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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260222
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260223
DTSTAMP:20260428T153213
CREATED:20260214T060050Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260124T153210Z
UID:11544-1771718400-1771804799@anglophone-direct.com
SUMMARY:Fete de l'Ours - Bear Festival\, Prats de Mollo
DESCRIPTION:Fete de l’Ours (Festa de l’os) de Prats de Mollo\nFEBRUARY 22ND 2026 \nBear Festivals take place each year in late winter (usually February) in several villages of the Vallespir\, notably Saint-Laurent-de-Cerdans\, Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste and Arles-sur-Tech\, each with its own variations. The festivals  are officially recognised as part of France’s  cultural heritage\, underlining their cultural importance. \nTHE LOCATION\nBuilt on the banks of the river Tech\, surrounded by mountains\, Prats de Mollo was one of the most important border towns in the area\, and today still boasts much evidence of its rich and glorious past; architectural and traditional. \nDuring February\, two events traditionally take place at Prats\, delighting all who attend\, and causing visitors to return year after year: la fête de l’ours  and Carnaval. \n© Prats de Mollo la Preste\nBlackened from soot\, oil and sweat\, biting and clawing at everything in its path\, superb and majestic\, the last of the bears of Costabonne comes down into the town. \nEach bears the mark of the bear\, the most ancient tradition of the carnival. This is the opening to the Fete de l’Ours et carnaval de Prats de Mollo which used to take place traditionally on the 2nd February\, the ‘fete de la Chandeleur’ or Candlemas (the nearest equivalent to Pancake Day) but is now held on a Sunday in the February half term. \nTHE LEGEND\nThe events\, according to the legend\, took place near the Col d’Ares\, about 13 km from Prats de Mollo\, at the foot of mont Falgas\, Long ago\, a young shepherdess fainted from shock when she stumbled upon a bear whilst tending her flock. \nPhoto Credit: Philip Jones\nThe bear\,  actually the devil in disguise\, took advantage of her swoon and spirited her away to the caves intending to seduce her and steal her virginity. The young damsel however\, prayed to Notre Dame du Coral\, nearby chapel overlooking the valley\, to preserve her virtue\, and the bear was unable to approach her. \n \nEvery time he tried\, he was repulsed\, causing him to howl with frustration\, and attracting the attention of woodcutters felling trees in the area. On the ninth day of her captivity\, the ‘jour de la Chandeleur\, they again heard her cries and\, pushing aside the heavy stone blocking the entrance\, rescued the young shepherdess and returned her to her parents. \nThe thwarted bear was furious\, his enraged howling resounding throughout the valley. \nThe hermit of Notre Dame du Coral\, along with a local farm boy\, followed the howling and spotted the bear at the top of a large tree overlooking a precipice\, eating berries. When he descended for the night\, they cut the branch so that it was much weakened\, and on the bear’s return the next day\, he climbed on the branch and fell to his death! \nTHE FESTIVAL\n \nOn the second Sunday of the February half term holidays\, the young people of Prats meet up at Fort Lagarde for a boozy meal during which the bears\, chosen several weeks before\, are prepared for the festival. \nTYPICAL PROGRAMME (Check out exact details HERE)\n11h00 : Passation du témoin « La patte de l’ours » Exhibition de la Colla Costabona – Sardanes et Contrapàs avec la Cobla Ciutat de Girona – Place d’armes\n13h30 : Habillage des Ours – Fort Lagarde\n14h30 : Grande Chasse à l’Ours – Dans les ruelles de cité (Bear hunt)\n16h30 : Rasage des Ours – Place Le Foiral (Shaving of the bear)\n18h00 : Sardanes avec la Cobla Ciutat de Girona – Place Josep de la Trinxeria \n \nSome will play the bears (usually the fittest amongst them!) and others will be the hunters. \nTHE BEARS\n \nSheep skins are worn by the ‘bears’ and their faces and hands are blackened with a mixture of suie (soot) and huile (oil). The bears are also provided with a very solid stick. Junior bears will be chosen by senior bears on the day of the Fête (18th February) \nTHE HUNTERS \nThe hunters are provided with shot guns filled with blanks and a gourd of ‘good wine’. Three shots from the redan Ste Marguerite at Fort Lagarde are the signal for the hunt to begin. \nThe bears run\, the hunters follow and the crowd cheer and scream\, deafened by gunfire\, excited by the smell of gunpowder\, drunk on the atmosphere…. Eventually the ‘hommes en blanc’ or ‘barbiers’ intervene. They are covered in flour and dressed in white with lace bonnets! They are armed with heavy chains. One of them also has an axe\, another carries a botifarra (locally made black pudding!!) and a cuvette (basin) \n \nAfter a final\, conclusive struggle\, the barbiers catch and chain up the bears who are taken to the place du foiral accompanied by music. \nThe bears are made to sit down on chairs where they are ‘shaved’ by the barbiers\, using the axe for a razor and the black pudding for soap and ‘humanised’ \nThe day of the bear finishes with a Bal de Corre in which bears\, hunters and barbers dance around in a frenzied circle until a gun shot rings out and the bears fall to the ground\, dead. \nTraditional Catalan bands\, known as coblas\, with specific instruments\, will accompany the festival throughout. \n\nBEAR FESTIVAL SAINT LAURENT DE CERDANS Sunday\, March 1st 2026 \nBEAR FESTIVAL ARLES SUR TECH  Sunday February 1st \nShare this:\n				Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)\n				Facebook\n			\n				Click to share on X (Opens in new window)\n				X\n			\n				Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)\n				LinkedIn\n			\n				Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)\n				Pinterest\n			\n\n	Related\n
URL:https://anglophone-direct.com/event/fete-de-lours-prats-de-mollo/
LOCATION:Prats de Mollo\, 66230
CATEGORIES:A Bit of Everything,Festivals & Traditions
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://anglophone-direct.com/ap_img/ours.jpg
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