As a reservoir for the Canal de Bourgogne, Lac de Pont has become an essential leisure site, thanks to redevelopment work carried out by the Local Community Council. A must for walkers, who can take the 12.7 km path that runs alongside the lake, its authenticity also makes it a paradise for anglers. The lake is also ideal for water sports: swimming, kayaking, paddle-boarding, pedal-boating, water-skiing... just 4 km from Semur-en-Auxois !
Water activities
Electric boats, kayaks, pedalos, water-skiing, wakeboarding and paddle-boarding. Open from 2pm to 7pm: Saturday-Sunday in May and June and 7 days a week in July and August.
In summer
An ideal place to relax, the lake offers a wide range of activities. Visitors can enjoy a swim (which, unfortunately, will be unsupervised in 2024 due to the failure to recruit a lifeguard) on a friendly, fun beach that has been redesigned with a gentle slope and equipped with planted terraces, a shower and beach huts.
At the entrance to the site, a charming little square with flowers and shade offers several areas :
- for children, an area with wooden play equipment (slide, swings, etc.) and a soft rubber floor covered with artificial turf ;
- for families, a picnic area with tables and benches ;
- for sports enthusiasts, a fitness area with five exercise machines ;
- for walkers and meditation enthusiasts, a number of reclining chairs facing the lake.
Here, the landscaping is especially meticulous, with spring flowering and autumn colouring. And each tree has a notice describing its species, produced by pupils at a local school.
The major redevelopment and safety project completed in 2019 has also made the site accessible to people with reduced mobility.
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Our local restaurants
Complete guide to restaurants in Terres d'Auxois
Restaurants :LE PARI DES GOURMETS (10 rue du Lac) from tuesday to sunday
LE CHALET DU LAC (16 rue du Lac) every day
LE PETIT CHALET DES CREPES (in front of the beach) every day, from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm
SNACK (au Club Nautique) every day from 2:00 to 7:00 pm in jully and august
In all seasons
Around Lac de Pont
Starting from the beach, this trail, which was brought up to standard in 2018 and is of moderate difficulty, is very well signposted. It is 12.7 km long and very popular with walkers and runners, and is accessible all year round. On average, it takes between 3 and 4 hours to complete.
In winter, the route can be shortened to 9 km by taking the Pont de la Ronce, which spans the bed of the River Armançon and is only passable when the level of the lake is at its lowest. In summer, the bridge, also known as the Pont des Romains, is submerged and therefore invisible.
Discover other trails near Lac de Pont
The history of the Lac de Pont dam and reservoir
Built in 1878, the Lac de Pont reservoir was flooded in 1883, just one year after the dam was built. The reservoirs had multiple functions :
- to supply the Canal de Bourgogne ;
- but also to regulate the irregular course of the Armançon and ensure the supply of drinking water to the surrounding towns and villages, including Semur-en-Auxois.
Since 1981, a filtering station has been treating water for around 70 communities. And the regulated waters of the Armançon have supplied a whole series of factories, mills and other plants between Pont and Rougemont.
The history of the lake's tourist activity can still be seen in the facilities along the shoreline. The wooden fishermen's huts were joined by beach huts built for the first bathers. Traces of this can be seen on old postcards. In the 1970s, the nautical base, the diving board (dismantled in 2018) and the campsite were established. An interesting group of houses from various periods bears witness to the existence of a small holiday resort throughout the 20th century, which is very rare on the Canal de Bourgogne. These houses appear to be scale models of urban pavilions. Well upstream of the dam is a holiday village dating from the late 20th century.
In 2018, the Terres d'Auxois Local Community Council launched a major programme of works, including re-profiling the beach to make it easier to bathe for longer, and a series of improvements to create a welcoming recreational area.
