Tournée
IGS - SAO
Les Diablerets
2009,
August 26-30
The Diablerets Massif is a
mountainous chain located between the Vaud, Valais and Berne Cantons of
Switzerland. The name is due to a legend, telling that small
devils ("Diablerets") enjoyed in throwing rocks towards a peak, causing
a large quantity
of rocks falling down to the Valais valley. In the half of XIX century,
the remote Ormont Valley, in the Vaud Canton, took this sexy name
and, thanks to some forerunner Englishmen, became a famous location for
summer holidays.
In the last century, a cable
line was installed, making the highest part of this massif (permanently
covered by glaciers) accessible.
The
climatic change caused
the glaciers to shrink. The Western Alps
Section of the International Glaciological Society, under the
leadership
of Philippe Schöneich, formerly with the Geography Institute of
Lausanne (and now with the Institut de Geographie Alpine de Grenoble),
went to explore the rests of the numerous glaciers which reached their
maximum extension in the half of XIX century.
The visit was also
an unique opportunity to explore the region, to evaluate its water resources and its use.
Photos by Davide Ceresetti and Aurelien Claude
August
26
The
day before the meeting, visit to the Mauvoisin Dam.
Day 1 - Grenoble -->
Mauvoisin
Mauvosin Dam, Valais. Max
Height: 250 m.
Panorama from the top of the Dam
