Vieilles Forges Lake

Initially, Vieilles Forges Lake was a pond on the river Faux. A dam was built in 1927 creating a lake. In 1949, the dam was extended and the lake reached its present level. It mainly serves to supply water to the Whitaker reservoir, the Revin Saint-Nicolas hydroelectric power station’s lower reservoir and the Marquisades reservoir, the same power station’s upper reservoir, in the Rocroi district. This Revin power station fills these two lake-reservoirs by pumping when the demand for electricity is low, and empties them when demand is high. This lake is named after a forge-master called Whitacker who ran a workshop here in the 16th century. The lake is surrounded by forests, but it is nevertheless possible to walk along the banks. It covers an area of about 150 hectares, with a shoreline running for nearly 12km. It is fed by a number of streams (Faux, Pont Gilles, Fond de Falette, Noir, Rus de la Picarde and Rus des Prises Pierret streams) and by springs (Fontaine aux Charmes, Fontaine aux Vives Rus, etc.). Flora and fauna: a large number of rare plant species can be seen on this site, including several mountain plants rarely found on the plain. Three are protected on the regional level: Eriophorum vaginatum, Osmunda regalis and Oreopteris limbosperma, a fern. Seven are included on the red list of endangered plants in Champagne-Ardennes: Marsh Cinquefoil, Meadow Starwort, Wood Horsetail, Blackcurrant, Common Bladderwort (carnivorous plant), and two Pondweeds, Blunt-Leaved Pondweed and Alpine Pondweed. Amongst the fauna living on this site, the diversity of birds, butterflies and moths, and of the dragonflies with 13 rare species included on the red list of endangered insects in Champagne-Ardenne, many amphibians and reptiles including the Alpine Newt and Common European Adder.