Known since the Middle Ages for its paper mills, the river owes its fame to its motive power, which enabled cutlery factories to sharpen knives.

Moreover, Xavier Delamarre's Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise (2nd edition, Paris, Errance, 2003) does not indicate any Celtic term dor or dour meaning river.

[4] Just over 32 km long, the Durolle begins its course at an altitude of around 815 m southeast of the Puy de la Chèvre in the commune of Noirétable in the Loire department.

[5] From here, until it leaves the Vallée des Usines in the Moutier district of Thiers, the river flows through a deep valley with small banks, where the cliffs and rocks of the Margerides plunge.

[7] From the point where it passes near Moutier Abbey, the Durolle becomes calmer and the very flat terrain divides its bed into two branches, before these join the Dore at different geographical positions.

[3] In dry summer months, the river's flow may drop to 0.05 m3/s; but in winter or autumn, it can rise rapidly to 82 m3/s, as was the case during the flood of March 1988.

In both the Loire and Puy-de-Dôme departments, the Durolle flows through the following seven communes,[1] from upstream to downstream: Noirétable (source), Cervières, Les Salles, Chabreloche, Celles-sur-Durolle, La Monnerie-le-Montel, Thiers (confluence).

To the east, the part of the basement that has not collapsed corresponds to the Forez mountains and its foothills, made up of magmatic rocks over which the river flows torrentially.

In the lower reaches, the sedimentary fill is Cenozoic in age; this terrain is not visible, as it is covered by a thick mantle of recent alluvium, sandy and clayey, layered in terraces.

[13] Mammals include otters and European polecat, while birds range from peregrine falcons and yellowhammers to coal tit and western Bonelli's warbler.

An early Gallic settlement (the future town of Thiers) was established at the mouth of the Durolle Gorge, not far from the site of the later Moutier Abbey.

[16] The name "Thigernum" used by Grégoire de Tours has a Celtic ring to it, reminding us that this topographical appellation dates from before the Gallic War.

The manpower needed to make a knife was scattered across the Thiers region; there was an extreme division of labor, with workers specializing in a trade, handed down from father to son, in which they acquired great skill.

[19] The steel bars received by the companies are first entrusted to the "martinaires", who thin them (so that they can be sharpened) using hammers powered by the river's hydraulic force.

The logs were cut and thrown into the Durolle river, where they followed the current and waterfalls before arriving in the lower town of Thiers, where they were recovered for use in Paris.

[22] But the rice-growing technique was not "followed to the letter", and a few days after this new foodstuff was marketed in the region, an epidemic broke out and became known as the "rice plague", claiming the lives of over 2,500 Thiers residents.

[26] They serve to hold back the water to increase the river's depth and divert part of its bed with another branch, which then drives one or more paddlewheels in a waterfall context.

While the present-day buildings of Moutier Abbey were being built in the 11th century, the construction of water-powered mills and dams to feed them, for example to grind wheat or fish in the river's reservoirs, was already underway.

Firstly, the church of Saint-Antoine de Padoue in the commune of La Monnerie-le Montel towers above the roofs of the village center, its high steeple visible from the riverbed.

A little further down, the Moutier abbey and Saint-Symphorien church, whose buildings date back to the 11th century, are strongly linked to the river by their history.Numerous bridges have been built across the Durolle since the Middle Ages.

[14][15] Although the number of licensed anglers in France has been declining for several years, and fishing in the Durolle canyons is risky because of the river's development (old factories, dykes, paddle wheels, sharp metal remains in the water, cliffs and trees), the trout fishing season near Le Creux de l'enfer attracts a large number of enthusiasts every year.

[41] In fact, the valley has been awarded a two-star rating by the Michelin Green Guide, with the words "Mérite le détour (Worth a detour)".

[43] The Centre d'Art Contemporain du Creux de l'Enfer is an artistic production center offering exhibition programs including sculptures, installations, paintings, photographs, videos and performances.

[44] With a program of national and international stature, it plays an active role in the cultural life of the town, the Puy-de-Dôme department and the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, and works to raise artistic awareness with over two thousand school visitors every year.

The Durolle canyons are partly protected by the ZNIEFF (Zone naturelle d'intérêt écologique, faunistique et floristique by its extension [Natural area of ecological, faunal and floristic interest]).

[50] In fact, the numerous plant and animal species present in the river valleys are considered "fairly interesting from a heritage point of view".

It accompanies the annual exhibition cycle "Les Enfants du Sabbat" with the participation of Clermont Auvergne Métropole and the Lyon Metropolis.

[55] It also co-produces books by artists who have exhibited their work in the building, including Mona Hatoum in 2000, Pierre Ardouvin in 2004, Didier Marcel in 2006, Franck Scurti in 2010 and Armand Jalut in 2012.

Inspired by local landscapes, she takes an interest in the buildings of the Vallée des Usines, particularly the Creux de l'enfer factory.

She also recounts how, when the May factory was set on fire (a frequent occurrence in the Durolle canyons) a woman and her children threw themselves into the swirling torrent to escape the flames.