Lac de Serre-Ponçon 5-day Mountain Bike Tour
From Embrun, the route rises rapidly into the dense forests of Boscodon. A halt at the Abbey is an opportunity to recharge your batteries mid-way up. A pretty descent down to Savines-le-Lac sets the tone for what is to come: this tour will be fun, technical at times and panoramic.From Savines, a straightforward ascent leads to the belvedere of Pierre Arnoux. A succession of balcony paths lead down to the perched village of Pontis. You gradually leave the coolness of the beech forest behind to enter a more open landscape of terraces, old hamlets and a dolmen, yet with the magnificence of the lake always within eyesight. The final stretch of this second stage takes an unused railway line along the Ubaye: don't forget to take lamps for the tunnels!The third stage is the least challenging but just as pretty, running through the plateaus and hills of Ubaye Serre-Ponçon and La Bréole. The trails leading to L'Escoubaye and its belvedere and the descent to the foot of the dam will take your breath away...From this imposing dam, a long ascent takes you to an important World War Two Resistance monument, the Croix des Prés, before reaching "Le Ruban". The view from here is undoubtedly the finest on the route. It follows numerous technical descents down to the shores of the lake. Proceed with caution!The final stretch from Chorges runs past a succession of bays and inlets, an ever-present temptation to take a swim, before heading uphill to Puy-Sanière. Brace yourself for the Descente des Tourniquets. This helter-skelter section is a must-ride for mountain bikers in the Embrunais area.

Addos mountain stream
The Addos mountain stream (torrent in French) is 4 kilometres long. A mountain stream is a natural water course located in the mountains. The flow regime is characterised by a steep gradient, with a very fast and therefore turbulent water flow producing significant erosion. It is also defined by a significant variation in flow rate depending on precipitation levels. In this mountain stream, as in many others, numerous small sills (small dams) have been created to slow down the water flow and limit the impact of floods.

Chapel of St-Jacques
Located in Chanteloube, this church is through to date back to 1510. It has retained all its authenticity, with its exposed stone. It is dedicated to Saint James, one of the 12 apostles and one of the first martyrs of the Catholic church. Its recent restoration has made it possible to hold the traditional celebrations there, in honour of Saint James. The purpose of each one is to commemorate a historical event connected with the saint. When he died, he was taken to Compostella in Spain, hence the name of the pilgrim's Way of Saint James to Santiago de Compostella, a religious route passing along the shores of the Serre-Ponçon lake.

Common magpie
This bird can be identified by its black and white plumage with blue-green tints on the wings and tail. Its tail is remarkably long. It can be found all year round in varied open environments. Its omnivorous diet consists of invertebrates, seeds and berries, small rodents, eggs and nestlings and even human rubbish. Except during the nesting period when it is solitary, the magpie is gregarious species which gathers into rather raucous groups in the winter.

Common juniper
This bush is a resinous evergreen conifer. It is characterised by its greenish to blue (glaucous) needles with a white line on their upper side, and fruits resembling blue-black berries. It usually tends to grow in warm environments receiving plenty of sunlight. It grows in grassy or scrub covered areas up to 2,000 metres above sea level.

The field cricket
Just 18 to 26 mm long, this little insect has a black head which looks a little like a helmet. The female can be told apart from the male by the presence of a third long appendage at the rear of the body. The cricket’s song is heard from April onwards. The male sings his chirping song from the entrance to his burrow. The fertile females lay their eggs in the ground, which remain there for two weeks before the larvae emerge.

Messicole plants
A feature of messicole plants is that they live among crops, even though not sown there deliberately. They are biologically adapted to open areas, and in particular areas that are regularly worked, such as fields. In fact, they use various strategies such as adapting their life cycle and producing large amounts of seeds in order to make up for the disturbance that occurs in their germination area. Many of them are common, such as the poppy, the cornflower and the corn buttercup...

Panorama of the Baie Saint-Michel
This area, which has been provided with picnic amenities, offers the most picturesque panorama over the Lac de Serre-Ponçon. In fact, the lake is 2 kilometres wide at this point, and in front of you are the Chapelle Saint Michel and the Pic Morgon, an iconic view of the lake. On your left, to the east, you can see Savines-le-Lac and its bridge. On the right, you can see the secret île de la Tortue.