The best traffic-free bike rides around Charette

The Sault-Brénaz dam (also called Villebois dam or Sault-Brénaz facility) is an important hydroelectric infrastructure located on the Rhône River. It is situated on the border between the departments of Ain and Isère, mainly near the communes of Sault-Brénaz and Villebois. Commissioned in 1986, this structure was the last major facility built by the Compagnie Nationale du Rhône (CNR) on the upper Rhône.

This rural village, bordered by the Rhône and the spectacular cliffs of Isle Crémieu, has just over 1,200 inhabitants (the Hiérois) and is part of the Balcons du Dauphiné community of municipalities.

In 1920, after the First World War, the Barron-Vialle company based in Lyon settled on a 100-hectare property on the edge of the Serre ponds [archive]. Founded by Antoine Vialle, it manufactured trucks, coaches, and luxury cars. The "conical gear axle" which replaced the chain drive on trucks was invented in the Vialle foundry in Arandon. Activity ceased in 1937[2],[3]. Between January 1939 and March 1940, the town's inhabitants lived through a little-known episode. After the fall of Barcelona to the Francoists on January 26, 1939, many Spanish refugees arrived in Grenoble, where they were very poorly housed. At the request of the authorities, in February 1939, Mr. Vialle, the mayor, agreed to rent out the premises of his inactive factory; from July 12 onwards, 1300 Spanish Republicans, mainly families[4] of refugees, were welcomed there and stayed until October. Two days after the declaration of war on September 3, 1939, the government of the Third Republic ordered the internment of men "nationals of enemy powers", considered suspicious. These were almost exclusively anti-Nazis, men, mostly Jewish refugees from Germany and Austria, who were interned from October 1939 under particularly harsh conditions. The camp is said to have closed its doors around February 1940, apparently by sending the last occupants, 90 Jews, to the Loriol camp on March 11. The activity of this center then ceased, a few months before the establishment of the Vichy regime on July 7, 1940[8]. Mr. Vialle was subsequently dismissed from his duties as mayor by the Vichy regime. The factory regained its purpose in 1946 with SOFAL (aluminum foundry) until its cessation of activity in 1967, with the factory being transferred to the company Pierre Calignon (cast iron foundry). The latter filed for bankruptcy in 1987 and was taken over by G-H Bouyer foundries, which permanently closed the site in 1993. The site was then used for storing tires and then chlorinated materials until its remediation[9]. srce wikipédia to learn more, https://ajpn.org/internement-Camp-d-Arandon-7.html

Very beautiful village with character, entirely made of stone; from the village, you can see the Madonna of the Larina Archaeological site.

Leisure base opposite Bas Bugey. A pleasant stop, but strangely located between 2 nuclear power plants...

Small pond covered with water lilies on the edge of a charming little road.

Nice little café by the water 👍perfect for a coffee or snack break

Nice roundabout which leads to the Vallée Bleue.