Myriam & Jonathan Peat
58 rue Peyrevidal
09800 Castillon en Couserans
Ariège-Pyrénées, France
Tel : (33)
05 61 04 64 47
et 06 73 70 78 04
myriam.peat@wanadoo.fr
English, Greek spoken
5 bedrooms


Snowshoeing in the Pyrenees

Snowshoeing is the fastest-growing winter sport in France. It's a different way to take a winter break and it's fun. Even if you're a skilled skier or snowboarder you'll get a lot from snowshoeing because it'll take you to places that can't be reached any other way. You'll walk through forests that look like backdrops to a fairy tale. You'll walk by the side of frozen lakes, in valleys blanketed with snow. After a day or so, you'll be making descents you'd have thought impossible the day before!

You don't need any experience; you don’t need to bring special equipment. We'll loan you modern, lightweight snowshoes and poles; we'll show you how to use them. In 15 minutes you'll know enough to get started. By the end of the first day's snowshoeing you’ll have picked up all you need to know to snowshoe confidently, up and down, over all sorts of terrain, with style and daring!

You don't have to be an Olympic athlete to go snowshoeing but you should be fit enough to walk six or eight miles in a day, including some uphill stretches.

To make a reservation, please request a booking form through our web site jonathanstours.com

We will take you snowshoeing in the High Couserans in the Ariege region of the central Pyrenees, one of the most remote and unspoiled regions of Europe. We'll walk in and around the valleys of Biros, Bethmal and Bellelongue; we will look across the ridge that separates France from Spain. If we're lucky we will see the tracks of brown bears and isards. We'll walk through isolated villages and pass the ruins of abandoned farms.

At the end of each day we'll return to Le Clos Enchanté, an early nineteenth century manor house restored by Jonathan and Myriam Peat, to relax and to reinvigorate ourselves with a dinner cooked using, whenever possible, local organic produce. Wine from the family vineyard in Bordeaux will be served.

Your guides will be Phillippe Cazes, who has guided locally for more than 20 years, and Jonathan Peat, who has guided walking holidays in Greece and France for nearly 20 years. Between them the two guides speak English, Greek and French

DATES AND PRICES :

Short stay
4 nights - 3 1/2 days of snowshoeing, 385 € per adult
Tuesday 2 to Saturday 6 January 2007 > price reduced to 345 €
Monday 15 to Friday 19 January 2007
Tuesday 23 to Saturday 27 January 2007
Wednesday 7 to Sunday 11 February 2007

Long stay
6 nights-5 1/2 days of snowshoeing, 525 € per adult
Monday 15 to Sunday 21 January 2007
Sunday 28 January to Saturday 3 February 2007
Monday 5 to Sunday 11 February 2007
Monday 12 to Sunday 18 February 2007

Family Special : 2 nights – 2 1/2 days of snowshoeing, 245 € per adult and 155 € per child (6 to 16 years old)
Friday 16 to Sunday 18 February 2007
Friday 23 to Sunday 25 February 2007
Thursday 1st to Saturday 3 March 2007

Choose your dates and we will send you further details by post or email.

The price is based on two people sharing a room. There is a supplement of 90 € for the single-occupancy of a room with more than one bed. If a group books the entire accommodation (a minimum of 12 people) there is a discount of 10%. A non-refundable deposit of 140 € is payable on booking; the balance is due four weeks before departure.

Price includes:

  • Hire of snowshoes, poles and safety equipment
  • Services of two qualified guides
  • B&B accommodations with breakfast, picnic and evening meal