Le Village de pecheurs

Between the seaside town Sain-Cyprien Plage and Canet-en-Roussillon is a vast wetland that is a refuge for thousands of birds. As a backdrop, you have the snow-peaked mountains of the Pyrenees, on the other side you have the Mediterranean Sea.

Stroll along the discovery trail that is set up at the edge of the lagoon and admire the many birds from the observation areas. When walking the trails, always stay on the paths in order to protect this unique site.

A worthwhile stop is Le Village de Pecheurs (fishing village) where you can walk between 10 wooden huts. Rehabilitated in 1993,the huts provided fishermen protection against rain, wind and summer heat. Where nowadays, they are no longer used as a place of residence by fishermen, they are still used to store fishing equipment. 

In the center of the village is the "Maison Commune", a friendly place where fishermen meet, often to prepare a bouillinade of eels, one of the areas traditional dishes.

The huts rounded shapes where built to withstand the Tramontane, a powerful wind that blows from the North. Inside the huts are three rooms partitioned by reed hurdles... One of the rooms was to store the fishing gear, another room was a roughly furnished bedroom and the third was a living room/kitchen. For the built of these huts, washed up wood was mainly used for the structure where the reed was harvested at the pond. Around the houses are windbreaks which provide the perfect shelter to grow fig trees, cacti, laurels and other Mediterranean plants.

The site still supports a handful of fishermen who catch eel and sea bass.

During the summer months (1st June to 30th September) , the exhibition hut is open to the public every Tuesday to Sunday from 9am to 7pm.
For the last 5 years, a blue crab has made an appearance in the lagoon disrupting the ecosystem of the lagoon. Fishermen try to reduce the blue crabs by fishing it massively. 

​Earlier on, we mentioned bouillinade of eels. This is prepared by placing cleaned eels in a cast iron pot with potatoes, lard, chilli and garlic.
The pot is filled with water and small crabs are added to enhance the flavour even further. The heavy cast iron pot is suspended above the fire and cooked over high heat.