Sous les ponts de Servoz, des torrents tumultueux, visite commentée

Servoz's history is linked to the presence of an ancient lake and the Arve and Diosaz rivers.

The history of Servoz is linked to the presence, at the bottom of the basin, of an ancient lake held back until the 13th century by moraines and scree following the collapse of part of the Fiz mountains. It also depends on its rivers: the Arve and the Diosaz, natural borders since the 12th century with the Priory of Chamonix.
Their frightful and recurrent flooding washes away bridges, devastates flooded land and hinders the movement of people and goods, until they are regulated.
But the Diosaz's impetuosity also benefited local industry: mills, timber floating, sawmills and, until the French Revolution, significant mining activity on the Isle de la Diosaz.
This tumultuous torrent also carved out exceptional gorges for its endemic flora and fauna, and for its vertiginous cliffs, which Achille Cazin developed for the general public.
Today, dams on the Arve and Diosaz rivers supply water to the hydroelectric complexes at Passy and Montvauthier.