Doubs (river)
The Doubs (French: [du] (
| Doubs | |
|---|---|
 The Doubs just before Besançon | |
 | |
| Native name | Dubs (Arpitan) |
| Location | |
| Country | France, Switzerland |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Mouthe, Jura mountains |
| • coordinates | 46°42′17″N 6°12′34″E |
| • elevation | 946 m (3,104 ft) |
| Mouth | |
• location | Saône |
• coordinates | 46°54′3″N 5°1′27″E |
• elevation | 175 m (574 ft) |
| Length | 453 kilometres (281 mi) |
| Basin size | 7,500 km2 (2,900 sq mi) |
| Discharge | |
| • average | 176 m3/s (6,200 cu ft/s) |
| Basin features | |
| Progression | Saône→ Rhône→ Mediterranean Sea |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Loue |
| • right | Allan |
| Lakes | Lac de Saint-Point, Lac des Brenets, Lac de Moron |
Course
From its source in Mouthe it flows northeast, more or less along the French-Swiss border (forming the border for approx. 40 km). Near Montbéliard it turns southwest, until it flows into the river Saône in Verdun-sur-le-Doubs, approx. 20 km (12 mi) northeast of Chalon-sur-Saône. Its entire course resembles an inverted letter U, with the northeastern corner the only point at which the Doubs flows into Switzerland as far as Saint-Ursanne. In Switzerland it traverses the cantons Jura and Neuchâtel.
The waterfall known as the Saut du Doubs is located on the French-Swiss border. The river, which has been dammed up by landslide debris, forms the 4-kilometre (2.5 mi) long, but only 200-metre (660 ft) wide, winding Lac des Brenets. The 27-metre (89 ft) high Doubs Falls are located at its end. The falls can be reached on foot or by passenger boat.[1]
The Doubs flows through the following Departments of France, Cantons of Switzerland, and cities:
- Doubs (F): Pontarlier
- Neuchâtel (CH)
- Jura (CH): Saint-Ursanne
- Doubs (F): Montbéliard, Besançon
- Jura (F): Dole
- Saône-et-Loire (F): Verdun-sur-le-Doubs
Tributaries include:
The river forms several lakes:
- Lac de Saint-Point (elevation 850 m or 2,790 ft) near Pontarlier
- Lac des Brenets (elevation 750 metres or 2,460 feet)
- Lac de Moron (elevation 716 metres or 2,349 feet)
- Lac de Biaufond (elevation 610 metres or 2,000 feet)
Floods and seasonal variation
The rate of flow of the Doubs is very seasonally variable. The flooding season can stretch from September to May, with floods being occasioned either by heavy rains or by quick melting of snow from the Jura mountains. At its mouth, the discharge rate can vary from as low as 20 cubic metres per second (710 cu ft/s) to over 1,000 cubic metres per second (35,000 cu ft/s) during floods.
In Besançon, the largest floods have been in 1852 (8.5 metres or 27 feet 11 inches), in 1896 (7.96 metres or 26 feet 1 inch) and in 1910. There have also been many lesser floods more recently.
Hydroelectricity
As a mountain river with substantial discharge, the Doubs has been used for electricity generation. Among several hydroelectric stations, the most important are the Dam of Châtelot, 74 metres (243 ft) tall, and the Dam of Refrain, 66.5 metres (218 ft) tall.
In Popular Culture
The Doubs river is mentioned sixteen times in Stendhal's novel The Red and the Black (Le rouge et le noir).
References
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Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Doubs (river). |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Doubs River. |