The different faces of Mont Aiguille

3 points of interest

• 

  The mountain with a nasty sting

  The name «Mont Aiguille» appears quite late on geographical 
  maps, not before the 17th century. However, the mountain is not pointed like a needle, as suggested by its name. 
  It is possible that the local dialect term «aguïo» for a 
  pointed rock might have been confused with the Occitan term «eyguèyo» equivalent to «aiguière» in French, meaning a water vessel. Thus, Mont Aiguille would
  most likely come from the Occitan name for this mountain (Peiro Eyguèyo), which refers to a «Mountain of Springs», because of the numerous springs at the foot of its northern face (Francès, 1997).

• 

  An irrigation canal

  In 1821, a group of local farmers constructed a canal to irrigate parts of their land and gardens in Clelles. The canal was fitted with numerous sluice gates, but only members of the Syndicate were entitled to have access to the water supply. 
  At the beginning of the 20th century, Mr Corréard, a local miller, leased part of the rights to operate an electric power plant. In addition to running his mill, he became an electricity producer and supplied the commune of Clelles. In 1948, the power plant was connected to the national electricity grid!
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  The Clelles canal

  The piped water is a story of slope.
  Controlling the slope allows to control the regularity of the water flow. 
  
  Elevation at start : 897 m
  Elevation at arrival : 880 m
  Lenght : 3 km