Plongée souterraine en Charente
Sources karstiques autour d'Angoulême et dans les départements voisins : les sources profondes de la Touvre (Font de Lussac jusqu'à -197 m, Bouillant, Dormant ; eau potable, sur autorisation uniquement), le siphon de 700 m des sources du Cros, de petits siphons de club dans les Deux-Sèvres et en Charente-Maritime et, dans le nord de la Dordogne, le Grand Souci (-184 m) et les siphons de la Glane.
10 sources · jusqu'à 197 m
Les descriptions des grottes sont pour l'instant en anglais.
Les 10 sources
| Site | Prof. max. | Type | Brevet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Le Bouillant | 150 m | Backmount | Full cave |
| Fontaine Bouillonnante | – | Petites bouteilles / no-mount | Full cave |
| Source captée de Gros Roc | 5.5 m | Petites bouteilles / no-mount | Full cave |
| Font Creuse | – | Petites bouteilles / no-mount | Full cave |
| Résurgence de la Glane | 30 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Font de Lussac | 197 m | Backmount | Full cave |
| Le Dormant | 27 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Le Grand Souci | 184 m | Backmount | Full cave |
| Rivière souterraine de Saint-Christophe-sur-Roc | – | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Sources du Cros | 8 m | Backmount | Full cave |
Les brevets requis, les configurations et les profondeurs trimix sont des estimations destinées à la planification. Vérifiez-les toujours sur place et plongez dans les limites de votre formation.
Infos pratiques : règles, gonflage et numéros d'urgence
Urgences
- 112 (or 15 SAMU, 18 fire brigade); say it is a cave-diving accident. DAN Europe: +39 06 4211 5685.
- Hyperbaric chambers (MedSubHyp, as of January 2023): CHU de Bordeaux, Hôpital Pellegrin, place Amélie Raba-Léon, 33076 Bordeaux (~1 h 30 from Angoulême, ~1 h 45 from Périgueux): tel. +33 5 56 79 49 24, medical secretariat +33 5 56 79 55 17, intensive care +33 5 56 79 49 04; Mon–Fri 7:45–16:00, 24/7 on-call outside those hours; two treatment chambers. CHU d'Angers, 4 rue Larrey, 49933 Angers (~2 h from Niort): +33 2 41 35 45 80 or +33 2 41 35 38 71; Mon–Fri 8:30–18:30, 24/7 emergencies outside those hours via +33 2 41 35 36 54. The SAMU (15/112) decides where you go.
Accès et règles
- Access: the Touvre springs (Font de Lussac, Bouillant, Dormant) are Grand Angoulême's drinking-water catchment. Diving only with written authorisation; in 2009 clubs from outside the Charente had to apply well in advance to the agglomeration (then ComAGA), and according to the FFESSM (2018) only scientific and exploration dives are allowed. Underground rivers in the Deux-Sèvres (e.g. Saint-Christophe-sur-Roc): online request to CDS 79 at least 48 h ahead, FFS members only, code lock. Gros Roc: permission from the RESE water syndicate through CDS 17. The Glane has been a drinking-water catchment since 1959–1960. For the other springs no rules are published: ask the landowner or the mairie.
Gaz et gonflage
- Gas: no public fill station with trimix or oxygen found in the Charente, the Deux-Sèvres or the north of the Dordogne. Bring your own gas, booster and CCR absorbent, or ask the local FFESSM clubs. The nearest known cave-diving fill stations are in the Lot (Gramat, Cambes), ~3 h from Angoulême.
Eau et saison
- Water and season: the Touvre springs are ~12 °C and discharge ~13 m³/s on average (monthly means from 7 m³/s in September to 17.6 m³/s in February): strong current and 1.5–5 m visibility (2008); in 2006–2008 the Bouillant was too strong to dive. The small springs and underground rivers in the Deux-Sèvres are only feasible at low water. Bring a drysuit.
Jour de repos
- Non-diving day: the trail past the four Touvre springs (no motor vehicles on the site); the Fosse Mobile near Agris, a ~8 km dry cave with the largest chamber in the Charente (gated; key from the Le Celtix bar in Pont d'Agris or from the La Rochefoucauld caving club); the Deux-Sèvres underground rivers for FFS members via CDS 79 (Champdeniers closed 1 November to 31 March for the bats).
Bon à savoir
- Clubs: in France cave diving falls under the FFS (École Française de Plongée Souterraine) and the FFESSM (cave-diving commission). Locally: Speleo Libre Charentais (FFESSM club in Chazelles: cave diving, nitrox, trimix, rebreather), the cave-diving commission of GESMA in Angoulême (Touvre exploration in 2018), and in the Deux-Sèvres the Spit Club Saint-Maixentais and CDS 79.
Planifiez un séjour de plongée souterraine en Charente
Saisissez votre équipe, avec brevets, gaz et configurations, et voyez tout de suite quelles grottes vous conviennent. Avec les temps de route depuis votre hébergement, les stations de gonflage et un instructeur IA qui réfléchit avec vous.
Compiled from public sources: plongeesout (FFS), Wikipedia, the FFS congress page on the Touvre (2009), FFESSM Subaqua (2018), the Spit Club Saint-Maixentais, CDS 79, BRGM (1974), the communes of Touvre and Magnac-sur-Touvre, Rivières de l'Angoumois, ABIMES, GESMA, the La Rochefoucauld caving club (ARSR), the FFESSM Nouvelle-Aquitaine club directory and MedSubHyp (September 2026). Much of the dive data is old (1951–2019) or comes from a single club report. Pins only from published coordinates (Gros Roc) or converted from Lambert (Saint-Christophe-sur-Roc); the Touvre springs and most other springs have no pin yet. ~ = estimate. Rules change — check locally.