On the road

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 million
Prefecture: Lyon
Surface area: 69,711 km2
Specialities: Beaujolais, Côtes du Rhône and Savoie wines, Lyon specialities (quenelles, cervelles de canut, saucisson), potée auvergnate, Savoyard specialities (raclette, fondue, tartiflettes, diots, crozets), cheeses (beaufort, reblochon, cantal, bleu d'Auvergne, Salers, saint-Nectaire...), green lentils of 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, ski competitions (Première neige criterium in Val d'Isère), Tour de France mountain passes, Critérium du Dauphiné.
Economy:  8the European region, high-tech industries, automotive (Berliet), metallurgy, rubber, plastics, chemicals, electronics, agri-food, textiles, digital, banks, universities, administration, wine-growing. Tyres (Michelin). Design. New technologies (Inovallée). Winter and summer  tourism. 
Festivals: Fête des Lumières in Lyon / Nuits de Fourvière in Lyon / Quais du polar in Lyon / Biennale du design in Saint-Etienne / La Chaise-Dieu classical music festival.
Tourist attractions: Old Lyon and Croix-Rousse, Le Puy-en-Velay cathedral, Lake Annecy, Chambéry castle, winter sports in Isère, Savoie and Haute-Savoie, Cantal, spa resorts, Auvergne volcanoes. Caverne du Pont d'Arc. Château de Grignan. Grenoble Bastille. Vulcania. Parc des Oiseaux.
Website: www.auvergnerhonealpes.fr

Km 9.7: Saint-Germain-de-Joux (Pop: 500)
This is the birthplace of poet Jean Tardieu.

Jean Tardieu (1903-1995) French writer, poet and mechanic, born on 1 November 1903 in Saint Germain de Joux. In the early 1920s, he studied law but fell "in love" with poetry. He joined La Nouvelle Revue française and published his first works in 1927. He then worked for a number of companies, including Hachette and radio. In 1939 he published Accents, his first collection of poetry, followed by Le fleuve in 1933 and Le Témoin invisible in 1943. These poems were dominated by a dark lyricism and a sense of irreducible anxiety. Varying genres, in 1951 he published a collection of humorous poems entitled Monsieur Monsieur. In the years that followed, Tardieu tirelessly pursued his work, publishing numerous collections such as L'Obscurité du jour in 1974 and Da Capo, published the year of his death in 1995. A poet committed to opposing the German Occupation, Jean Tardieu wrote his poem "Oradour" in September 1944. It followed the massacre perpetrated by the Nazis against the inhabitants of Oradour-sur-Glane on 10 June 1944. This long poem of seven stanzas denounces the horror of Nazi barbarism. Deeply affected by this tragedy, the author expresses his despair at these violent deaths and pays tribute to the victims. A veritable call to resistance, Oradour was first published in underground newspapers during the Second World War, then in the collection Jours pétrifiés in 1947. Poet, playwright and novelist, Jean Tardieu succeeded in all genres and was awarded the Grand Prix de poésie de l'Académie française in 1972, as well as the Grand Prix de littérature de la Société des Gens de Lettres in 1986.

Former Thévenin sawmill
Built: around 1900.
History: built on top of an old flour and oil mill, the buildings of which were incorporated into a large complex. The mill ceased operating around 1960, and the site suffered several decades of neglect before it was purchased in 2001 by the municipality of Saint-Germain-de-Joux, which launched a restoration project. A subscription was opened with the Fondation du Patrimoine. Work began in 2012, with support from the Haut-Jura Regional Nature Park and the Pays Bellegardien Community of Communes.
Characteristics: it has a wheel with a diameter of 7.54 m. This wheel, with its 92 buckets, has been completely renovated and is the largest in the Ain region.

