L'Escale

L'ESCALE

ESCALO in Provençal is the anchoring place/place of call for the boats which sailed on the Durance river and put into port to spend the night there.

Dominated by the Ruth mountain on the east, the Escale spreads over a lovely plain, along the left bank of the Durance river and on the side of the Château-Arnoux lake.

Considered as an important river port in the Gallo-Roman period, when the Durance river was still navigable, the village expanded in the Middle Ages on hillsides of Vière and Mandanoïs (the latter is known today as the "Hamlet of The Landlord" ("Hameau de l'Hôte").

In the 16th century, the Escalais people began to left the Vière hillside to found around the former Notre-Dame de Mandanoïs' church, which became their parish church, several litte hamlets whose names generally derived from surnames.

Nowadays, this village is appreciated for its peacefulness and its different views with wonderful panoramas over the valley.

You can also visit Notre-Dame de Mandanoïs' parish church which was rebuilt in 1854 and perfectly reflects the religious art of the 19th century.
Further, the Coulayès area and the Vière ruins are the starting point for many nice hiking and mountain hiking trails...

Population 1,166 inhabitants	The inhabitants are called the Escalais people
Number of children attending school 137	The village was born in the 10th century but the Bourquet area was arleady an important river port under the Romans' domination
Surface area 5,028 acres	Patron saint St Consorce
Heigh 1,558 feet	Mayor Mr Claude FIAERT

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•Tourism in the Department • Tourism in PACA • TER PACA • la Route Napoléon • les gîtes ruraux • Millétapes en France

Tourist Office and Mountain Bike Centre of Val de Durance
Ferme de Font Robert - Avenue de la Bastide - 04160 Château-Arnoux
Tél. 04 92 64 02 64 - Fax : 04 92 64 54 55
E-mail : tourisme@la-moyenne-durance.fr
Open from June to September from Monday to Saturday: 9.30am-12.30am and 2.30pm-6.30pm.
In July and August, open on Sunday from 9.30 am to 1 pm.
Open from October to May from Monday to Friday: from 9 am to 12 am and from 2 pm to 6 pm.
Open on weekend for mountain bike rentals on request.