Vercors Regional Natural Park

Vercors Regional Natural Park
Map
LocationRhône-Alpes, Drôme
Isère, France
Coordinates44°55′41″N 5°29′24″E / 44.928°N 5.49°E / 44.928; 5.49
Established1970
Governing bodyFédération des parcs naturels régionaux de France
Websitehttp://www.parc-du-vercors.fr/

The Vercors Regional Natural Park (French: Parc naturel régional du Vercors) is a protected area of forested mountains in the Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France.

Geography

Set upon a limestone plateau south of Grenoble, the park extends into the French Western Alps.[citation needed] It spans two departments, Drôme and Isère, and covers a total area of 135,000 hectares (330,000 acres).[1] The plateau's main elevation reaches 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) while the eastern Alpine mountain ridge tops 2,300 metres (7,500 ft) with Le Grand Veymont (2341m).[citation needed]

The Vercors area is peppered with caves. During World War II, it served as a safe and defensible position for the French Resistance: Forteresse de la Résistance.[2] The area now contains around three hundred monuments to the Resistance, including a memorial center and the preserved remains of a destroyed village.[3]

In modern times, Vercors has become a popular tourist destination frequented for skiing, hiking and spelunking.[2] Several small communes dot the landscape, supported principally by forestry, shepherding and tourism.[citation needed] The area was officially designated a regional natural park in 1970.[1]

The village of Pont-en-Royans perched on the edge of the Vercors

Member communes

The Vercors parklands include the following communes:[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b IUCN Commission on National Parks and Protected Areas (November 1990). 1990 United Nations list of national parks and protected areas. IUCN. p. 89. ISBN 978-2-8317-0032-8.
  2. ^ a b Nicola Williams; Oliver Berry; Steve Fallon (2009). France. Lonely Planet. p. 25. ISBN 978-1-74104-915-2. Retrieved 14 August 2011.
  3. ^ Charles Edwin Closmann (2009). War and the environment: military destruction in the modern age. Texas A&M University Press. p. 150. ISBN 978-1-60344-169-8.
  4. ^ Maison du Parc (2011). "Un Parc, 85 communes" (in French). Parc naturel régional du Vercors. Retrieved 19 October 2011.