Huntin, Shootin 'n Fishin

We're a few weeks into the Hunting season now and each Wednesday and Sunday morning resounds to the sound of rifles in the nearby woods.

"La Chasse" begins in early October when the hunters come out in force to control the population of wild rabbits, deer and of course the wild boar - "Le Sanglier". Although I've not come across a boar myself (yet), they are about near here and have been seen during the late evenings by various guests on their return from a local restaurant.

We frequently get deer straying through the vines at the end of our drive and occasionally onto our front lawn, but they are very timid creatures and the slightest sound or movement will send them bounding away into the cover of the forest.

All around the Gers, fishing is also very popular with trout being found in plentiful supply in the many rivers between here and the foothills of the Pyrenees. There is some concern in local government that the amount of chemicals being dumped in the local rivers by the farming community is becoming a problem, but it is usually dismissed as "pas de probleme à ce moment" with a Gallic shrug of the shoulders.

At the end of the hunting season in March, there's a grand feast at the local "Salle des Fètes" in Bezolles of some of the meats caught during the previous months. Last year's extravaganza lasted nearly 7 hours and comprised many courses of meat interspersed with various Gascogne wines and finishing with some Armaganac.

We decided to walk home that evening and come back the next morning to retrieve our car. We weren't alone !!