Vuzelle waterfall return

Classified in 1935, the Vuzelle waterfall is an outstanding element of the landscape of the valley of Planay, which is easy to see with the 3 peaks of the Vuzelle Mountain (highest at 2654m).We can contemplate this waterfall (which has more than 100 m of height),taking the trail from Chamberanger. Sometimes it’s water, sometimes it’s ice. In the 40s, some works were made by EDF to pick up the water after the drop, to bring the water 764 m down by penstock to a hydroelectric plant in the Villard. These huge works made by thousands of men for months, have not damaged the site.

Located between the village and the alpine pasture, on the sunny side, “les montagnettes” are really small villages temporary inhabited according to the transhumance of humans and animals: Gros Murger, la Rochette, Mollard, Pelapoët, Plan Fournier, Vers le Saut.The term “Montagnettes” indicates a group of houses that is located between the main village and the alpine pasture. It’s a temporary place for the families and the animals. They are occupied during different periods of the year, even when the snow is coming. Humans and animals are going up and down through the year; we are calling it transhumance or “tramoués” in a local dialect. For the families who were living like that, 3 going back and forth guided their trip : - At the end of May, each family were going up to settle in their “montagnette”, until cows were going to the alpine pasture. - Back to the village : field work and making hay - At the “montagnette”: Making hay until cows came down from the alpine pasture. Harvest of hay, and cows eat the second crop (“regain” in local dialect). - At the end of October people and animals were going down to eat the second crop. - In November, people and animals were going up again for 3 months. In February the farmer had to decide when they had to go down at the village. The decision was made according to how much hay they still have at this period. Sometimes they take the decision to go down even with the snow, that it was quite difficult. - In the village, family and animals stayed until the snow melted.