Over a century of mining
The mining company in Parzán decided to resume mining at Liéna (near Parzán in Aragon) at the turn of the 20th century, with plans to create an aerial tramway to export ore to France through the Moudang Valley.
They built mining facilities at the Parzán hospital which were commissioned in 1912. The ore was crushed and sorted before passing through settling tanks to separate its various components and eliminate the sterile parts (gangue). Once processed, an ingenious overhead cable system carried the ore to the Moudang bridge, operating at an altitude of 2,450 m above the high mountains and along the Héchempy pass. Oxen then carted the ore to the Arreau railway station, where it began its final journey by train to Bordeaux, Bayonne and Irun for metalworking.
Mining at Liéna ceased in 1926 because there were no more deposits, and the Parzán facilities were closed in 1928.
A cross-border aerial tramway
Hard to believe, but a metal cable once ran in a loop from Parzán to the Moudang bridge, covering a total of over 10 km. It took 2.5 hours to complete this journey, which included 1,000 m of ascent and 1,400 m of descent. The cable was held up by 37 pylons and carried 172 wagons, secured by detachable clamps. Each wagon carried a load of 300 kg, equivalent in weight to 2 to 3 mules.
This means of transport was abandoned in 1935.
