The Vosges are a medium-altitude mountain range located between the Lorraine plateau and the Alsace plain, north of the Jura chain. They reach an altitude of 1424m at the Grand Ballon and are a heavily wooded massif.

The Vosges are characterised by steep slopes on the Alsatian side, whereas the Lorraine side has a gentler slope, which results in a foehn effect.

It is this particularity of the relief that allows Alsace to benefit from a sunnier climate than on the other side, which has among other things allowed the development of its vineyards.

During our 2022 "Switzerland Tour outside Switzerland", we crossed the Vosges. We passed by the Markstein, near the highest point of the massif, and then followed the Route des Crêtes ("ridge road") before descending to Munster and Alsace.

The beauty of the landscape made us want to discover more and we will definitely go back!

Useful links

French Region of Grand Est (iSwitzerland Guide) - Wikipedia