Salagou: in poor condition, the pontoon on Octon beach is on borrowed time

Située face au neck de Roques, la structure était un point de vue prisé de photographes de mariage. Midi Libre – JEROME MOUILLOT

Au Salagou, le ponton de la plage d’Octon n’est plus accessible. Il va être détruit.

Installed for ages on the beach of Octon, the fishing pontoon was part of the landscape. So much so that the wooden structure, with its breathtaking view of the lake and, on the opposite bank, the Neck de Roques, was often a popular viewpoint for wedding photographers who came here to immortalize, and sublimate, official unions. Alas, water passed under the pontoon which, today slated for demolition, is no longer accessible.

Unusable in the event of a significant tidal range, such as during the summer of 2023…

According to information obtained, the structure had initially been designed to facilitate access and practice for fishermen with reduced mobility. Except that this specific use was relatively rare. “This construction dates back about fifteen years, calculates Bernard Coste, mayor of Octon and vice-president of the Com Com du Clermontais delegated to tourism, who recalls that the Department had taken this initiative and financed it. Over the years, it was not used very much in the context that was initially planned and, in relation to climate change, depending on the tidal range, when the lake was too low, it was unusable. Finally, the pontoon needed to be repaired, it would have been necessary to replace wooden slats… and the cost of bringing it up to standard meant that the Department decided to demolish it." In the listed site, the Departmental Council has therefore taken the necessary steps to obtain the demolition permit. The deconstruction work should take place within a few weeks, after the tourist season. In the meantime, the Octon beach car park has been redesigned and a gantry installed in order to better manage attendance and, in particular, to prevent the installation of camper vans and converted trucks.