Nature et Grands Espaces dans le Haut Doubs
Natural Sites
Presentation
The Haut-Doubs offers everyone vast spaces made up of varied and preserved landscapes, wild and astonishing at the same time... just like some sort of right balance between lakes and mountains. If you are a nature lover, you have come to the right place!
Climb to the top of the Mont d'Or to admire a breath-taking scenery. This mountain with a golden name is the highest peak of the region: with a height of 1,463 metres (4,800 feet), numerous ridge walks allow you to have a remarkable view over the surrounding landscape as well as over the Alps and Lake Geneva, which seems so close as the crow flies. Nothing could be easier to get there: for hikers or mountain bikers, the Morond chairlift in Métabief takes you to the start of the Sentier des Crêtes (ridge walk) for a 6 kilometre-walk (3,7 miles). During the summer, you can also reach the top by road up to a car park from Rochejean or Les Longevilles-Mont-d'Or.
You can spend a few hours on the shores of Saint-Point Lake, the third largest natural lake in France. There are bathing areas in Malbuisson and Les Grangettes where you can go for a dip and enjoy this timeless moment. Water-based activities such as boat hire or a guided tour organised by the Bateaux du lac Saint-Point company are available too. If you want to stretch your legs to catch a glimpse of the area, a walking path of about 20 kilometres (12,5 miles) will allow you to go around the lake. Do not worry, it is suitable for all levels! Hikers who are used to rambling will love it as much as families. Pack a picnic in your backpack for a day out in nature. A short walk in the nature reserve of Remoray Lake and in the Source bleue will as well give you a breath of fresh air!
You can spend a few hours on the shores of Saint-Point Lake, the third largest natural lake in France. There are bathing areas in Malbuisson and Les Grangettes where you can go for a dip and enjoy this timeless moment. Water-based activities such as boat hire or a guided tour organised by the Bateaux du lac Saint-Point company are available too. If you want to stretch your legs to catch a glimpse of the area, a walking path of about 20 kilometres (12,5 miles) will allow you to go around the lake. Do not worry, it is suitable for all levels! Hikers who are used to rambling will love it as much as families. Pack a picnic in your backpack for a day out in nature. A short walk in the nature reserve of Remoray Lake and in the Source bleue will as well give you a breath of fresh air!
Consider going to Mouthe, a village in the Franche-Comté region nicknamed "French Siberia" where the Doubs River finds its source. For a touch of the Canadian North, the Frasne peat bogs offer visitors an explanatory walk on a wooden pontoon in the centre of the Regional Nature Reserve: you will learn there more about the fauna and flora that make up this environment, about the use that humans have made of the peat in the past as well as the importance and ecological usefulness of this preserved wetland.
If you love art as much as nature, take the path of the Source de la Loue and follow in the footsteps of Gustave Courbet, one of the most famous French painters, leader of the Realism movement and pride of his native region! Walking through the same landscape as the ones in his paintings will make you feel immersed in the very heart of the symbolism of caves, waterfalls and gorges of this picturesque side of the Jura Mountains!
The abundance of lookouts, sources, lakes, caves, peat bogs, theme trails and other natural treasures can certainly not be counted on the fingers of one hand. These marvellous wonders of nature are just waiting to be admired by your eyes, so go green in the Haut-Doubs!
If you love art as much as nature, take the path of the Source de la Loue and follow in the footsteps of Gustave Courbet, one of the most famous French painters, leader of the Realism movement and pride of his native region! Walking through the same landscape as the ones in his paintings will make you feel immersed in the very heart of the symbolism of caves, waterfalls and gorges of this picturesque side of the Jura Mountains!
The abundance of lookouts, sources, lakes, caves, peat bogs, theme trails and other natural treasures can certainly not be counted on the fingers of one hand. These marvellous wonders of nature are just waiting to be admired by your eyes, so go green in the Haut-Doubs!
