Nature & Culture: 5 places to visit in the Landes forest

With over a million hectares, the Landes de Gascogne forest is the largest artificial forest in Europe. Camping Lou Pignada takes you on a journey of discovery through this exceptional territory, visiting 5 historical and cultural sites to soak up the soul of the Landes forest.

The Forest of Contemporary Art

Created in 2009, the Forêt d'Art Contemporain aims to create a genuine tool for the production and dissemination of contemporary art in rural areas, in the form of a regional itinerary. This artistic trail, conceived as a great treasure hunt, is dotted with works by renowned artists, on view to walkers. Today, almost 25 contemporary works and art installations are on public display in the four corners of the Landes forest, from Sabres to Commensacq, via Brocas and Garein. It's an open-air museum you can explore on your own or with a guide, as part of guided meditations, artist residencies and conferences.

The Marquèze Ecomuseum

After a trip on the old steam train linking Sabres to Marquèze, you arrive at theairial of Marquèze, an agricultural hamlet like those found in the Landes of Gascony in the 19th century. The Marquèze Ecomuseum invites you to experience the daily life of rural society on the Grande Lande, as it was in days gone by. Here, Landes houses, the tenant farmer's dwelling, sheepfolds, farm animals, bread ovens and Gascon games all bear witness to the traditions and skills of the Landes in the last century. To find out more, see our article on visiting the Marquèze ecomuseum.

The softwood workshop in Luxey

Just 20 minutes from Sabres, you can visit the Atelier des Produits résineux in Luxey, a former 19th-century distillery now converted into a museum. Nestling just a stone's throw from the pine forest from which the resin was extracted, the Musée de la Gemme evokes the golden age of the profession of gem-making tenant farmers. The site includes farm buildings (resin reception and storage, rosin distillation and packaging, turpentine storage), a barrel-making workshop and workers' accommodation. In the 1920s, resin production provided work for nearly 20,000 Landes gemmakers. Then came the crisis between the wars, which brought the factory to a definitive halt in 1954. A rich testimony to the industrial history of the Gascony forests.

Graines de Forêt at Garein

Located in Garein, near Mont-de-Marsan, "Graine de Forêt" is the first fun and educational discovery centre dedicated to the Landes forest. The tour begins in the Maison de la Découverte (Discovery Centre), made up of several rooms, each devoted to a different forest theme. Exhibitions, videos and interactive displays explore every facet of the forest. The tour continues along a signposted interpretation trail to the arboretum and the forest plantation, which has been converted into an educational nursery. A must-see place to learn all about the Landes forest!

The Forges de Brocas

The Forges de Brocas are one of the most important historic sites in the Landes forest, bearing witness to the steelmaking era in the Landes region in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Today, the Forges museum retraces the history of the iron and steel industry and the hard work of metal workers in the last century. Here you can discover the different production and casting techniques, as well as a gallery of cast-iron objects made in the Brocas workshops, whose emblem was the pine cone. A must-see if you want to discover the history of the Landes de Gascogne forest!