Regional notes

The Vosges mountains stretch along the west bank of the River Rhine for a distance of 250km.  The range is divided into three sections, which are, from south to north:

•    The Grandes Vosges, with an average altitude of around 1100m, include the distinctive rounded summits called “ballons”.

•    The Central Vosges, with an average altitude of around 900m, have summits which  tend to be narrower and more pointed.

•    The Lower Vosges, a plateau with an average altitude of the plateau is around 500m.

The lower slopes are now deforested, but higher up there is extensive forest on all but the highest summits, which are open grassland. The western side of the range receives most of the rain/snowfall and has a much lower mean temperature. Vines grow on the eastern flanks of the range up as high as 400m. There is no permanent snow on the range.

The range reaches its highest point on Le Grand Ballon de Guebwiller at the southern end of the range, which is 1424m in altitude.