Alsace-lorraine & Franche-comté
Rolling scenery, hills, and mountains dominate this area
WHILE THE VOSGES sit on the eastern frontier with Germany, there are more mountains just a little further south on the Swiss border. The rolling hills of the Doubs and taller peaks of the Jura hide some of the finest, least well-known riding in France.
These are well-settled regions, with some stately towns and the odd interesting city. Ancient châteaux appear briefly on the skyline, frowning down on the rolling pastures and dark woods that are the key notes in this landscape. Agriculture and forestry dominate the land and the local cuisines are some of the finest in France.
But we’re not here to eat, we’re here to ride – right? From the rolling hills of the northern Vosges to the high peaks of the Jura, this southernmost, eastern-most corner of France is crammed to the rafters with amazing roads. Best of all, it’s so easily reached from the UK. PLACES TO STAY ARBOIS Charming town in the foothills of the Jura, ideally placed to use as a base for exploring the Doubs and the Jura. The arcaded central square is good for a lap and dairy-lovers should check out the Louis Pasteur museum, which loans out ipads to provide audio/visual guides for the 40-minute tour.
Hotel tip: Les Caudalies (www.lescaudalies.fr) BESANCON Built into a bend of the River Doubs, the fortified citadel of Besançon is a stunning place. The Romans left the 13-metre high Battant Bridge, there’s an excellent art gallery, cathedral, and the ‘Astronomique Horloge’, a huge clock with 57 dials that indicates the seasons, tides and movements of the planets, as well as the time.
Hotel tip: Hotel Florel (www.hotel-florel.fr) COLMAR Nestled at the foot of the southern Vosges, just a few miles from the Rhine and the border with Germany, is the charming little city of Colmar – modern, but with a lovely historic centre.
Hotel tip: Hotel Beausejour (www.beausejour.fr) BITCHE Easily reached from the channel, this is a small town with a huge fortress in the centre. It is surrounded by the rolling hills and epic roads of the Northern Vosges. Hotel tip: Relais des Chateaux Forts (www.hoteldurelais-bitche.com) OFF THE BIKE ROCHER DE DABO A towering rock rising above the rolling hills of the northern Vosges, topped with a church and a handy hotel, complete with a café for visitors. (www.moselle-tourisme.com) BAUME-LES-MESSIEURS Tucked away in the Jura at the head of three valleys, Baume is surrounded by steep wooded slopes rising to high cliffs - the Cirque de Baume. Stalactite-filled caves and the Hérisson waterfalls are easy to get at and are very impressive. LALIQUE MUESUM The exquisite Lalique glassware hails from the quiet wooded hills of the northern Vosges – where the museum and dangerouslytempting factory shop are waiting for visitors. Good café, too. (www.musee-lalique.com) NATZWILLER-STRUTHOF The only German-run concentration camp in presentday France. This small, wellpreserved site housed 52,000
mainly political deportees from 30 different nations and manages a tasteful presentation of a ghastly period of history. (www.struthof.fr) CHATEAU DU HAUTKOENIGSBOURG A ruin of an 11th-century castle that was restored in the 1900s to give you a good feel for everyday life in a medieval fortress. There are living quarters, kitchens and storerooms, cisterns and moats, and some incredible antique artillery pieces located high up in the battlements which give panoramic views to the stunning Black Forest. (www.haut-koenigsbourg.fr) SCHLUMPF COLLECTION The Cité de l’automobile in Mulhouse is huge, so there’s something for every petrolhead, from the world’s largest collection of Bugattis to the 8-bit splendour of a collection of 1980s and ’90s driving arcade games. (www.citedelautomobile.com) OBERNAI A compact gem of a picture postcard town, with lots of delightful medieval houses, that looks like it hasn’t changed since the 16th century. The marketplace is a lovely square in the very heart of the town. Market day is every Thursday. EGUISHEIM Listed as one of the most beautiful villages in France, Eguisheim’s winding, cobbled streets, fountains and medieval, brightly painted half-timbered buildings have a prestigious 4-star Ville Fleuri award from the Government (the highest award). Storks nesting are a rarity, but Eguisheim has two pairs and a sanctuary to boot. FLECKENSTEIN CASTLE Near the beautifully maintained medieval town of Wissembourg are the ruins of Fleckenstein château – the ‘troglodyte castle’ with some of the rooms built into the cliff on which the château is perched. (www.fleckenstein.fr)