Lake Bourget, the most romantic of French lakes

Le Bourget lake, within French alps, is the largest lake in France, and while it is fortunate that its shores have taken on a Mediterranean feel through their name of Riviera of the Alps, it has also remained strongly associated with Romanticism thanks to the frequent stays of the poet Lamartine.

In his poem "The Lake", Lamartine certainly evokes the nostalgia for his love, but he also gives some characteristics of this lake: the reeds, the caves, the black fir trees, the smiling hillsides and the wind which threw up the foam of these waves.

These are all elements of the landscape of the Bourget lake, but this romantic side, in which Nature takes on wilder, more furious, more obscure aspects, contrasts with the serene reality of the places.

Certainly, there is the western shore, abruptly closed by the massifs of Mont du Chat and Mont de la Charvaz, with wooded slopes, in the shade in the evening and so close to the surface of the water that the entire lake quickly becomes dark in the evening or when bad weather sets in on the mountain.

And then there is the eastern side, much sunnier, which rises gently over hillsides before reaching the cliffs of Mont Revard which dominate the town ofAix les Bains.

This bank is that of the Riviera of the Alps, beautiful palaces from the Belle Epoque, thermal establishments, walks along the river lake.

To take a tour of Lake Bourget is to discover very different worlds: the southern tip, where the port of Bourget developed, formerly the port of Chambéry, which gave its name to the lake, the western bank whose most important monument is undoubtedly the abbey of Hautecombe, the eastern bank called the Riviera of the Alps, whose center of activity is the city of Aix-les-Bains, and the north of the lake, with a very mild climate, called Chautagne.

Lake Bourget: an important commercial route.

Visit Hautecombe Abbey — Hautecombe Abbey – Photo © xavier planche-stock.adobe.com

Formerly, when Chambéry was a ducal capital (of Savoy!), and even a little later, the route taken by goods between Chambéry et Lyon was fluvial.

The goods were loaded at port of le bourget - today the port city is home to a pretty marina and is a university town - crossed the lake in its entire length from south to north, took the Savière canal for a little over three kilometers and joined the Rhône near Chanaz, and finally went quietly down the river to Lyon.

Along this Savoyard route, you shouldn't miss anything: neither the old town of Chambéry, so picturesque and well preserved (or rather well restored!) in which we no longer really know if we are in France or Italy, but we certainly understand that we are in Savoy, nor at the northern exit, the old towns of Chindrieux et Chanaz, in which we will visit cellars to taste the local wine.

Along the lake crossing, we could observe in the middle of the wooded slopes and along the water a religious building of a significant size and completely isolated. It is theHautecombe Abbey. This is best known for being the last home of the Savoy family, whose last representative, Umberto II, was the last King of Italy, before it became a Republic at the end of the Second World War. The funeral necropolis allows us to go back in time and reconstruct the history of Savoy, this powerful duchy whose main enemy for a long time was the armies of the King of France.

The Riviera of the Alps

Stay in Aix les Bains — Aix-les-Bains - photo © jojojo07 - stock.adobe.com

When you say Riviera, you think of the Côte d'Azur, the sun, the big blue... Aix les Bains, you could almost believe you were there. The Belle Epoque Palaces with their sumptuous facades recall the seaside promenades of Cannes or Nice, the lush vegetation of the flower gardens decorated with tropical species immediately fills you with a feeling of exoticism and vacation, the sunshine and the brightness of the lake - even if the city center ofAix les Bains is set back from the shore, taking you very far to the South. People came here for the thermal baths, because the Allobroges (Celtic people who lived on the site) and the Romans – some of whose monuments you will see – later, appreciated the virtues of the waters of the Aix subsoil. And when the Cures has once again established itself as a treatment for certain diseases, here it is respiratory tract patients who have come to seek healing.

When you say Thermal Baths in the 19th century, you also mean the upper middle class, rich residences, parks and gardens, and later in the 20th century the Casino, and the figures from the artistic world who had the power to make destinations fashionable by their mere presence. This is what happened in Aix-les-Bains. And you will realize that this city is neither like Chambéry, nor to Annecy, yet so close, which is what makes it so charming.

La Chautagne, north of the lake.

AlpAddict on the Savière Canal — Chanaz – photo © brengre- stock.adobe.com

Protected on both sides by mountain ranges that shelter it from cold and stormy winds, the marshy region of Chautagne is both a granary (wheat is grown there) and a vineyard. The vines planted a long time ago with grape varieties from the eastern Mediterranean, give the Savoie wines served on all the tables of Savoy: Altesse, Roussette, Mondeuse.

You can taste them in wine cellars in Chanaz, a little medieval gem, or on the terraces of Chindrieux, in the footsteps of Lamartine. To relax and enjoy the mild weather, don't hesitate to embark on a cruise on the Savière canal.

Before taking its current name, the Bourget lake was called Lake Châtillon. And Châtillon is the small marina at the far north of the lake.

While cruises and lake crossings allow you to enjoy magnificent landscapes, the banks are also ideal for swimming in water at 26 degrees in the middle of summer. We will especially remember the beaches of Aix-les-Bains and Le Bourget.

The lake is popular with boaters: all water sports involving sailing delight enthusiasts. The steady wind allows for beautiful crossings.

But be careful not to find yourself in a storm, like the one that capsized the boat on which Lamartine and Elvire, his beloved, were sailing, before capsizing their hearts.

Lake Bourget seen from above.

In winter at Lake Bourget — Lake Bourget in Winter © guillaume astruc – stock.adobe.com

When visiting mountain lakes, one always wants to see them from above. They appear like jewels in their setting, and it is from above that one realizes how inviting they are.

There are three magnificent viewpoints around Lake Bourget.

Le Mount Revard : a foothill of the Bauges massif, Mont Revard literally overlooks the town of Aix-les-Bains. Without having to launch yourself with a paraglider – although it is a renowned launch base – from the belvedere you really feel like you are flying above the lake. The height difference is impressive since there is almost 1200 meters of difference in altitude between the belvedere and the lake. The other side of Mont Revard is much less steep and has forests and valleys around the resort of La Féclaz, popular with cross-country skiers in winter and mountain bikers in summer.

Still on the same bank, a little further north of Aix-les-Bains, you will find the belvedere of the Chambotte with a magnificent terrace of restaurant above the lake, five hundred meters lower.

To have a perspective from the other bank, and a backdrop of very high mountains, you cannot miss the climb on the slopes of the Mount of the Cat, and more precisely at the Molard Noir belvedere.