The name « France’s water tower » actually takes several aspects into consideration: the hydrological patrimony, the amount of precipitation and the number of natural springs in the region. Although water is very present in Auvergne, it is not distributed equally across the region.

Auvergne has a dense branched hydrographical network. Permanent water courses nearly cover 23,000 km (i.e. about 14,300 miles), if we add the temporary water courses they cover 38,000 km (i.e. about 23,600 miles). The following rivers run through the region: the Loire, the Allier River, the Cher River, the Dordogne (which rises on the flanks of Puy de Sancy) and the Lot.

We count 109 mineral water springs in Auvergne (out of a total of 626 springs in France), 10 spa towns (out of 105) and 10 water bottling factories (out of 70 mineral bottled waters in France).

Averaged-annual preicipitation is 920 millimeters. However, the weather conditions vary from place to place. On the west side of the Cantal Mountains, the precipitation is 2000 millimeters. But on the other side of the Lioran-pass, the city of Murat receives 970 mm annual precipitation. The Auvergne’s central and east plains have the continental climate with less than 800 mm precipitation a year.

If you go hiking in the Cantal Mountains, you will realise it sometimes rains a lot in Auvergne. I can still recall trails turning into real rivers there. However, Clermont-Ferrand is a rather dry city and you are often told it doesn’t rain enough there.

So, if you spend your holidays in Auvergne and that you think it’s too rainy, all you have to do is cross a pass or cross over to another valley to enjoy a milder microclimate.

Sources (French) :

• Chambre régionale d’agriculture d’Auvergne
• Direction régionale de l’environnement d’Auvergne
• Direction départementale de l’équipement et de l’agriculture du Cantal
• Météo France, accès aux bulletins climatiques
  

Version française

La Landie Lake is a natural 30-hectare lake located in Auvergne, on the Artense Plateau, close to Puy de Sancy, in the Auvergne Regional Volcanic Nature Park. This lake was formed originally due to the action of volcanoes. It was then stretched by glaciers which gave it its expanded form; which differs from the round forms of the volcanic lakes nearby (Pavin Lake and Lake Chauvet). La Landie Lake is at 1,036 meters altitude; it is supplied with streams of second importance which dry up during summer, as well as deep springs. Piers were installed in the peat bog in 1992 and another one closer to the lodge in 1993.

You can be housed on the premises in one of the 5 double rooms.

You will be welcome in the fishing lodge to be served meals. The fishing centre has 12 small boats which are equipped with electric motors to go in any fishing areas. You can go fishing for 10 different salmonidae species – aguabonita trout, brown trout, rainbow trout, brook trout, broding (hybrid between brook trout and artic char), ouananiche, etc.

Sources (in French) :

- Article about La Landie Lake

- La Landie Lake’s website

Version française

The Upper Lake is a crater lake located at 1239 meters of altitude. It was shaped by a volcanic eruption. It explains why it is a round lake and 44 meters deep. It provides water supply in the village. It is one of the most oligotrophic lakes in Europe, meaning it is deficient in plant nutrients.

The Lower Lake is a glacial lake located at 1200 meters of altitude. It constitutes a bog with the Lake of Saint-Alyre.

La Godivelle Nature Reserve – Réserve Naturelle des Sagnes in French – includes the 2 Lakes. The Reserve was created in 1975 in order to protect and conserve the peat bog, which is a fragile habitat. There, you can see carnivorous plants like sundews and butterworts. You can also observe diving spiders; these spiders build underwater diving bell webs which are filled with air, they live within their webs. Diving spiders can bite you with their chelicerae – their mouth appendages – if they feel attacked; the bite is not dangerous though. There are also other arthropod species living in this peat bog of special scientific interest.

Here is the story of the 2 lakes as published in the Auvergne Regional Volcanic Nature Park’s website.

The landscape you can see today started to take shape more than 10,000 years ago, when the last glaciers started to melt down because of warmer climate. Numerous lakes were created, some of which have progressively turned into peat bogs. In this way, the “Coualle Basse” is a former lake which has been filled by flora. The Lower Lake covered 50 hectares before and 10 hectares now. The flora has invaded the southern part of the lake; trees have begun to cover the peat bog.

Though the Lower Lake is a young (10,000 years old) glacial lake, the Upper Lake is much more different. It is an 113,000 year-old crater lake, 44 meters deep, it covers 15 hectares and has a 300-meter 300 diameter. It is nestled in a basaltic maar.

