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Small renovated cottage in the heart of the Cévennes. Sleeps 2. Ideal for walking holidays, Stevenson's Trail nearby. Quiet and peaceful place in the "green mountains".

This small "gîte" is ideal for nature lovers, away from it all in a peaceful and secluded location. A small and quiet country road borders the property, you will hardly even notice it.

The cottage, probably a former small farm with a sheepfold below, was renovated in 2013-14 and carefully decorated.

You will enjoy a private sunny terrace with gorgeous views of Mount Aigoual in the distance and the whole property as your garden, from the vegetable garden to the hen house and as far as the apiary if you wish.

You will be able to taste our fresh vegetables, eggs and honey (all produced organically on a small scale) - season permitting.

The main house where we live is at a stone's throw but turning its back to yours, you will not even notice us. The neighbouring house next to your cottage is unoccupied.

We love and welcome well-behaved pets. Our female Jack Russell will certainly come and say hello now and then. The property is not fenced.

There is no television but there is a WiFi Internet connection (limited volume : no heavy downloads or streaming, please).

There are superb bathing opportunities in the nearby gardons (about 15 minutes' drive).

This really is a walkers' paradise ! We will advise you and provide all the required maps and leaflets on local walks, deep into valleys and over (modest) summits.

The region

We are right in the heart of the "Cévenne des Cévennes". Tucked away between two mountain ranges, with Mont Lozère (1699 m) to the north and Mont Aigoual (1597 m) to the south, the "Vallées cévenoles" are covered with chestnut trees, evergreen oaks and pine trees. The main three "gardons" all flow together to form the river Gard. The climate is never too hot in summer (the elevation is 640 m), the thunderstorms can be spectacular, especially in August, but on the next morning the sky is clear again. Winters are normally mild with some frost, we rarely get any snow nowadays. Having lunch on the terrace around Christmas is not exceptional. The rain, sometimes very heavy, falls mainly in April-May and October-November. Spring is particularly pretty with the white heather in April, the acacia and the broom blooming in May-June. Mid-July is the time for the chestnut trees flowering with the typical sweet fragrance hanging on in the atmosphere.The colours in autumn are absolutely fabulous.

The area

In the village of St-Etienne-Vallée-Française (7 km), you will find 2 food shops, petrol, 2 restaurants, a post office (no cash machine), a medical house, a tourist office. During the summer holidays, there is a small producers' market on Monday nights.

The busy Tuesday market in St-Jean-du-Gard is very popular. The neighbouring villages of Ste-Croix-Vallée-Française and St-Germain-de-Calberte also offer various attractions and local producers' markets in summer.

There are lots of live bands performing in the valleys throughout the summer. "Cinéco", run by volunteers all year round, shows non commercial films in the "Art & Essai" category .

The bambouseraie d'Anduze (bamboo garden) is really worth a visit. The best way to get there is to take the small steam train (Easter to October) from St-Jean-du-Gard. It winds its way through the gardon valley, stops in Anduze town centre before getting to the bambouseraie.