Sentier de l’Adour : de Vicq-d’Auribat à Onard

You’re in for a surprise on Onard’s themed loop, where you will find the hydroelectric power plant, the old mill, the sill, and shad fishers using square dipping nets. Shad is a vulnerable species, making it a good indicator of the quality of our rivers. It is recognizable for its tapered, spindle shape and silvery colour. Shad are migratory fish, dividing their lives between the Atlantic Ocean, where they spend the majority of their life, and the Adour, where they come to breed and die. They lay their eggs at night between May and July by creating eddies at the surface of the water called “bulls”, in which the ova are expelled by the females and fertilized by the males. Fishing with square nets (tioups) is extremely popular here. It is done in the area upstream from Dax. The nets have a 6 cm mesh and are stretched out over a pyramid shape formed by hazel sticks attached to a long rod.