La source du Par

In Auvergne, there are 10 spa towns. Here is Chaudes-Aigues which is among the most famous ones. Chaudes-Aigues is the most southern Auvergne’s spa town and is devoted to hot water sources. It is nestled in the ravine of Remontalou; that is to say at the junction of Mounts of Cantal, the Margeride and the Aubrac regions. The town is famous for its natural hot water sources that can reach a temperature of 82°C (= 179°F), making them the hottest water sources in Europe. However, there is more!

Chaudes-Aigues looks like a postcard thanks to its roofs of flagstone, its market, its lavoir and its cobbled street. You can see the city’s heritage in each narrow street. If you come to Chaudes-Aigues, you can visit the Musée de la Géothermie (the Geothermal power Museum) as well as exploring its surrounding area, in this way you would discover plenty of things.

Thanks to its hot water sources, making the city a spa town, Chaudes-Aigues has enjoyed free supply of running water since Ancient Times. Several springs were used by the Romans, about thirty of which are still used nowadays. Their daily average discharge reaches 4900 cu ft and temperatures range from 52 to 82°C (125° to 179°F).

The plan for improvement of these sources has been postponed several times, however it seems it will be definitively launched. The plan consists in making the thermal building a modern functional place, where people could cure rheumatism, arthritis, sciatica, etc. and could do fitness exercises.

If you stay a few days in Chaudes-Aigues, you would learn plenty of things and experience thrills. You can visit the Musée de la Géothermie, go hiking in the Bés River or the Truyère valley, or do water sports.

Since this year, Chaudes-Aigues has had a new asset. In the heights of the city, Serge Vieira – winner of the 2005 Bocuse d’Or – opened a restaurant he named « Château de Couffour ».

Here are some links to help you prepare for your possible stay:

• The Chaudes Aigues city website
• Caleden – the city’s thermal building
• The spa towns’ website – the article devoted to Chaudes Aigues.
• The department of Cantal’s tourist information office
• Some photographs taken in Chaudes-Aigues and published on TrekEarth

First of all, there are two communes named “Saint-Flour” in Auvergne – the first is in Cantal and the second in Puy-de-Dôme. The Puy-de-Dôme village has been nicknamed “Saint Flour l’Etang” to make a distinction. Municipal and departmental services as well as people living there usually call it like this. However this is not officially recognised by the French National Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE).

Image ViaMichelin

The village spreads from 319 to 561 meters of altitude. It rains more in Saint Flour l’Etang than in Clermont-Ferrand (because of Fœhn wind), but there are less storm days in summer.

The village and its surrounding area are ideal places to wander around. You can enjoy this small commune walking, riding a bike or even using a carriage.

L'église de Saint Flour

The Saint Flour l’Etang commune is made up of many hamlets – Les Bessières, le Bourg, Charmène, les Charrots, la Chassagne, Chavaroche, la Combe, le Coudert, la Croix Blanche, la Croix du Sangle, Cublas (à cheval sur la commune de Trézioux et Saint Dier d’Auvergne), l’Étang, le Faux, Fontbertasse, le Fraisse, la Goutte du Fraisse, Jacques, Matoux, le Moulin Neuf (à cheval sur la commune de Domaize), le Nugier, Pintrand, la Pourcherie, le Prat, Redigoux, la Roche, le Soleil, la Vigne, le Clos, etc.

There are many ways to discover the village. For instance, you can go from “le Bourg” to “le Nugier”, then walk down to “le Soleil” and you can finally turn toward the ponds.

Les 2 étangs : à gauche le petit, à droite le grand

The first pond is the small one. You will see a pontoon – and we advise you not to walk on it, trees, shady places, etc. This (very) small pond is very beautiful and the view on the village is worth a detour.

Here are some photographs of the small ponds :

If you pass on toward the village, you cannot miss the large pond with the house, the cows and the bridge next to it.

Some photographs of the large ponds :

To make the most of your walk, it is better to keep going on the left of the pond before going up “L’Etang”. Then, go toward “Charmène”, there you can see a former lavoir – a public place where the French used to wash clothes in the past.

Like this, you will be back to square one. If you want to see other beautiful landscapes, other ponds (around the villages of Cublas and Espinasse) or Mauzun Castle are not far away.

Personal website for Saint Flour l’Etang : http://saintflourletang.site.voila.fr/

Mairie SAINT FLOUR L’ETANG
Le Bourg
63520 SAINT FLOUR L’ETANG
Telephone : 04 73 70 81 13

However, renovation works are being made to make it flow in open air. Besides the Tiretaine River, the Artière River runs up south and the Bédat River runs up north Clermont-Ferrand. The 2 city centres (Clermont and Montferrand) are said to have been built on the Tiretaine delta.