JURA (39)
Population: 260,000
Prefecture: Lons-le-Saunier
Sub-prefectures: Dole, Saint-Claude
Surface area: 5,000 km²
Specialities: Comté, Morbier (cheese), Vache Qui Rit (portioned cheese), Jura wines (7 AOCs including Vin Jaune, Château-Chalon, Etoile, Macvin, Marc du Jura, Crémant du Jura, Vin de Paille), toys, Saint-Claude pipes, watchmaking, eyewear, woodworking, industrial subcontracting, wildlife watching (lynx, eagle, black grouse, chamois).
Competitions : La Forestière (mountain bike trekking and racing from 40 to 100 km), the Transjurassienne (must for Nordic skiing in France), Tour du Jura (cycling), Criterium de Dole, Chalain and Vouglans International Triathlons, Lons International Showjumping, Rock'N Horses, Transju trail, Trail des reculées, Jura International Tennis Open.
Tourist attractions : Les Rousses resort, Jura lakes, Arc-et-Senans Royal Saltworks, thermal baths (Lons-le-Saunier), Museum of Fine Arts and House of Louis Pasteur in Dole, Pipe and Diamond Museum in Saint-Claude, Spectacles Museum in Morez, Herisson Waterfalls and Plateau des 7 Lacs (Grands Sites de France listing), Pic de l'aigle and Belvedere of the 4 Lakes Lake Vouglans, Reculée of Baume-les-Messieurs, Gorges of the Langouette and Upper Valley of the Saine, Hautes Combes, etc.
Festivals/concerts: Idéklic Toy and Children's Festival (Moirans-en-Montagne), Moulin de Brainans, Cirque et Fanfare (Dole), bouche à oreille festival (Musiques en Petite Montagne), NoLogo festival (Fraisans).
Economy: plastics processing, chemicals, food processing, screw-cutting, subcontracting to the luxury goods industry, eyewear, watchmaking, timber construction, livestock farming, four-season tourism, spa treatments, subcontracting to the automotive and aeronautical industries, wine-growing, cheeses.
Websites / FB: www.jura.fr / https://www.facebook.com/departementdujura / https://www.instagram.com/departementdujura / www.jura-tourism.com / https://www.facebook.com/juratourism / https://www.instagram.com/juratourisme

Km 24.7: Croix de Serra pass
This pass has been climbed twice in the Tour de France: on stage 6 of the 1996 Tour de France, when Dutchman Léon van Bon took the lead, and on stage 7 of the 2010 Tour de France, when French rider Jérôme Pineau, then wearing the polka-dot jersey, took the lead. In the women's Tour de France in 2024, it was on the programme during stage 7 and rated in the 1st category. Dutchwoman Puck Pieterse rode it in the lead.

Km 54.1: Hauts-de-Bienne (Pop: 5,100)
Formed in 2016 from the merger of Morez, La Mouille and Lézat. After being the capital of the local clockmaking industry in the 19th century, Morez was shaped by the spectacle industry in the 20th and 21st centuries. It is located close to the Swiss border, at the foot of the Les Rousses ski resort. It is the second-largest town in the Upper-Jura Regional Nature Park. The town boasts an eyewear museum. Morez is the birthplace of industrialists who have left their mark, such as Henri Lissac (eyewear manufacturer) and Lucien Terraillon (scales).

Eyewear Museum Opened: 2003.
History: Morez has been the capital of the French eyewear industry since the early 19th century. The town owes its existence to the presence of a river, the Bienne, which enabled iron to be worked. Morez is a relatively young town. It wasn't until the 16th century that men settled in the area known as La Combe Noire. Among them was a blacksmith, Étienne Morel, who gave his name to the village: Morez.
Characteristics: Four hundred and fifty modern and antique eyeglasses are on display here, among the 2,500 items in the collection. The eyewear on display has been chosen for its history, its owner (including Marie de Medici, Victoire de France and Sarah Bernhardt), its designer (André Courrèges and Philippe Starck), its shape, the materials used and the manufacturing technique. Finally, the main models produced in the Moorish workshops are also presented.
Label: Musée de France.

