Of Bears and Other Animals.

A few years ago in this area of the Ariege some bears were released back into the wild where they had freely roamed until they had been killed of several years previously. This, as was to be expected in a farming area, created tensions between those who favoured a return of the bears and those who feared their livelihood - and livestock - were at increased risk. This dispute has been most noticeable in the slogans painted on walls, bridges and even on the surface of local roads. 'Non!' and 'Oui a Ours!' are commonly seen here as well as more recent slogans saying 'Paix a Ours' or, in the local language of Occitan, 'Patz Ors.' I have never seen any of the bears while we have been visiting here and I am not sure there have been any incidents of lost livestock but it remains a hotly debated, publicly displayed topic of dispute.
What we do tend to witness, because of the timing of our annual visit in early June, is the annual transhummance when the local farmers gather their cows, sheep and horses in the local villages before moving them to the high pastures for the summer. This is always a festive event and on more than one occasion we have been going for a drive when we have found our car surrounded by cud-chewing pedestrians plodding bovinely to the nearest village. This can be quite tricky on some of the precipitous and narrow mountain roads!
Tony and Sue, our hosts, are members of a local dancing group which perform at such events. Dressed in appropriate local traditional attire, sometimes with clogs, and accompanied by local musicians, they perform ariegeoise country dances as well as dances from around the world. Having been feted with dancing, singing, speeches and drinks, the animals are then moved on, en masse to the high pastures - a walk of several hours in some cases, with the accompanying humans spending a night on the mountains with them.
It is a hard life, farming in the mountainous regions of the Pyrenees and while there are keenly debated and divisive arguments about the best way to preserve the local environment there are equally agreeable, unifying traditions which firmly bind the local people together in their common heritage.