The Évançon (sometimes written ''Évençon'') is the stream which flows through the

val d'Ayas Val may refer to: Military equipment * Aichi D3A, a Japanese World War II dive bomber codenamed "Val" by the Allies * AS Val, a Soviet assault rifle Music *''Val'', album by Val Doonican *VAL (band), Belarusian pop duo People * Val (given ...

and flows into the

Doire baltée The Dora Baltea () or Doire Baltée () is a river in the Aosta Valley and in Piedmont, in northwestern Italy. It is a left-hand tributary of the Po and is about long. Name The river's Latin name was ''Duria maior'', ''Duria Baltica'' or ''Duri ...

. Its name in

Franco-Provençal Franco-Provençal (also Francoprovençal, Patois or Arpitan) is a Gallo-Romance languages, Gallo-Romance language that originated and is spoken in eastern France, western Switzerland, and northwestern Italy. Franco-Provençal has several di ...

might mean "Grand River" or "River from the Mountaintops" (''eva d'en som''). In archival documents it is often referred to as ''l'eau blanche'' (

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

for "White water"). The Unité des communes valdôtaines de l'Évançon takes its name from the stream.

Course

The stream has its origin in the Great Glacier of Verra at the top of the val d'Ayas. After coursing right through the valley, the Évançon flows into the

Dora Baltea The Dora Baltea () or Doire Baltée () is a river in the Aosta Valley and in Piedmont, in northwestern Italy. It is a left-hand tributary of the Po and is about long. Name The river's Latin name was ''Duria maior'', ''Duria Baltica'' or ''Duri ...

Verrès Verrès ( Valdôtain: ; töitschu ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Aosta Valley region of north-western Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consis ...

, near the bridge of Fleuran. It flows through:

Ayas Ayas may refer to: Ayas * Ayas(आयस), Sanskrit for metal, see history of metallurgy in the Indian subcontinent * Ayas, Armenian metal band * Aya, Adana, the ancient city of Aegeae and medieval Ajazzo or Laiazzo, now Yumurtalık, Adana Pro ...

, Brusson,

Challand-Saint-Anselme Challand-Saint-Anselme (; Valdôtain: ; Issime ); is a town and ''comune'' in the Aosta Valley region of northwestern Italy. Main sights * Church of Saint-Anselme * Shrine of Sainte-Anne * Historical mills in Quinçod and Ruvère References

...

and Challand-Saint-Victor. Near Targnod in the commune of Challand-Saint-Victor, the stream flows through the ''Gorge de Brisecou'' (

for "Breakneck Gorge") where it feeds the

Isollaz Falls The Isollaz Falls (; ) are a waterfall along the Évançon river near Challand-Saint-Victor in the Aosta Valley, Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. I ...

. Their base can be reached by a short walk from the road to Isollaz and a good observation spot can be reached by car on the road which leads to

Verrès Castle Verrès Castle (, ) is a fortified 14th-century castle in Verrès, in the lower Aosta Valley, in north-western Italy. It has been called one of the most impressive buildings from the Middle Ages in the area. Built as a military fortress by Yblet ...

. The Évançon is a typical glacial river, which means that

maximum flow In optimization theory, maximum flow problems involve finding a feasible flow through a flow network that obtains the maximum possible flow rate. The maximum flow problem can be seen as a special case of more complex network flow problems, such ...

is reached in the summer and the minimum flow occurs in winter. The colour of the water in the stream varies from

azure Azure may refer to: Color * Azure (color), a hue of blue ** Azure (heraldry) ** Shades of azure, shades and variations Arts and media * ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987 * Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013 * ...

in the morning and when it is cold through to a grey-white towards the evening and after a hot day. Only in winter the river is transparent, while in summer it is more or less clouded by sediment and sand from the glacier.

Fauna

The stream is inhabited exclusively by

trout Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...

(both

brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...

and

rainbow A rainbow is an optical phenomenon caused by refraction, internal reflection and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a continuous spectrum of light appearing in the sky. The rainbow takes the form of a multicoloured circular ...

, repopulated annually by the regional fish consortium. Among the wildlife must be mentioned the

white-throated dipper The white-throated dipper (''Cinclus cinclus''), also known as the European dipper or just dipper, is an aquatic passerine bird found in Europe, Middle East, Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent. The species is divided into several subspecies ...

which is present in great numbers.

Human activity

To protect the inhabited area of the plain which has suffered from flooding in the past, protective walls have been built. Unfortunately, in addition to harming the naturalness and aesthetic appearance of the stream, these have made it less hospitable to the trout. Along its course the stream is used to produce

hydroelectric power Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

. In Brusson is located the Isollaz dam.

Note

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evancon Rivers of Aosta Valley Rivers of the Alps Rivers of Italy