Staying Home Sucks, home
Cascade du Var 01
Near Chéran, Pont avant Le Chatelard - Barrage du Pont de Bange. Photo: Rémih, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Chéran, Pont avant Le Chatelard - Barrage du Pont de Bange

Kayak spot · France

Whitewater: a river with rapids

Is it worth the trip?

60Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Thu 5: Wind 1 kn gusting 9, Air 13 °C, River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 53 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
9kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 57 out of 100

Wind
0 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
10°C
Rain
0.1 mm

Thu 5 · 65 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
9kn
Air
13°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 57 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
10°C
Rain
0 mm

Sat 7 · 55 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
6kn
Air
8°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 58 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
10°C
Rain
0 mm

Mon 9 · 63 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
15kn
Air
12°C
Rain
0 mm

Tap a day for wind, gusts, air and rain. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 245, fair
  2. Tue 353, fair
  3. Wed 457, fair
  4. Thu 565, good
  5. Fri 657, fair
  6. Sat 755, fair
  7. Sun 858, fair
  8. Mon 963, good
  9. Tue 1065, good
  10. Wed 1152, fair

The spot in four facts

  • Grade IIIits hardest rapid IV-
  • Moving waterthe water
  • 10.7 kmthe section
  • Best Jun–Aug7 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know the river level, weirs or your skill.

Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Chéran, Pont avant Le Chatelard - Barrage du Pont de Bange
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Mon 2Nov45, fair3 kn11kn3°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov53, fair2 kn9kn7°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov57, fair0 kn7kn10°C0.1 mm
Thu 5Nov65, good1 kn9kn13°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov57, fair1 kn7kn10°C0 mm
Sat 7Nov55, fair1 kn6kn8°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov58, fair2 kn8kn10°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov63, good4 kn15kn12°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov65, good1 kn7kn13°C1.5 mm
Wed 11Nov52, fair1 kn15kn11°C15 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. The river's level is under In the water. More

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Best time to go

best Jun–Aug

Good kayaking days in a typical week, each month, for grade III paddlers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).

  1. Jan0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
  2. Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar3of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr4of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
  5. May6of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun7of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
  7. Jul7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
  8. Aug7of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
  9. Sep6of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
  10. Oct5of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov1of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
  12. Dec0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec

Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.

Typical weather, not a forecast, and not the river's level: a month that is often good to be outside may still be low water.

Map

put-in, take-out, its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

More kayaking near here

1 place

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Chéran, Pont avant Le Chatelard - Barrage du Pont de Bange

A river section, from a put-in down to a take-out. Grade II to III, its hardest rapid IV-, on the international scale. It runs 11 km along the river. Suits grade III paddlers and up, by its grade. None within 10 km, the nearest 13 km away. For grade III paddlers the best months are usually June, July and August, with about 7 good days in 7; in January and December, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Arith. Within 5 km we also list 1 climbing area.

  • Grade Grade II to III, its hardest rapid IV-, on the international scale.
  • Length 11 km along the river.
  • Who it suits Suits grade III paddlers and up, by its grade.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire None within 10 km, the nearest 13 km away.

Spots and rivers: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Whitewater sections © Rivermap (rivermap.org), Riverzone and Jonathan Riddell, ODbL.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,430–US$2,660 each

about US$1,430–US$2,660 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, kayak hire.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to GVA, estimated from distance and season, changing at CDG, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$490–US$1,010
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$141–US$235
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$329–US$543
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$584
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$154–US$289
Totalabout US$1,430–US$2,660

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Arith

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Arith

13 min by car · 7 places to stay

about US$121/nightcountry average

See 7 places to stay in Arith · Booking.com

About Arith its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$121 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 17h 50m

About 17h 50m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → GVA, changing at Charles de Gaulle International Airport (CDG), then 1h 15m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.

On the water

River level

Gauge at Le Chéran à Allèves [La Charniaz]: 1.22 m³/s, very low for November (updated 2 h ago). Running.

Bands are this gauge's own record: under its usual low, running, high, and in flood on its few highest days a year. Not a runnable range for the section: check before you go. River flow in France: Hub'Eau (hubeau.eaufrance.fr), data from the hydrometric services (SCHAPI, DREAL), Licence Ouverte 2.0. Credits

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

The nearest named schools, clubs and kayak or canoe hire within 25 km, in a straight line. Listings, not a recommendation. Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits

Saved: this link opens the same trip

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The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.