Km 61.7: Grandvaux Abbey
History: abandoned for a time, the site was reactivated in the 12th century and the monastery became an abbey from 1172 to 1244, before becoming a simple priory dependent on the Abbey of Saint-Claude (also known as the Abbey of Saint-Oyand de Joux). The priory was abandoned again in the 17th century. The monastery buildings were converted by the villagers. All that remained was the church, which became the centre of a vast parish. It is bordered by the Lake of l’Abbaye, whose name keeps alive the memory of the former monastery.
Characteristics: Part of the building dates back to the third quarter of the 15th century. It has an elongated plan with no transept. The choir was altered in the 17th century. It ends in a three-sided apse and surprisingly adjoins the bell tower and sacristy. The facade overlooking the lake has a central portal topped by a bay window. The bell tower was rebuilt and the bays widened in 1729.
Listed as: Historical Monument in 2009.

Km 77.9: Le Frasnois (Pop: 170)

Lake Narlay
Situated in the plateau area at an altitude of 748 metres, Narlay lake is one of the lakes of the Jura limestone region. Nearby are Lake Ilay, Lake Maclu and Lake Vernois. It has a triangular surface area of 41 hectares, with a maximum length of 950 metres and a width of 625 metres. Bordered by meadows and forests, it is funnel-shaped with fairly steep edges, with a maximum depth of 40 metres, the deepest of all the Jura lakes.

Km 93.9: Champagnole (Pop: 8,000)
At the foot of Mont Rivel, Champagnole is a cross-country skiing stronghold where the star of the 2022 Winter Olympics, Quentin Fillon-Maillet, hails from. The 29-year-old biathlete won two titles and three silver medals in Beijing, becoming the first Frenchman to win five medals at the same Winter Games. Champagnole is also home to champions such as Nordic skiers Hervé Balland and Sylvain Guillaume, as well as footballer Grégory Pujol and former rugby international Alain Carminati. The town has also twice hosted the Tour de France, in 1937 (Sylvère Maes won) and in 2020, when Dane Soren Kragh Andersen won solo.

In Syam (6 km)

Syam Palladian Villa (or Syam Castle)
Foundation: built in the 19th  century.
Style: Palladian.
History: built in 1818 for Jean-Emmanuel Jobez (1775-1828), MP for the Jura during the Hundred Days (period between 1 March 1815 and 7 July 1815), ironmaster and mayor of Morez, the villa was built in the spirit of the beautiful 16th-century Italian villas designed by Andrea Palladio (1508-1580).
Characteristics: On a square plan, with a peristyle of 8 columns and 3 circular balconies, like a theatre, it features a 16 m-high rotunda topped by a cupola. Parisian architect Louis Feine, who was in charge of the first restoration and modernisation campaign, endeavoured to respect the spirit of the place and the neo-classical character of the building. A highly coherent collection of Empire furniture and period restorations, and a unique collection of wallpapers and panoramic paintings by prestigious names such as Zuber and Joseph Dufour (1754-1825). Thanks to the efforts of the current owners, the Palladian Villa's remarkable library is gradually being rebuilt. At the time of its construction, Jean-Emmanuel Jobez had a sumptuous library on the 2nd floor of the residence: 24-m long with up to 36,000 books.
Current use: Exhibitions and concerts are regularly held here. The former stables are used for a variety of events. A private estate, the Palladian Villa also offers bed and breakfast accommodation. 
Trivia: the Villa Palladienne is a luminous building that won its admirers and enjoyed a brilliant and serene 19th century. Preserved and maintained by the descendants of Sadi Carnot (1837-1894), President of the Republic (1887-1894), it was coveted by the public authorities and sold to its current owners in 2001.
Listed as: Historical Monument in 1994.

