The Manival gives Saint-Nazaire-Les-Eymes a distinctive landscape: a large alluvial fan, the stream’s gorges and an educational trail bring together the natural environment and local history. When planning your trip, it is worth considering these different aspects separately—from the path beside the water and geological traces to churches and historic gardens.
At the Manival: Trail, Water and Landscape
The educational trail along the Manival was created in 2010 along its banks. Information panels explain the history of the stream and the works that have shaped its course. The trail is therefore about more than the riverside landscape: it also shows how the stream and its development have shaped the area. The Manival promenade runs from a car park at the end of the road towards the ONF, as far as a forest hut at an altitude of 870 metres. Its route and endpoint provide a specific reference for anyone planning to visit the Manival, without suggesting a walking time or level of difficulty.
The geological setting also helps define the character of the municipality. The Manival alluvial fan is one of the largest in Europe; the 99.16-hectare municipal forest lies on it, on the eastern slope of the Chartreuse Massif. On the hill by the hamlet of Ratz, the Isère Glacier left a moraine around 15,000 years ago, which now covers the hill. The alluvial fan and moraine hill thus represent different landforms within the municipality—useful context for looking beyond the stream itself.
Gorges and Wetlands
The Gorges du Manival extend across six municipalities. Their south-facing slopes combine wet and dry conditions and provide habitats for orchids and Mediterranean plants. In Saint-Nazaire-Les-Eymes, the gorges are designated a Type I ZNIEFF. This identifies their place in a natural heritage inventory; their particular significance here lies in the combination of their aspect, varying conditions and diverse plant life.
Another natural area is the Zone humide des Cloyères. Covering more than 600 hectares in total, it extends partly into the municipality and includes former gravel pits and remnants of alluvial forest. Le Moulin, in turn, is designated a Type I ZNIEFF and features marshy woodland and wet meadows. Together with the gorges, these areas showcase different habitats: slopes with both wet and dry conditions, as well as woodland and meadows in a wetland. Saint-Nazaire-Les-Eymes is also part of the Parc naturel régional de la Chartreuse; trails in the municipality are listed in the Plan Départemental d’Itinéraires de Promenades et de Randonnées (PDIPR).
Churches, a Château and the History of Winegrowing
The church on Place de l’Église was rebuilt in its present form in 1835 and consecrated in early 1836. Its construction history can therefore be traced through two dates close together. Another historical trace leads to the church of Clèmes: it is mentioned in the 12th-century cartularies of Saint-Hugues and was converted into a private house after the French Revolution.
The Château des Eymes, also known as Château Villeroy, is another part of the area’s architectural and landscape heritage. It stands on an estate enclosed by walls, with agricultural outbuildings, a formal French garden, an English garden and a small wood. These different features give an idea of how buildings, landscaped gardens and wooded areas come together on the estate.
Winegrowing is also part of the landscape’s history: since the Middle Ages, the soil and location of the Manival alluvial fan have favoured it. Those interested in local history will find, alongside the churches, an agricultural dimension linked to the area’s geological conditions.
Getting Your Bearings in the Chartreuse
Road and cycling routes are also useful for understanding the area’s location. The RD30 departmental road runs from Saint-Nazaire-Les-Eymes over the Col du Coq and is considered an important route to the Plateau des Petites-Roches and the municipality of Saint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse. A cycling route to the Col du Coq also starts in Saint-Nazaire-Les-Eymes. These provide two different points of reference for your journey: the road connects to the destinations mentioned, while the cycling route starts in the village.
Discover more destinations: Vénosc, Septème, Saint-Hilaire, Charantonnay, Saint-Siméon-de-Bressieux, Vaulnaveys-Le-Bas, Chonas-L'amballan, Janneyrias.
For the wider travel overview: Isere.
