Track Menhir

2 points of interest

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  Agropastoralism

  A buissière is a protective pathway made of two rows of box trees. In this case, the right side of the first part of the hedge has been removed in order to allow an easier passage. Nevertheless, the remaining hedgerow is still efficient against the prevailing winds. The other side of the buissière is still intact. This means of traversing the Causses is still used, because of the harsh and contrasted climate – very hot in summer and freezing in winter. In the buissière, the sheep flocks are sheltered from wind, snow and heat...

  No way to escape from this system of “channels”! People and carts also used to take these pathways for similar reasons. As connections between hamlets, grazing lands, sheepfolds and water ponds, buissières bear witness to the use of the pastoral areas.
  Information : Box tree moths are active from May to October. During the caterpillar phase, they feed on the leaves of box trees. They crawl down trees and move on long silken threads, although these threads are annoying when hiking they do not pose any health risk
  
  
  

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  Archeology

  Soulzon Menhir

  This large stone with rounded shapes is over three metres high and is often referred to as a “menhir”, although no features corresponding to an authentic menhir has been identified (a menhir is a large upright standing stone erected by man between 3500 and 2000 BC). Different interpretations have been given about its origins: is it a mere remnant of one of the Combalou's many fallen rocks, upon which a cross was carved in medieval times to turn it into a territorial marker, a boundary stone for instance, between the Montclarat and the Tournemire communities? Or is it an ancient menhir that was Christianised (2 crosses deeply engraved next to each other) as so many other megaliths were?