| Pontarlier | |
 | |
| Information | |
| Country |  France |
|---|---|
| Area | 41,35 km² |
| Population | 17 393 hab. () |
| Density | 420,63 inhab./km² |
| Postal code | 25300 |
| Spindle | UTC 01:00, UTC 02:00 |
| Tourist information office | |
| Location | |
 46 ° 54 ′ 0 ″ N 6 ° 21 ′ 0 ″ E | |
| Official site | |
| Touristic site | |
Pontarlier, third city in the department of Doubs, capital of Haut-Doubs and capital of the canton located at the crossroads of the RN57 road axes Besancon (60 km) To Lausanne (70 km) in Swiss and the D437 of Morteau (30 km) To Champagnole (45 km) in the Swear . SNCF station on the Lausanne-Dijon line (including TGV which puts Paris at 3 h).
Understand
To go
Circulate
To see
- City museum 2 place d'Arçon,
33 3 81 46 73 68 – Inaugurated in 1977, it offers you, throughout its 17 rooms, a whole collection of archaeological objects, earthenware, Comtoise paintings, not to mention the history of absinthe or Green Fairy. - Pierre Guy Distillery 49 rue des Lavaux 25300 Pontarlier, 33 3 81 39 04 70
To buy
Eat
Have a drink / Go out
Little story of the Green Fairy
Like Gentian distillate, absinthe or Green Fairy, had long been known as medication in our deep countryside. Developed by Maison Pernod in 1805, the absinthe shot at 73 °. An involuntary "help" from Napoleon seems to be at the origin of its rise.
In order to intervene against the Austrians in Italy, Napoleon I had to mass troops on the Franco-Swiss border before taking the Simplon pass to cross the Alps. As everyone knows that the troufion does not work in plain water, Napoleon therefore favored the development of local distilleries; this is how absinthe (the Green Fairy) saw its development.
However, much later in 1901, a violent fire broke out in a distillery installed in the heart of the city of Pontarlier. The vats containing 1 million hectoliters of alcohol would, in the event of an explosion, have wiped out the city without the presence of mind of a worker who opened the valves, at the same time pouring the precious liquid into the Doubs.
The "Green Fairy" transformed the river into a vast anise-flavored aperitif, which first of all delighted the soldiers barred not far from there and who were able to drink from their helmets, .. it is even said that some threw themselves into it. fully dressed water. Secondly, a few days later the Loue, another river located at 17 km on the other side of the mountain range, began to smell very strongly of anise. This is how it was discovered that the Loue was a resurgence of the Doubs.
A 1915 law prohibited the manufacture and sale of absinthe, "the drink that drives you crazy" because of the devastation it caused among those who abused it, ... which made smugglers happy. At that time there were 25 distilleries which employed 3000 workers on the 8,000 inhabitants from the city. Maison Pernod went into exile in the South of France and it is wrong to attribute this drink to the "Midi". Today this law is repealed and the city is again specialized in the distillery of liqueurs based on anise and wormwood with a very particular flavor.
Housing
Around
Morteau-Pontarlier axis
Leaving Morteau over there D437, the road winds through the magnificent Doubs valley boxed in between the high rocky cliff and the river.
- After 7 km you happen to Remonot, capital of the canton, or a pretty chapel carved into the rock is an interesting photo stop. The café-restaurant on site is very good value for money.
- Still 9 km and Montbenoit welcomes you within its walls for the visit of the most beautiful abbey of the Doubs. Founded in the 12the century the abbey and the cloister richly decorated following the Italian influence and the stone vaults will not leave you indifferent.
Montbenoit is also the capital of Republic of Saugeais, 30 km2 and 12 municipalities, a national anthem and a stamp. Site on Wikipedia).
Pontarlier-Besançon axis
From Pontarlier after 15 km on the N57 then the D41, the small village of Ouhans delivers you the pretty landscape of the source of the Loue . Resurgence of the Doubs which springs from 535 meters of altitude, in the hollow of the picturesque Gorges de Nouailles. In summer, visitors flock in large numbers, attracted by the beauty of the place and the opportunity to have a picnic with the family. Ornans
Pontarlier-Lausanne axis
- TO 2 km towards Switzerland, on the N57, at the Cluse-et-Mijoux and its baroque church (in response to the influence and sobriety of Protestant buildings), look up it will be impossible for you to miss the Joux castle which dominates the valley, dating from the Middle Ages this fort which served as a prison Mirabeau and Toussaint louverture black hero of the war of independence of Haiti and especially of the unfortunate Berthe de Joux. The Fort was transformed into a fortress by Vauban. Today a superb weapons museum, the visit of the site and a unique panorama will welcome you.
- In front of the fortress, the fort Mahler built from 1843 to 1851, allowed buckle the valley, which made it possible in 1871 to protect, from the Prussians, the retreat towards Switzerland of Bourbaki's army.
- In the village, at the bottom of the fort, a crossroads allows you to go to the left towards the border Swiss and of Neuchâtel.
- Continuing to the right on the national road, at 2 km a path on the left will take you to the Fourgs, the highest municipality in the department. Essentially agricultural oriented towards dairy and cheese production, the village nevertheless offers many hiking, mountain biking, cross-country skiing and alpine trails in winter. A tourist office, guest houses, stopover lodges will make you happy.
- By taking the RN47 again, you will arrive at new-hospitals, shopping center of the Metabief and Mont d'Or. The latter is equipped with all the infrastructure of an alpine ski resort, with its chairlift, open all year round, which allows you to climb without fatigue and descend on foot or by mountain bike on a vertical drop of 400 m along the 3 km small landscaped trails. A summer toboggan run will entertain the whole family. There is no shortage of hotels and restaurants for all budgets.
Do not miss the panorama (on sunny days) of some 300 peaks in the Alps. The folklore festival on the occasion of the descent of the alpine meadows at the end of summer is a spectacle not to be missed.
- TO 7 km further ahead you will arrive in Swiss (the chocolate is excellent there), wherever the road or highway takes you wherever you want.
the valley of Lake Saint-Point
- When leaving Pontarlier, turn right towards Malbuisson and Mouthe on the D437. The road goes around the lake (7 km long and 420 Ha), but you can take the marked footpath which, on 23 km, goes around it. Very easy walk, very little elevation and above all a charming panorama. You will admire the small villages of Port Titi and Grangettes, then the village of Saint-Point and its beach (unforgettable waking up in the early morning to the sound of "clarines" hanging from the necks of the cows).
- In contrast, the city of Malbuisson offers you all the tourist attractions you want. Between lodges, hotels, campsites and restaurants are there to enhance a happy stay. A paradise for fishermen, hikers and cross-country skiers, Malbuisson is also the city where international cycling races take place on August 15. The tourist office, placed on the side of the road in the center of the village, will give you all the information you want.
In winter the lake is naturally transformed into a gigantic ice rink and it is a real spectacle, especially at night.
- the Saint-Point lake is the third natural lake in France and its neighbor, the Remoray lake, much smaller (100 Ha) and also crossed by the Doubs, is a nature reserve of 430 Ha where you can admire the 220 species of birds up close.
- Still on the D437, 15 km after Malbuisson you arrive at Mouthe, capital of the canton and the coldest village in France (in winter). A small marked path will take you, through fields of peat bog and wild plants from the last ice age (10,000 years BC), to the source of the Doubs.
- Arrival of the "Transjurassienne" coming from Lamoura (Jura) and passing through Switzerland, with between 4 and 5,000 cross-country skiers.
- Dog sled race.
- There you are at 10 km of the department of Swear.
