“Haumont” meaning hilltop, is a former parish of 200 hectares (450 acres), home to about 20 families. It first had electricity in 1957, then mains water and the telephone around 1966. It still doesn't have broadband. But it does have lovely countryside, and a state-of-the-art Boarding Cattery, and a tiny rural cottage to let for short breaks.
We are on the south ridge of the ancient bank of the Garonne, 50 minutes from Toulouse airport, Auch, Agen and Montauban. Lourdes and Bordeaux are just two hours away. The area is famous for white garlic which is still peeled by hand. There are two local vineyards, lots of fruit growing and hazelnuts. The farming is mostly arable, and includes corn, wheat, soya, sunflowers and rape-seed.
The estate here called Barrau has 14 sloping acres, half of it indigenous deciduous
woodland, half of it fields. Blackberry has been allowed to colonise a lot of the downhill field,
forming extensive wildlife corridors and is the food plant & shelter for bees, wasps, butterflies,
nesting birds, hares and the occasional wild boar.
We're on the bird migration route through the Pyrenees . Summer grasslands buzz with insects, providing food for swallows, swifts, frogs, toads, lizards and snakes. We have on-going wildlife audits, and so far have identified 49 bird species, 48 butterfly species, and hundreds of types of moths and beetles.
