over France for the quality of his produce. Moreso, there
is an excellent cheese co-operative in the village where one can buy
Tom de Savoie, Comté and an excellent fruity Beaufort for a fraction
of the price one would pay in England or the rest of Europe. There are
also several local vineyards (close to Chambery) producing light and
fresh reds and an excellent white.
Les Clarets is a little
unusual since we still have a member of the original family living here.
Moreso, there are 4 families living here full time and several families
with weekend retreats. With two 'gites de group' in the hamlet (including
ours), weekends can be quite lively with walkers and family groups dining
outside in the traditional French fashion. During the summer, the weather
here can be glorious. At 3,300 feet altitude, in can be hot but not
at all humid. Winter brings its fair share of snow and plenty of opportunity
for snow-shoe tours in the wilds of nature, ski de fond and ski de piste
at St. Pierre de Chartreuse (11 kilometres - minibus available from
local village).
Les Clarets is situated
on a col between St. Pierre d'Entremont and Entremont le Vieux. Consequently,
the views from here are absolutely stunning with Grand Som and Chamchaud
to the south and Le Pinet dominating the northern view. For adherents
of 'Feng Shui', the energy in Les Clarets is always refreshing. We are
sure that's why everybody seems to want to come back !
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