The Tiretaine rises is a village named “La Font de l’Arbre” at the foot of Puy-de-Dôme. It runs through Clermont-Ferrand via the spa town Royat and Chamalières.

The valley in which it used to run was filled by a lava flow 40,000 years ago. The Tiretaine is strengthened by a stream – the Vaucluse stream. Thanks to this tributary, it dug its new banks – called “la Vallée de Royat”.

The photographs show the Tiretaine as a stream flowing from La Font de l’Arbre. The photo on the right shows it when it arrives in Clermont. The Tiretaine River runs through the Royat Thermal Park, where it has been emphasized.

La Tiretaine dans le parc thermal de Royat

Then, the Tiretaine comes into Chamalières. Actually the river runs through both the Chamalières and Royat communes, which are next to each other.

After it crossed Chamalières, the river surges into (the ground of) Clermont-Ferrand. It is most often covered but we can see it in different places. Among others, it runs through the Michelin headquarters – named “site des Carmes”, and the “Cimetière des Carmes” immediately after. The Tiretaine flows into 2 different rivers – it flows into the Artière River up south and into the Bédat River up north.

Clermont-Ferrand can often be flooded in case of heavy rains. Several districts are designated as flood-risk zones.

In Clermont-Ferrand, the Tiretaine runs through the following districts: Fontgiève, Saint Alyre, Thévenot-Thibaud, Les Carmes, Polydôme, Cataroux, La Gauthière, La Plaine Sud, La Plaine Nord, Poncillon, Côte Blatin, La Pradelle, Herbet and Le Brézet.

A song is dedicated to this small river. Jean Maupoint wrote and sang “Au Bord de la Tiretaine” at the Interwar period. You can find the lyrics here.

Version française

The Artière rises near Puy de Chantrat and flows along the “Gorges de Ceyrat”. It then goes to Beaumont where it flows into a canal. This canal was formed by two lava flows – one by the Puy d’Aubière, and the other one, younger, by the Cézeaux plateau. The city of Beaumont is expected to enhance the river watersides, as part of its “Chemin Vert” city plan. The whole project consists in linking the Châtaigneraie district to the Artière sports ground, in following the river until the Pourliat district to reach the Cézeaux Complex finally.

The Artière runs through Aubière and Clermont-Ferrand through the Cézeaux Complex. The photographs you can see above were taken there. The river follows Pascalis – the Clermont technology park. It is named after the famous scientist Blaise Pascal born in Clermont-Ferrand in 1623. This site is devoted to Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Pascalis had been created in 2001 and has been administered by Clermont Communauté. In 2004, some big societies – IBM and Capgemini, established there.

North East of Clermont-Ferrand, ground gets flat; the Artière River flows slower and goes to the Limagne Plain. After it ran through Aulnat, the Artière meets the Allier River.

Unlike the city of Clermont-Ferrand, in which the rivers are hidden, Aubière is lucky enough to make the most of its open air river.

French version

Image http://meteo05.sepcs.fr

Fœhn wind occurs in the lee of a mountain range. It is responsible for mountainous region climate. This wind is a consequence of the movements of air masses when they meet mountains. Air masses rise up on the mountain slopes thanks to Fœhn wind. Thus, clouds and precipitations form.

On the other side of mountains, air masses go down, following the slopes. They get warmer in this way, and lead to stable climate since warm atmospheric layers form.

Fœhn wind is very remarkable from Clermont-Ferrand when watching Puy-de-Dôme. We often see clouds tearing apart after they crossed the Chaîne-des-Puys. So it rarely rains in Clermont-Ferrand. Unlike most of people generally believe, it rains less in the Auvergne capital city than in other cities over 100,000 inhabitants in France. For instance, it rains more in Nice than in Clermont-Ferrand.

Clermont-Ferrand is the 29^th – out of 30 – rainiest French city. However, storms more frequently happen than in other cities over 100,000 inhabitants.

French version

Sources :

• Le Climat d’Olloix
• Le climat du Puy de Dôme
• L’explication du Conseil général

Version Française

The Allier River flows across 7 departments – the Lozère, the Ardèche, the Haute-Loire, the Puy-de-Dôme, the Allier, the Cher and eventually the Nièvre.

The Allier’s source is located in Lozère at 1,485 meters of altitude. In Haute-Loire, the river runs through a deeply embanked valley. The basalt plateau named “Le Massif du Devès” is at the East and the Margeride Massif at the West. This is called “Les Gorges de l’Allier”.

