Description
'Little guy, if you don't know the watercress from the source of the Ourbise, then you don't know what watercress is?' It all begins with these words from an old man from Caubeyres. I walked towards the source of the Ourbise, nestled a good distance from the village of Caubeyres. You first have to walk for a kilometer through the woods to reach the gates of a private estate. I of course introduced myself to the hosts of the place to tell them about my request but also about my curiosity about their very pretty estate nestled in a vast clearing in the middle of an oak wood. Charming, they offered me a tour of the property before taking me to the spring. What struck me at first was the tranquility of the place. No neighbors in sight, lush nature, and endless songs of birds and cicadas. At the entrance to the estate, we visit a first building, it is a stone cottage on 2 levels of approximately 100m2, all stone and wood with a large living room, 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms which opens onto a large lawn bordered by a shaded terrace where you can comfortably eat and cook for more than 10 people. Right next to it, a large carport for parking cars in the shade. A little further down the lawn, a large workshop that would delight the most handy among us and, right next to it, a wooden terrace and deckchairs around a turquoise blue swimming pool into which I refrained from diving out of politeness for my hosts (but it wasn't the desire that was lacking). A truly beautiful place. But I hadn't yet seen the heart of the estate. About fifty meters further on, we find ourselves in front of an old mill that seems to have survived the ages. This magnificent building was in ruins 30 years ago and has been completely restored through patience and courage using the original materials and methods. A magnificent work. Inside, there's only one watchword: space. All the rooms are simply immense. The office, the kitchen, the winter living room of almost 60m2, the summer living room, the mezzanine, the master suite, and upstairs, the four suites, all with separate shower rooms and toilets, and period timber frames that would have been a shame to hide. I remain speechless before so much beauty, taste and space. We now walk through the old mill workshop, where the millstones and the unique energy of the old buildings that have seen the years pass are still there. We have a small snack on this shaded terrace on the banks to the sound of the lapping of the Ourbise, which, at this point, is still just a stream. My host explains to me that here, Moulin and Ourbise do not rhyme with flooding because of the small size of the watercourse; in fact, the source is only a few hundred meters away. It is now time to return to the purpose of my visit, the famous watercress beds of the Ourbise spring. On the way, we pass by another sheltered terrace with its pizza oven and barbecue. And also these small vegetable gardens filled with flowers and vegetables. And then we walk through the estate's 2 hectares of woodland, on paths patiently maintained by our hosts, along this tiny Ourbise that lapping in the middle of a fairytale nature. We are in a NATURA 2000 zone where fauna and flora are the object of all attention. Frogs, dragonflies and other animals or plants abound there. And then at the bend in the watercourse, we discover the famous watercress beds, once known, they have been forgotten over time, only a few old people still know them, the water there is so pure, that the source is partially captured to supply the neighboring villages with drinking water. After a small watercress harvest, we take another of the many paths which brings us back near the lodge by which I arrived. Grateful for this moment out of time, I take leave of my hosts, not without thanking them for this pleasant moment of sharing. On the wooded path that leads me back to the village, I wonder if it was a dream. Such an area cannot exist in reality! Can I look at this bunch of watercress?
