Gateway to the Vercors, Sassenage, Vif
You can’t help but notice the cliffs to the east, dominating Grenoble and the valley. When you come into this landscape, you’re setting foot in the magnificent Vercors Regional Nature Park. This natural area characteristic of the Pre-Alps awaits you with its forested hiking trails that lead to sometimes mysterious places…The Ardente Fountain, for example, where the earth’s flames and water tell a mystic story.
The Peuil bog, also a Sensitive Natural Area that includes prairies, marshlands, and forests of pine and birch trees. Here, in the shadow of the Moucherotte cliffs, you can enjoy a beautiful view over Grenoble and the valley. An easy hike with so much to discover, where you can enjoy nature’s easily accessible generosity.
Château de Sassenage
The town of Sassenage leads you up to the Vercors. Once a resort town for members of the Grenoble bourgeois class, you’ll be charmed by its old city center, niched near the Furon gorges, and its 17th-century chateau with its superb landscaped park.
Torrent le Furon - Cascade Mélusine
At the heart of the cliffs hides a geological treasure: the Sassenage Cisterns, a natural space made accessible for visitors. In the caves, the fairy Mélusine hides. Can you find her? The magic of the water casts a spell over everything it touches: the walls of the caves, but also the gorges deeply cut by the Furon torrent.
Cuves de Sassenage © Ville de Sassenage
Fontaine Ardente © D.Leroy
Further south, the plains of Varces contiue the valley’s agricultural traditions. Farmers who care for the land and its rich products farm their fields. Why not meet them and buy some of their products directly at the farm on in shops that they collectively manage. Local produce, an idea that finds true meaning around Grenoble. Whet your appetite with Vercors-Sassenage Blue cheese, a blue-veined cheese that’s only made here, using the milk from the cows that graze on the plateau and farmers’ traditional know-how.
