Besbre

The Besbre is a river of the center of France, which runs entirely in the Département Allier.

Geography

It takes its source around the puy of Montoncel (: 1287 m) in the Mounts of the Madeleine, to the extreme south-east of the Department To combine it, and are thrown in the Loire, between the Saint-Aubin-on-Loire (Saône-et-Loire) and Diou (To combine).

Affluents

Common crossings

Since the source:

Hydrology

Besbre is an abundant river, like the majority of the rivers resulting the heights of the French Massif Central. Its flow was observed over one 34 years period (1966-2000), with Dompierre-on-Besbre, locality very close to its confluence with the the Loire. The catchment area of the river is there of 721 km ² is almost the totality of this one (762 km ²).

The interannual medium flow or module of the river with Dompierre-on-Besbre is of 9,23 m ³ a second.

Besbre presents seasonal fluctuations of flow marked enough, with one long period of high waters going from the autumn in spring and carrying the average monthly flow on a level located between 10 and 17,5 m ³ a second, from November to May included (with a marked maximum in February). As of at the end of May the flow decreases quickly to lead to the period of the low waters which proceeds July mid-October, bringing a fall of the monthly medium flow up to 2,96 m ³ to August, which remains rather comfortable. But the fluctuations of flow can be more important according to the years and over shorter periods.

With the low water level the VCN3 can fall until 0,54 m ³, in the event of dry quinquennial period, that is to say 540 liters a second, which is not too severe, and normal compared with the average of the rivers of the basin of the Loire. The VCN3 is the past minimal quantity or minimal flow over three days consecutive.

As for the risings, they can be important, but without excess as it is often the case of the Western affluents of the Loire. The QIX 2 and QIX 5 or calculated flows of biennial and quinquennial rising are worth respectively 56 and 75 m ³ a second. The QIX 10 or calculated flow of decennial rising is of 87 m ³ a second, the QIX 20 of 99 m ³, while the QIX 50 is worth 110 m ³ a second (see note).

The maximum instantaneous flow recorded with Dompierre-on-Besbre during this period, was of 112 m ³ a second on December 1st, 1968, while the recorded maximum daily output was of 107 m ³ a second on December 26th of the same year. If one compares the first of these values on a QIX scale of the river, one notes that this rising was of order cinquantennal, and thus relatively exceptional.

It can be interesting to compare the QIX 2 and QIX 10 of Besbre with those of the Oudon, affluent of Right Bank of the Mayenne, running in the North-West of Angers, and having a rather comparable basin and a flow. Whereas the QIX 2 of Besbre is assembled to 56 m ³ a second, that of Oudon is worth 110 of them. As for the QIX 10, that of Besbre being of 87 m ³ a second, it goes up to 230 m ³ for Oudon. One must conclude from it that the risings of Besbre are more twice the least important than those of Oudon, river of the west of the basin of the Loire. Besbre is an abundant river. The Lame of water past in its catchment area is of 402 millimetres annually, which is definitely higher than the overall average of France all confused basins, but especially much higher than the average of the basin of the the Loire (244 millimetres). The specific Débit of the river (or Qsp) posts of this fact robust 12,8 liters a second and per square kilometer of basin.

Curiosities - Tourism

Curiosities to be discovered in the valley and the basin of Besbre extremely many and are varied. The following list is far from being exhaustive:

  • Laprugne, and its castles (of the Vault and Small-Herviers), winter sports, culminating point of the Mounts of the Madeleine, tourist railroad…

  • Châtel-Mountain, its Notre-Dame Church, chief of Romance work of art auvergnat, dated from XIIe century.
  • Breuil, its Romance church Notre-Dame with tomb of Alix of Breuil.
  • Lapalisse, with the Castle of Palice (XIIe and XIIIe centuries supplemented in XVe and XVIe centuries in Italian style), the hospital of XVIIe become Post office building, half-timbered houses of XVe century. Ponds in the area.
  • Jaligny-on-Besbre, its castles (castle Rebirth with door of XIVe, and castle of Lonzat with park), its turns and its enclosure of the Middle Ages, its Saint-Hippolyte church with chorus of XIe century and superb statues of XVe and XVIe centuries. One can practice a whole range of sports there: fish, horsemanship, canoe-kayak (hiring), VTT. Camp-site and rooms of hosts…
  • Saint-Pourçain-on-Besbre, its castle-extremely of Beauvoir of XIVe and XVe centuries with park and gardens, its castle of Toury of XIVe and XVe centuries also (with ramparts, turn of guêt, curtains), its church Saint-Pourçain romano-Gothic, his Museum of Hunting, its Palate of the Miniature (mini-station the SNCF), its zoological garden included in an amusement park: park of STAKE (open in April 2007). Wood, ponds, vines and cellars with tasting…
  • Dompierre-on-Besbre, its river port on the side Channel with the Loire, its monastery Trappist (the Abbey of Sept-Fons), his castle of XVIIIe, its houses with wood sides. Many ponds in the surroundings.

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