Pavin is the youngest volcano in mainland France and it is perfectly, almost unnervingly round — as if someone had placed a compass at the centre and drawn the shoreline in a single gesture. Seven thousand years ago there was a phreatomagmatic eruption here; now there is a crater lake ninety-two metres deep with water so cold and so still at the bottom that it has not mixed properly in anyone's memory (the word is 'meromictic', which is the sort of word that usually wins people drinks in bars). The ecology is exactly what you would expect: cold, oligotrophic, and perfect for salmonids. Arctic char live in the deeps, brown trout work the shoreline in the shoulders of the season, and perch do whatever perch do in a place like this. Boat fishing is permitted and is genuinely the best way to fish Pavin, because the crater is round and the wind is usually from somewhere you will want to row away from. Beautiful water; serious fishery.
- Lake
- Volcanic
