Place: Volonne (Alpes-de-la-Haute-Provence)

Participants: Adults

Workcamp description:

Sheltered by its rocky outcrop, the village of Volonne offers a maze of medieval alleys that are gradually recovering their original pavement, the calade, whose construction technique consists of covering the ground with small stones planted very tightly on a bed of sand. You will learn the "art de la calade" and discover the numerous surrounding villages, the green gorges of the Verdon, the tumultuous Durance and all the geological curiosities of the region.
This is the last session on this street, so don't miss it!

Work programme:

• Build a cobblestone lane with a water line
• Pack the cobblestone sets with lime mortar

Building technique: Stone cobble on a bed of dry lime mortar

Special bonus : If you’re longing for a lush, leafy-green sanctuary, this workcamp close to the Alps, Luberon and Verdon is just for you.

Event during the workcamp: A major medieval festival in the heart of the village. A whole weekend to discover life in the Middle Ages, so get your costumes ready!

Accommodation:
You'll be staying at the municipal stadium, with access to changing rooms and toilets, which is a 15-minute walk from the site. The refreshment area will serve as your kitchen. You will sleep in tents large enough to accommodate two people. Camp beds will be available for those who don't have their own camping equipment. You can bring your own tent, camp bed or mattress if you wish.

Workcamp life:
During your stay, you will be supervised by 2 activity leaders. The technical supervisor will teach you all about traditional building techniques, and the educational supervisor will help you organize your daily life and leisure activities.

Adults spend around 30 hours a week working on the site. Work on the site takes place in the mornings, starting early because of the summer heat. The afternoons, evenings and weekends are devoted to outdoor and discovery activities, providing relaxation and pleasure. Two vehicles are made available to the supervisors to organize outings.

You will take it in turns to prepare meals as a team. You'll take it in turns to prepare meals as a team, giving you the chance to share recipes from your own region and sample countless specialities from other parts of the world. If you're already a “chef”, that's perfect; if you're not... Get cooking!

On all our sites, we want our volunteers to play a real role in their stay, so we invite them to work together to propose the activities and events of their choice, in keeping with the values that the association wishes to uphold.

Some ideas for excursions: The world-famous ammonite slab, a magnet for Geologists and sight-seers, the Roman monastery Ganagobie, the Priory, museum and garden of Salagon, the Citadel at Sisteron, the towering Pénitents des Mées rock formations, hiking in the foot slopes of the Alps and the Luberon, swimming in the Verdon Gorges and nearby lakes.

A little bit of history:

The name, Volonne, is thought to come from the Celtic word “Vel Aon”, which means “to the water”. This fits well as the town sits at the confluence of the mighty Durance and the smaller, La Grave river.  Volonne’s main feature is its two 13^th and 16^th century towers that cast their gaze down over the village nestled below at the foot of a sun-drenched rocky outcrop, earning it the name of “Petit Nice” of the Alps.

The municipal council has especially committed to safeguarding its heritage and has been enhancing the old village with help from Opus volunteers, since 2016.

The name, Chareirasse, may come from the Occitan word, “carrièra”, meaning road. It then became “charrèira” to refer to a rural lane for horse-drawn carts.

Conditions of participation

Participation fee: €170

Registration fees: see the website www.rempart.com 

Living expenses include: food, collective accommodation; leisure activities and travel during the work camp; civil liability insurance and association membership.
Not included: round-trip travel costs; personal and health expenses.

REGISTRATION (soon)