Vosges

The Vosges are a range of mountains running parallel to the Rhine valley and the Black Forest on the far side of the Rhine from the borders of the German Palatinate in the north to the Belfort Gap in the south.

The Vosges and Alsace are the mirror image of Baden and the Black Forest on the German side of the Rhine, with which they share a common origin. Millions of years ago the Vosges and the Black Forest formed part of a single mountain range, the central section of which collapsed. Only the edges of the range, the Vosges to the west and the Black Forest to the east, remained along the borders of the 300km/185mi long rift valley of the Upper Rhine, which was gradually filled with deposits from the Rhine and its tributaries. The Vosges extend for a distance of some 170km/105mi from north to south and up to 20km/12.5mi from east to west, rising to their greatest height in the Grand Ballon (1,423m/4,669ft) and the Ballon d'Alsace (1,250m/4,100ft), to the south. To the north they fall away gradually, rising to only 581m/1,906ft in the Grand Wintersberg. They fall steeply into the Rhine valley, but on the west slope gently down into the Lorraine uplands.

The main passes in the Southern Vosges are the Col de la Schlucht (1,139m/3,737ft), the Col du Bonhomme (949m/3,113ft) and the Col de Ste-Marie (763m/2,503ft).

In the higher Southern Vosges ancient rocks like granite and gneiss form sharply defined ridges, while the lower Northern Vosges consist mainly of variegated sandstones, frequently forming rugged crags, many of them crowned by medieval castles. There are a number of lakes formed by glacial action and numerous cross valleys which provided good sites for the building of castles, monasteries and churches.

The abundance of timber in the Vosges has promoted the development of woodworking and papermaking industries, while the plateaux, known as chaumes, provide pasture for large numbers of dairy cows, whose milk is used to produce a well-known cheese (Munster Géromé).

Although in recent years the Vosges have attracted increasing numbers of visitors, there is still plenty of lonely, unspoiled country for walkers and nature lovers.

There are three main long-distance trails through the Vosges: No. 1 (waymarked by a red rectangle) runs from Wissembourg to Masevaux (388km/ 241mi), No. 2 (blue rectangle) from Lembach to Masevaux (282km/ 175mi), No. 3 (yellow rectangle) from Obersteinbach to Masevaux (324km/201mi). There are also linking paths (red rectangle with white stripe) from railroad stations and villages to route No. 1.

The Vosges are increasingly being discovered by winter sports enthusiasts.

The numerous lakes provide opportunities for all kinds of water sports.

There are also tennis courts and facilities for riding.

There are a variety of folk events and traditional pilgrimages.

Of the various tourist routes which pass through the Vosges or run close to them the most important are the Route des Crêtes and the Route des Vosges. The Route des Crêtes (75km/47mi), constructed during World War I by the French army to facilitate the supply of ammunition, runs from the Col du Bonhomme by way of the Col de la Schlucht, the Markstein, the Grand Ballon and Hartmannswillerkopf to Mulhouse. The Route des Vosges runs from to Mont Ste-Odile and then continues by way of Le Hohwald and Andlau to Sélestat. The Route Joffre runs between the Thur and Doller valleys, at the south end of the Vosges, while the Route Verte runs through the central Vosges.