Photo : Wikimedia Commons
Les Clues de Barles
The Clue de Barles, also called Clue de Saint-Clément, is a cluse in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence between the communes of Barles and La Robine-sur-Galabre. The Bès, a tributary of the Bléone, has cut the limestone massif at a very narrow passage, only 10 to 20 metres wide over a length of about 275 metres. The site is part of the Haute-Provence Geological Nature Reserve.
The walls show rock layers tilted almost vertically by Alpine folding, direct evidence of the tectonic upheavals that shaped the region. The road crossing the clue lets you observe these strata up close, effortlessly, from the vehicle or by stopping at the edge of the passage. The atmosphere is steep-sided and mineral, and the clue is one of the natural stages of the Bès valley, on the road climbing towards Barles.
