Lake of Sainte-Croix, Artificial reservoir in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, France.
Lake of Sainte-Croix is a reservoir in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, France, that spreads at the end of the Verdon Gorge and shows turquoise water. The shore alternates between pebble coves and gentle hills, while sailboats and canoes glide across the surface.
The Verdon was dammed from 1973; the Sainte-Croix dam, begun in 1971, was completed in 1974. The reservoir flooded the old village of Les Salles-sur-Verdon, rebuilt about 400 m away, and a 6th-century nine-arch bridge built by the bishops of Riez, often wrongly called Roman. A larger project that would also have drowned Bauduen and Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon was abandoned in 1968.
The name comes from the village of Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon on the western shore, not from a priory. In Provençal the lake is Lau de Santa Crotz or Lau de Santo Crous. Since 1973 it has drawn summer visitors; petrol engines are banned, so only electric motors and sails are allowed, and pedal boats are common from June to September.
On warm days you can swim at several beaches, where the water reaches comfortable temperatures in summer. Boats may run only with electric motors or muscle power to protect the calm and cleanliness of the reservoir.
When the water level drops in spring, wall remains and old street lines from the sunken village sometimes reappear. On windless days the white cliffs of the gorge reflect so clearly in the water that photographers can hardly tell sky from surface.
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