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Terres Noires et Ferme de Belon
Sport, Pedestrian sports, Hiking itinerary
in Draix
8.6
km
3h
Medium
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From Draix, a village surrounded by landscapes of black marl (a mixture of clay and limestone), the route reaches the <i>Refuge d’Art-Ferme Belon</i> by the artist Andy Goldworthy (2003) belonging to the Art in the Mountains collection of the Gassendi Museum.
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From the village church you have to take the road towards La Rouine. At "Gardivouère" continue on the road on the right towards La Javie. Pass by "Le Défends de la Motte", continue on the track in the middle of the Terres Noires until "Champ Gras". During the Secondary Era (or Mesozoic), thick marl formations were deposited several times in our region. The first level, at our feet, dates back to the Lias, a period of the Secondary Era dated from 185 to 170 million years ago. It corresponds...
From the village church you have to take the road towards La Rouine. At "Gardivouère" continue on the road on the right towards La Javie. Pass by "Le Défends de la Motte", continue on the track in the middle of the Terres Noires until "Champ Gras". During the Secondary Era (or Mesozoic), thick marl formations were deposited several times in our region. The first level, at our feet, dates back to the Lias, a period of the Secondary Era dated from 185 to 170 million years ago. It corresponds to a period of deepening of the Alpine sea which accommodates vast quantities of clay-quartz sediments in an environment poor in oxygen, which is the origin of the black color of these rocks. This Draix site is an environmental research observatory on hydrological and erosive processes in the mountains led by Cemagref.
At “Champ Gras”, turn left towards “Ferme de Belon”. After 300 m, the access path to Ferme de Belon goes up to the right. The refuge is revealed at the edge of a clearing!
A major site of resistance, the farm today houses a work with an evocative ghostly presence. The interweaving of stone arches, designed by Andy Goldsworthy, refers to the clandestine nature of the resistance. Today it is also possible to sleep there: the first floor is converted into a shelter for 4 people. You must collect the key from the Gassendi museum in Digne. Rental cost: €7,50. Be careful, there is a water point outside, but it is not always in operation.
Refuge d’Art is a single work of art to be covered in about ten days of walking. Today, it consists of seven refuges and three Sentinels linked by a path. Originally, old abandoned farm buildings, a ruined chapel, collapsed shepherd's huts... founded the project of their restoration by the artist, in order to accommodate a work and shelter walkers and hikers. Andy Goldsworthy (Sale Moor, England, 1956) places nature at the heart of his work. But without reducing his works to natural materials, nor to the natural processes that pass through them, he takes into account the nature of the place and its history. This explains why Andy Goldsworthy works mainly in places marked by human presence.
From there, retrace your steps to join the Terres Noires loop and continue the path towards the village of Draix.
Find the full description of the route in the Topo guide “Art in the mountains, 22 hikes to discover contemporary art in the Haute-Provence Geopark” (€15), available at the reception of the Gassendi Museum, the Maison Alexandra David-Néel, and the tourist office.
- Departure
- Draix
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Difference in height
- 264.667 m
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Environment
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Spoken languages
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Documentation
- GPX / KML files allow you to export the trail of your hike to your GPS (or other navigation tool)
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- See all reviews
- 265 meters of difference in height
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- Maximum altitude : 949 m
- Minimum altitude : 810 m
- Total positive elevation : 265 m
- Total negative elevation : -265 m
- Max positive elevation : 73 m
- Min positive elevation : -131 m
Services
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Equipment
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