L’heure du Grèbe is both a step out onto the lake and a step back in time. A wooded trail leads to a great crested grebe nest made from driftwood, passing through iconic but lost shoreline landscapes such as aquatic and lakeedge reed beds, willow groves and moor-grass meadows. The garden tells the story of a place that, 110 years ago, was still connected to the water but has since been distanced from the lake by the Bellerive-Plage swimming pool. In the past, passersby would be treated to the grebe’s courtship display and observe it waiting patiently in its floating nest for its chicks to hatch. Over time this unspoiled shoreline ecosystem teeming with marshland plants has given way to concrete pools, and an asphalt esplanade overrun with motor vehicles now separates the shore and the embankment.

As visitors stroll along the path and around the fountain, a thicket beckons—they push their way in and, for a fleeting moment, marvel at the beauty of nature.