Unterwegs

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region

Departments: Ain, Allier, Ardèche, Cantal, Drôme, Isère, Loire, Haute-Loire, Puy-de-Dôme, Rhône, Métropole de Lyon, Savoie, Haute-Savoie.

Population: 8.2 million inhabitants

Prefecture: Lyon

Area: 69,711 km²

Specialities: Beaujolais, Côtes du Rhône and Savoie wines, Lyon specialities (quenelles, cervelles de canut, saucisson, etc.), Auvergne potée, Savoyard specialities (raclette, fondue, tartiflettes, diots, crozets), cheeses (Beaufort, Reblochon, Cantal, Bleu d'Auvergne, Salers, Saint-Nectaire, etc.), green lentils from Le Puy, waters (Evian, Thonon, Volvic), verbena, Chartreuse.

Sports clubs: Olympique Lyonnais, AS Saint-Etienne, Clermont Foot 63, Grenoble Foot 38 (football). ASM Clermont, Lyon OU, FC Grenoble, Stade Aurillacois, US Oyonnax (rugby), ASVEL Villeurbanne (basketball), Chambéry (handball), Brûleurs de loup Grenoble, Pionniers de Chamonix (ice hockey)

Competitions: Women's Football World Cup, skiing competitions (Critérium de la Première Neige in Val d'Isère), Tour de France mountain passes, Critérium du Dauphiné.

Economy: (8th European region) cutting-edge industries, automotive (Berliet), metallurgy, rubber, plastics, chemicals, electronics, agri-food, textiles, digital, banking, universities, government, viticulture. Tyres (Michelin). Design. New technologies (Inovallée). Winter and summer tourism.

Festivals: Festival of Lights in Lyon, Nuits de Fourvière in Lyon, Quais du Polar in Lyon, Design Biennial in Saint-Etienne, La Chaise-Dieu Classical Music Festival

Tourist attractions: Old Lyon and Croix-Rousse, Puy-en-Velay Cathedral, Lake Annecy, Chambéry Castle, winter sports in Isère, Savoie and Haute-Savoie, Cantal, spa resorts, Auvergne volcanoes. Pont d'Arc Cave. Grignan Castle. Grenoble Bastille. Vulcania. Parc des Oiseaux.

Websites and social media: www.auvergnerhonealpes.fr

Neuvecelle (Pop. 3,260)

Neuvecelle overlooks Lake Geneva at an altitude of 770 metres. Offering panoramic views of the lake and surrounding mountains, the town thrives in a privileged environment. The town takes its name from a stately home called Novacella, built by Herculanum. But it was in the 12th century that the settlement really began to develop with the establishment of a parish by the canons. The main activities were agriculture and winegrowing. After the revolution, Neuvecelle merged with the neighbouring towns of Maraîche and Grande-Rive. Agricultural activity declined and tourism took over. Neuvecelle developed luxury hotels and became primarily a residential town.

Neuvecelle funicular railway

Construction: 1913.

History: The project for a funicular railway linking the lower part of Évian station to Neuvecelle dates back to the early 20th century. The concession was granted to the Compagnie foncière d'Évian in 1912. It was built by the Société Van Roll in 1914 and the whole system came into service in 1915. The 750-metre-long railway tracks (designed by Burbach, 1907) serve six small stations: Gare Inférieure, Source Cachat, Splendid Hôtel, Hôtel Royal, Mateirons and Gare Supérieure. The latter still has its original traction machinery. Decommissioned since 1970, this funicular railway is the only one of its kind still in existence, namely a cable traction system without a rack. The wooden upper station, built in the "chalet" style, was damaged by fire in 1991.

Characteristics: the Évian-les-Bains funicular railway, also known as the "little Évian metro", connects the town centre of Évian-les-Bains to the commune of Neuvecelle. Commissioned in 1913, it is the only funicular railway in France to have six stations. The line is 771 metres long and climbs 125.31 metres between its two termini, with an average gradient of 16.48% and a maximum gradient of 22 pc. The line alternates between above-ground and underground sections, all built in the bed of the Nant d'Enfer stream, which has been channelled. Since its inception, its operating speed has been two metres per second; the journey time varies from seven to 15 minutes.

Listed as: historic monument in 1984. Two carriages have been listed as historic monuments since 1983.

Maraîche Chapel

Construction: 12th century, 15th century, 16th century, 17th century.

History: around 1180, Humbert de Divonne borrowed money from the canons of Abondance Abbey to travel to the Holy Land. On his return, unable to repay the monks, he ceded his lands in Maraîche to them. The canons built a fortified house and a church. Between 1620 and 1622, the medieval church was rebuilt, giving it its current appearance. Only the foundations, the base of the bell tower and its Romanesque door remain from the original 12th-century building. The abbot's house and the monks' house have been preserved.

Characteristics: the site was a favourite walking spot for visitors to the Évian spa because it overlooks the lake and offers a unique view of it. Externally, the slender bell tower with exposed beams compensates for the massive appearance of the tower and there is a porch in front of the entrance. Inside, the tower has a ribbed vaulted ceiling. The single nave, without a transept, measures 12 metres by 9 metres and is 9 metres high. It ends at the east end with a semi-circular chevet.

Listed as: historic monument in 1921.

Champanges (Pop. 1,210)

In the 19th century, more than 20 pc of the population of Champanges migrated to escape poverty. Twenty-eight families from the village settled in Argentina in the colonies of Colón, San José, and Villa Elisa. The Savoie Argentine association maintains links between Savoie and the descendants of emigrants in Argentina. The Baroque-style Saint-Martin church was the destination of a pilgrimage on 25 May to cure children suffering from rickets. Pilgrims had to walk around the church nine times and count the laps by dropping small pebbles.

Féternes (Pop. 1,550)

At the beginning of the 13th century, Féternes was the centre of a castellany corresponding to the current community of communes of the Pays d'Évian. At the beginning of the 14th century, power shifted to Évian. The castle was first mentioned in the 12th century. In 1306, Amadeus V of Savoy, owner of the castle and the seigneury, obtained from the Bishop of Geneva the right to hold a market on Sundays in his castrum of Féternes, then a fortified town. The count's castle, known as the "Château-vieux" (old castle), was distinct from another castle known as Compey-Lucinge, which defended the eastern entrance to the fortified town. The ruins of both castles and the chapel of the old castle remain at the edge of the town.

Pont de la Douceur

The bridge is called "Pont de la Douceur" (Bridge of Sweetness), after the nickname of the architect who built it, Louis Bâtisse, known as "La Douceur en Savoie" (Sweetness in Savoy). It is also called Pont des Français (Bridge of the French). It was built in 1853 over the Dranse River between Armoy and Marin. Originally located on the left bank in the commune of Armoy, it was transferred to the commune of Thonon in 1970. It was replaced by a more modern bridge built in 1974. In 2007, the old bridge was dismantled for safety reasons. An abutment is still visible on the left bank, as well as a section of road that led to it on the right bank.