5 good reasons to love Lac de Léon

Swimming on the lake beach

Lac de Léon is home to a number of bathing beaches. The Lac à Vielle beach offers a bucolic setting for a swim in the heart of the Landes forest. The swimming area is supervised in summer, shallow and sheltered from the wind (so no waves), perfect for families with young children!

Practice your favorite water sport

With a surface area of 340 ha, Lac de Léon is like a small inland sea. On the north shore of the lake, the Club Nautique Léonnais welcomes windsurf, optimist, dinghy, catamaran, stand-up-paddle, canoe and pedalo enthusiasts. The program includes private lessons, mini-stages, sailing discovery sessions and boat hire.

Discover the joys of fishing

Etang de Léon is also a popular spot for anglers, renowned for its fishy waters. It’s a delight for anglers who like to tease white fish and predators: carp, pike, perch, pike-perch, bleak, roach, bream… But beware of the lake monster… Before you go fishing, find out more about the legend of “Lou Boum”. Not even scared? All you have to do is buy a 7-day vacation fishing pass, specially designed for occasional anglers.

Playing explorer on the Huchet current

Your camping holiday near Lac de Léon is the perfect opportunity to take a trip along the Courant d’Huchet, which links the lake to the ocean at Moliets. Nicknamed the “Amazon of the Landes”, this small coastal river is famous for its nature reserve and lush gallery forest. You can choose between a boat trip with a boatman or a hike along the reserve’s trails.

Observe unsuspected flora and fauna

Classified as a nature reserve and part of the Natura 2000 network, the Etang de Léon is home to a rich and remarkable flora and fauna. A stroll along the western shore of Etang de Léon reveals a rich and often surprising diversity of plant species: royal osmonds, pink hibiscus, drosera, bald cypress, as well as numerous mammals such as otters, European mink and coypu, cistude turtles, numerous insects (Cordulie à corps fin, Agrion de mercure), a host of colourful birds such as the Little Bittern, Grey Heron, Short-toed Eagle, Marsh Harrier… Nature lovers will not be disappointed!