Km 104: Vers-en-Montagne (Pop: 230)
Vers-en-Montagne has a rich historical past, both in terms of its castle and the lords who occupied it, and in terms of the famous and not-so-famous people who have lived in the village. Its origins appear to be very ancient. Remains, 50 m in diameter (the Motte de Malpas), can be seen in the commune and are similar to those known as "Caesar's camps" in Béarn. Stephen Pichon, who was born in 1857, was several times Minister of Foreign Affairs and a friend of Clemenceau. He lived in Vers-en-Montagne from 1903 until his death in 1933. He bought the château from the De Prudhomme family. Stephen Pichon was mayor of the commune from 1904 to 1929, senator of the Jura from 1906 to 1924, general councillor from 1904 to 1922, and president of the council from 1917 to 1921. Stephen Pichon was Minister of Foreign Affairs when the Treaty of Versailles was signed, and his signature appears on the treaty.

Km 116.9: Salins-les-Bains (Pop: 2,430)
The town has a glorious history thanks to a flourishing industrial past in salt production dating back to the fifth millennium BC. It was the second-largest town in Franche-Comté in the Middle Ages and had around 8,500 inhabitants on the eve of the French Revolution. From the 19th century onwards, its industrial activity expanded thanks to the development of plasterworks, sawmills and earthenware factories. The town also created a spa in 1854, while the second half of the 20th century saw the gradual disappearance of its industries: the plasterworks closed in 1958, the saltworks in 1962 and the earthenware factories in 1995. Awarded the Cité de Caractère de Bourgogne-Franche-Comté label, the town is basing its economic conversion on health, spa treatments and tourism. The latter is based in particular on the restoration and enhancement of a rich and prestigious historical heritage, marked by the inclusion of the Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains on the Unesco World Heritage List on 27 June 2009, as an extension of the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, which has been on the list since 1982. The town hosted the Tour de l'Avenir in 2006. But above all, it is a town that Jonas Vingegaard knows well, having won a stage of the Criterium du Dauphiné here in 2023, where he took the overall lead before finishing the week as the overall winner.

Salins-les-Bains Saltworks
Construction: date unknown.
History: Salt has been mined in Salins since Neolithic times, and the existence of salt works in the town has been documented since the High Middle Ages. The need for large quantities of wood for the boilers led to the major project of the royal saltworks at Arc-et-Senans, built between 1775 and 1779 near the Doloise Chaux forest. The brine from Salins was transported there via a 21 km-long brine pipeline. Operations at Arc-et-Senans began in 1779 and were completed in 1895. However, the Salins saltworks continued to operate almost uninterrupted until 1962, when they closed, and were bought by the local authority four years later. The Salins-les-Bains saltworks are one of the oldest known sites for the production of ignigenic salt (evaporation of brine by fire), and illustrate the history of techniques for producing "white gold", based on the harnessing of salt water springs over a period of almost 7,000 years. Today, the Salins-les-Bains saltworks welcome around 70,000 visitors every year.
Listed as: Historical Monument since 1957, then 2009. UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008.

Km 169.8: Val-d'Usiers (Pop: 2,130 inhabitants)
A new commune formed in 2016 from the merger of the delegated communes of Bians-les-Usiers, Goux-les-Usiers and Sombacour. The 18th-century church of Saint-Valère in Goux-les-Usiers has been a listed historical monument since 1992. It has a porch bell tower topped by a typical Franche-Comté imperial dome, a listed altarpiece and extensive furnishings

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Sombacour Calvary Mount

Built: 1879
History and characteristics: the complex was built between 1890 and 1895. It comprises thirteen aediculae containing high stone reliefs and an oratory. It is a devotional route that winds its way up from the village to the top of the hill just beyond. It is located at the entrance to the village and is highly scenic. Chapel XIII bears the inscription of author Guillin de Mouthier-Haute-Pierre, 1891 to 1895. Jules Guillin also designed the war memorial at the base of the route. The recumbent Christ, located inside the oratory, is the work of sculptor Charles Auffret, 1956.
Listed as: Historical Monument in 1989. Listed as 20th century heritage.