The Allier gets filled with minerals and winds through the plain. It then leaves some of these minerals in its first collapse basin from Vieille-Brioude to Issoire. There, cultivation, pasture and forests shape the landscape.

Le Bec d’Allier

(« Le Bec d’Allier » is the name given to the meeting of the Allier and the River Loire)

The Allier is deeply embanked again 17 kilometres after Issoire, near Saint-Yvoine granite horst. Then, the river gradually flows to the Grande Limagne collapse basin. This is a narrow and significantly sloping plain and the Allier flows tortuously.

The course stretchs in Pont-du-Château. From there, the river flows tortuously in a large floodplain. Much further, 425 kilometres from its spring and at 167 meters of altitude, the Allier meets the Loire River – their meeting is called “Le Bec d’Allier”.

You can see above the Allier near Coudes, Cournon, in  Pont du Chateau, in Vichy and in Moulin.

Version Française

Sources:

- La rivière Allier et le fleuve Loire

- A la recherche des sources de l’Allier. J. G. L’Eveil

- L’Auvergne de Jean Anglade. Jean Anglade

- Rivière Allier.com

Waterfalls, springs and watercourses, even peat bogs: water is omnipresent. Thus the following question: why does the Massif du Sancy enjoy such a hydrography?

Back to the French version

Here is a little article that claims to give answers, but also to explain the Massif du Sancy’s geography by dwelling on the famous Vallée de Chaudefour, and the less known Vallée de la Fontaine Salée.

The Massif du Sancy was a volcanic mountain mass active until 220 000 years BC. Its highest peak is called the Puy de Sancy, which is also the highest volcano in continental France. It is 1886 meters tall, but probably reached 2500 meters in the past. This volcano is the starting point of many crests and the valleys lay around it. What the Sancy’s geography and hydrography are due to?

The collapse of the mountainsides in the form of stone avalanches is the most convincing reason to explain why the water is now free and carries the Sancy’s volcanic character. It is filled with minerals (above all iron), and also gaz. Hence the many (countless?) watercourses that rise on the mountainsides and the peat bogs that are impossible to miss.

The Massif’s layout is also due to the melting down of the glaciers, which carved the valleys that lay below. There is a total of 4 valleys: the renowned Vallée de Chaudefour (also Nature reserve), the Vallée de la Dordogne (where the Dore and the Dogne rise, as its name suggests), the Vallée de la Fontaine Salée (Nature reserve to-be), and the Vallée de la Biche.

Here is a map by the French National Geographic Institute to show the aspect of the Massif and its water system

Let’s deal with the 2 valleys mentioned in the beginning of the article.

The most famous and symbolic valley in the Sancy is the Vallée de Chaudefour. It is an ice valley that stretches over 900 hectares from 1150 to 1854 meters high. 5 springs spurt out of its particularly steep slopes. They are called “n°1”, “n°2”, “Vercingétorix”, “Petit Griffon” and “Source Sainte-Anne”, the most famous. Its ochre colour is explained by the fact that water is filled with iron (as well as carbonic acid, calcium and magnesium).

I tasted it so I may confirm that acidity and iron are strong. It is not necessarily nice… but it wouldn’t be fair to refuse to taste. Any accomplished visitor has to do so!

Anyway, as I was saying, the “Source Sainte-Anne” is a mineral water, so it has thermal and curative virtues. Thus it is used to treat diseases: stomach diseases for instance.

The Vallée de la Fontaine Salée is actually a cirque built by the melting down of the glaciers (that is why you can find rocks here and there). Lots and lots of watercourses of sparkling water, full of iron and minerals, flow along the valley. Thus the name comes from those numerous salted springs.

La Fontaine Salée by Nicolas Giraud - http://www.nicolasgiraudphoto.com/

La Fontaine Salée by Nicolas Giraud - http://www.nicolasgiraudphoto.com/

As you will be pacing these valleys up and down, you will find peat bogs. To form, it needs considerable rains, water that stagnates and vegetation to impede its correct drainage. They are shelters for fragile ecosystems thanks to flora like moss and sundews. Peat bogs have received the unambiguous nickname “mountain quicksand”. That is why it is recommended to avoid set your foot in, or else you would do some efforts to get out of those marshy lands.

La Fontaine Salée by Nicolas Giraud - http://www.nicolasgiraudphoto.com/

As a conclusion, the Massif du Sancy enjoys geology and climate that have a salutary influence on its hydrography. This combination offers us such a sight. Nature does work wonders.

Back to the French version