Rocks and boulders on the Grandes Alpes® Route
Tossed about by powerful tectonics, the Alps are often surprising. To follow Route des Grandes Alpes® is to contemplate the spectacle of a world risen from the bottom of the seas and shaped by hundreds of millions of years of erosion and earthquakes. Here are a few glimpses...
Incredible silhouettes
Throughout your journey, your gaze will often be solicited by stunningly shaped mountains and peaks. First and foremost, the Mont-Blanc, preceded by the "Maudit" and the "Tacul", which you'll see appear at the top of several passes. Les Aiguilles d'Arves, that jagged trilogy, logotype of the Maurienne in its natural state. La Meije, brandishing the Doigt de Dieu, in the heart of the Écrins massif. The Mont Viso, majestic and solitary Italian peak...
Natural curiosities
It's impossible to list them all here, but here's an anthology nonetheless. The Gorges du Pont du Diable, a geosite in the UNESCO Chablais Global Geopark near Thonon-les-Bains, is a tormented karst of great aesthetic value. Close to the shores of Lac de Serre-Ponçon, the Demoiselles Coiffées, rock columns topped by stone caps, are a geological enigma. The Casse Déserte, or Cime de la Bonnette gives you a taste of the moon. And let's not forget the Colorado niçois, so-named for its red rocks that enclose the Cians and Haut-Var rivers, which flow down from the Mercantour.
2 UNESCO Geoparks to discover
Both located in Haute-Savoie, the UNESCO Chablais World Geopark and the UNESCO Bauge World Geoparks are territories, whose sites and landscapes are of geological interest of international importance. Geoparks aim to explore, develop and celebrate the links between a territory's geological heritage and its natural, cultural and intangible heritage.