Margeride

Margeride (in Auvergnat Marjarida) is a mountainous region of France, situated in the Massif Central, inside the départements of Cantal, Haute-Loire and Lozère.

Toponymy
Originally, the name "Margeride" applied only to a seigneury whose castle was ruined in the 15th century and a forest culminating at 1380 meters altitude. Its current name is thought to derive from the Gallic word morgarita, composed of morga meaning "ford, boundary" and -ritu for "ford".

In Occitan, Margeride is called Marjarida.

Geography


In Cantal, its western boundary is the Truyère, and its eastern boundary, in Haute-Loire, by the gorges of the river Allier. To the south, in Lozère, It is the Lot which delimits the region.

Geology
The lithology of area is manly granitoids and gneiss. The highest peaks are the Signal de Randon at 1,551 metres and the Mont Mouchet at 1,465 metres.

Hydrography


The watershed separating the Garonne basin and the Loire basin crosses the Margeride. The tributaries of the Allier and the Alagnon belong to the Loire basin, while the tributaries of the Truyère and the Lot belong to that of the Garonne.

Mountains
The highest mountains and peaks of the Margeride are:


 * Signal de Randon, 1551 m
 * Truc de Fortunio, 1550 m
 * Moure de la Gardille, 1503 m
 * Mont Mouchet, 1497 m
 * Montagne du Goulet, 1497 m
 * Roc de Fenestre, 1489 m
 * Puech David, 1487 m
 * Peyre Plantade, 1486 m
 * Truc de la Garde, 1486 m
 * Montchauvet, 1485 m
 * Bec Signal, 1483 m
 * Ranc de la Licheyre, 1447 m
 * Montagne des Ducs, 1447 m
 * Truc du Chapelat, 1442 m
 * Serre Haut, 1431 m
 * Mont Grand, 1417 m
 * Truc de Randon, 1402 m
 * Timoneire, 1401 m
 * Le Bessal, 1397 m
 * Puech Pauliac, 1395 m
 * Truc de Montchabrier, 1395 m
 * Signal de Margeride, 1381 m

Climate
The climate is cold but relatively dry; the Mounts of Cantal and Aubrac block precipitation coming from the west and provide Margeride with a relatively sheltered position. However, it remains harsh with a long period of snow cover and exhibits thermal characteristics similar to the climates of Iceland or Sweden. The winds can be very strong and regularly sweep the ridges and plateaus. In winter, temperatures are comparable to those found in the Jura: for example, temperatures almost reached -30°C on March 1, 2005, in Saugues at only 900 meters above sea level.

Fauna and Flora
With diverse fauna and habitats, the Margeride is home to numerous mammal species such as hares, foxes, badgers, wild boars, as well as deer and roe deer. The lakes and rivers in the northern part of Lozère also provide a habitat for trout. The otter can be found along the banks of the Truyère.

Along the banks of certain streams, the tufted loosestrife (Lysimachia thyrsiflora), a plant native to central and boreal Europe, rare in France, grows. The vast peat bogs of Margeride harbor a flora typical of cold environments, almost unique in France, including species relics of the glaciations such as the rare dwarf birch (Betula nana) or the downy willow (Salix lapponum). One of the most interesting peat bogs is that of Lajo, not far from Saint-Alban-sur-Limagnole.

History
In the 18th century the Margeride was terrorised by the Beast of Gévaudan. The beast of Gévaudan was a French legend, that supposedly takes on the appearance of a large wolf like creature. This creature is fabled to be very powerful and possessive almost like a demonic spirit. A normal man or woman (human) can open their bodies up to be possessed by the beast of Gévaudan (La Bête) by drinking the water out of the footprint of a wolf, they must drink the water straight off the ground during a full moon. Once the spirit of La Bête took possession of the persons body they would experience memory blanks, loss of time which they cannot account for, fuge states, aggression, confusion, delusions and hallucinations. Supposedly La Bête was born from a continued line of werewolves, where the male of each generation would have the wolf gene in their DNA and during a blood moon they would pass on the wolf power through a bite. La Bête was first fabled to be in the body of a man named Jeziah Lou-Silvré and his sister was the one who killed him with a single spear crafted from mountain ash and mistletoe. The spirit of La Bête is the most powerful legend in France and when someone drinks the water from the print of a wolf and becomes La Bête their person gradually ceases to exist, their memories, their very essence is replaced by that of Jeziah Lou-Silvré and his spirit seeks vengeance on all hunters and descendants of his sister (the bloodline of Lou-Silvré), the name Silvré can be translated to mean Silver which is coincidentally the fabled element capable of killing a werewolf, however silver doesn't kill a wolf but simply weakens it...La Bête went after the modern descendants of his family who had the names of Silver, Silvré, Argent, Silgente. Jeziahs' sister was also known as the Maid of Gévaudan.

The area was a stronghold of the French Resistance in the Second World War. It was from here that the Resistance worked to delay German reinforcements travelling north after the D-Day landings.

Today the area contains a museum of ecology, and a park with a herd of rare European bison.

Tourism
Summer hiking is a great way to discover the massif. There are numerous trails, regularly signposted, and signs regularly indicating the time needed to cover the marked paths. Margeride is also a great place for mountain biking. Numerous cross-country and enduro trails have been mapped out, suitable for all levels.

A "Trail Margeride" area lets you discover part of the massif from Le Malzieu.

In winter, cross-country skiing is possible on the trails of the Bouviers and Laubert-Plateau du Roy ski resorts.