Publier____Discover____Natural sites

Natural sites

    Today, Publier continues to write its history in connection with water. For the last several years, as part of its policy to develop tourism and preserve its natural habitats, in collaboration with the Conservatoire du Littoral (Coastal Protection Agency), the town has set out to make its lakeshores a genuine “green lung” for everyone to enjoy walks here.

    THE DRANSE DELTA NATURE RESERVE

    The River Dranse generates a special ecological dynamic that is characterised by seasonal changes. Its bed is occupied by a mosaic of islets. In the northern section there are small wooded areas, ponds and marshes. In the southern section are alluvial terraces covered with very dry, and stony moorland.

    Located between Publier and Thonon, the smallest nature reserve in Haute-Savoie (53 hectares) is nestled at the mouth of the River Dranse. It provides an astonishing diversity of environments ranging from marshland to dry and stony moors. A large number of migrating birds, including the common tern, gull, herons and birds of prey, take a pit stop here. It is the last wild lake delta on the shores of Lake Léman.

    On this small nature reserve, you will find nearly a third of the Haute-Savoie flora, including approximately 800 species. Three plant families coexist: southern species, especially the 23 orchid species, many alpine species such as the Earleaf Bellflower and cultivated species that are totally foreign to the local flora: opium poppy, tomato.

    The Dranse Delta nature reserve is situated on a migration route providing a pit stop for numerous birds: herons, birds of prey, but also the little ringed plover, and black-headed gull.

    There are supervised walks organised every week during the summer. An information booklet about the reserve (€2) is also available at the Publier-Amphion Tourist Office, so you can also discover the nature reserve at your own leisure.

    13KM OF FOOTPATHS

    Publier is blessed with a large network of footpaths worthy of its sporting image and its desire to share its precious natural spaces.

    publier debut sentier anna de noailles

    In Anna de Noailles’s Footsteps

    From Port Pignard to Maxima Park, this trail takes you along a journey telling the story of Lake Léman and its municipality’s specific themes with the aid of 9 information panels: the springs and history of Amphion’s thermal baths, the steamboats, ducks, the bourgeois residences, remarkable trees, Lake Léman and its winds, geology, professional fishing and merchant shipping.

    publier la promenade des sources

    The Promenade des Sources

    From the lakeside to the hills, this walk is a pleasant journey to discover some remarkable heritage: La Chapelle St-Étienne, 12th and 13th century, the Blonay Estate, the  Farquenoud fountain, the Maxima Park, etc.

    This relationship to water is always present on each of these trails. We discover the springs, history of the thermal baths, lake panoramas, beaches, and in Crochet, two drinking-water reservoirs that display colorful facades since summer 2011 paying tribute to the fruit trees of the Crochet orchard.

    publier les boucles du coteau

    Hillside Loops

    From Amphion to Publier’s town centre, the 3 Hillside Loop trails invite you to discover Publier’s natural resources and heritage treasures. The trails have thematic tables along the routes explaining all the town’s history.

    5 starting panels are all located near a parking area to show the departures and summarise practical information.

    A map on the information panels shows the natural or heritage elements you will encounter along the way, with key information about Publier’s history and landscape. The three concentric loops do require one to two hours of walking. The customary colour codes, “green, blue, red”, show the increasing difficulty of the trails.

    A paper version is also available at Publier-Amphion Tourist Office

    THE PARKS

    Refresh yourself with a walk in the park and enjoy the view of the lake.

    publier parc des tilleuls

    TILLEULS PARK

    This park is a haven of calm located between La Cité de l’Eau and the lake, and also a place for sporting activities and for people to get together.

    A lush green lawn, with majestic trees, picnic tables, a boules pitch, a small port, and of course a beach!

    parc maxima publier

    MAXIMA PARK

    Leaving Amphion, in the direction of Évian, you will discover an area full of charm and history. Whilst enjoying your picnic underneath a century-old tree you can benefit from the Maxima spring, with its sulfurous and alkaline water, it is the perfect place to relax, and a paradise for families.

    Worth noting is that the park was registered in 2003 in the Rhône-Alpes region’s state cultural heritage register.

    publier parc du delta des dranse

    THE DRANSE DELTA PARK

    At a stone’s throw from the River Dranse Nature Reserve, there is a variety of areas to enjoy, including wetlands, woodlands, shrubberies, and prairies. Footpaths and a viewpoint reveal the area that reflects the natural habitats of the Delta de la Dranse.

    Two of the park’s main aims are:

    • to create a unique area, with a strong environmental mission, a genuine antechamber of the National Nature Reserve of the Dranse Delta.
    • to open the site to as many people as possible, as public areas are few and far between around Lake Léman. The terracing provides a mini-relief of mounds, and water-filled sections.

    The park is managed in a gentle and distinguished manner that gives way to the vegetation and wildlife’s natural recolonization.

    Publier is the only town on the French shoreside of Lake Léman to offer this length and surface area of lakeside parks.

    The Miroir, Town Hall, media library, Mottay, municipal beach, Pré Curieux, Clos Fleuri, Souriane fountain, Blonay estate, and La Cité de l’Eau park, all the municipality’s public parklands spread across almost 41 hectares.

    Discover Also

    maison des dranse publier

    LA MAISON DES DRANSE

    This museum space invites you to discover the natural treasures of the National Nature Reserve of the Dranse Delta.

    There is an exhibition with an instructive model, a children’s area and a shop. The instructive model retraces the river Dranse from its source, in the Haut-Chablais, right down to its outlet, and reveals the river’s  hydraulic function, the water’s uses, and local geology.

    publier geopark

    THE CHABLAIS GEOPARK

    Since 2012, the Chablais territory has been included in the network of European and world Geoparks recognised by UNESCO. It joined three other French Geoparks (Digne-les-Bains Geological Nature Reserve, and the Regional National Parks of Lubéron and Les Bauges).

    AROUND PUBLIER

    Around Publier, discover Chablais’ 18 unmissable natural habitats: parks, viewpoints, and other natural habitats. Don’t miss our favourite ♥︎: the Champeillant geosite panorama at Féternes.

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