Situated on the Margeride plateau, the scenery around Lake Charpal takes you on a journey across the Atlantic: to Canada.
Lake Charpal – just like in Canada
This is one of the most enjoyable and exotic tourist walks in the Margeride. Everything here is reminiscent of Canadian lakes. Families can walk, cycle on mountain bikes or go snowshoeing around Lake Charpal – a 9 km circuit – in around three hours. You can cross streams and wetlands without getting your feet wet thanks to footbridges and wooden walkways. There are five information points around the lake, and picnic facilities are provided, all made from local timber: black locust, chestnut, Douglas fir and larch.
Situated at the foot of the Truc de Fortunio (1,551 m) on the Plateau du Roy, the lake is fed by the Colagne. Serving as a drinking water reservoir for the town of Mende and the surrounding area, it is France’s largest ‘no-kill’ lake for predatory fish. It is said that at the end of the First World War, the French military authorities chose this site to conceal an underwater munitions depot. The project never came to fruition, but it led to the creation of this artificial lake. Since 2002, the area around Lake Charpal has been listed as a Site of Community Importance (SCI) within the Natura 2000 network, due to its exceptional concentration of peat bogs.
Thematics
