Facing West-East in a triangle formed to the South by the Mont Gerbier de Jonc, to the North by the Suc de Sara and to the West the village and the lake of Saint Martial, the Pradal Valley is protected by its unique access.
Description
The Pradal river, which meanders through the hollow of the valley, flows into the Eysse, a tributary of the Eyrieux; trout thrive in its lively, well-oxygenated waters.
From the entrance to the valley, the sawmill of the four roads recalls the sylvo-pastora activity (forest and meadows), which has always shaped this landscape for centuries.
According to the historian Paul Camus, it was in 51 AD that the Roman Emperor Claudius cut down part of the forests to drive out the Druids who found refuge there. It will be necessary to wait for the installation of the Carthusians of the abbey of Bonnefoy (1156, Carthusian order founded in 1084) so that the current forest cover is constituted at the hubac (slope exposed to the shade) of the valley (Bois Negro, wood of Sevelas…). This is the mountain floor, a domain of beech and fir.
It is on the adret (or adreyt, slope exposed to the sun), that one can still see the chambas, terraces created and cultivated by man, some of which are lost covered with broom and shrubs, a consequence of the agricultural decline.
Remarkable for its avifauna (kestrel, mad sparrow, etc.) and its flora, the Pradal valley is framed by two natural areas of ecological, faunal and floristic interest (ZNIEFF). It also finds its place in the zone of volcanic juices of the Mézenc labeled by the Ministry of the Environment since 1992.
Opening
All year.
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Prices
| Free access. |
Location