Gorge of Pré-Saint-Didier

Access

Leaving your car in the Pré-Saint-Didier car park, you walk to the old spa building, cross it and reach the beautiful single-arched stone bridge crossing the Dora di Verney. After crossing the bridge, continue to the right on the path that runs alongside the river, to the point where the famous thermo-mineral waters gush out, close to the picturesque gorge.

Introduction

A short walk takes you to admire the natural spectacle of the Pré-Saint-Didier gorge, carved into the rock by the force of the waters of the Dora de Verney.

Description

The beneficial springs at Pré-Saint-Didier have certainly been known since 1560, when they are mentioned in a deed of enfeoffment, but were probably already known to the Romans. These are weakly radioactive arsenic-ferruginous waters that gush out at a temperature of around 36°C from the tunnel dug near the gorge. The thermal waters are channelled and pass over the bridge, from which a gush of hot water starts, then after passing the thermal building they reach the town hall square in Pré-Saint-Didier, where they enliven two fountains. The therapeutic properties of the thermal waters, which were used in the form of baths and inhalations, extend to a range of ailments such as arthropathies, skin diseases and neuroendocrine dysfunctions.
 The gorge, enclosed by imposing, almost vertical rock walls, was generated by postglacial incisions made by the river. The spectacle we are offered is quite remarkable: the power of the river, which was able to carve such a gap in the rock, is still alive, as the noisy swirling of the waters shows. Moreover, the narrow gorge from which the river gushes dialogues with the wide landscape that opens up towards the valley, in a suggestive and fascinating contrast.