Chaîne des Puys “Grand Site” - Puy de Dôme
Puy-de-Dôme, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Aligned and set upon the Domes granite plateau, the 80 volcanoes which make up the Chaîne des Puys, centred around the emblematic Puy de Dome, reveal the intimate relationship between a landscape and its geology. Ideal for contemplation as well as being an inhabited farming and forestry area, the Domes plateau illustrates how a landscape is forged, as well as the subtle balance between humans and nature.
Located in the heart of the Auvergne Volcanoes Regional Nature Park, the Chaîne des Puys encompasses 80 volcanoes. The Chaîne des Puys - Limagne fault, a place of contemplation prized by walkers and sportsmen, was listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2018. It illustrates the challenge of the populated areas that are part of the Chaîne des Puys listed site. In 2021, the labelled perimeter of the Grand Site de France du puy de Dôme will be extended to a 43,000 hectare area that includes the listed site of the Chaîne des Puys, the Dômes plateau and the Limagne fault. This extension was made possible by the association of numerous public and private partners: scientists, elected representatives, farmers, foresters, landowners, hikers, who have worked to preserve the harmony of the area by managing the flow of people, controlling urban development and preserving the subtle balance between forests and meadows. From the top of its 1,465 meters, the Puy de Dôme, which is closed to cars and can only be reached on foot via the Chemin des Muletiers or by cogwheel train, it is difficult not to be overwhelmed by this landscape of pastures and forests, domes and craters, suspended between heaven and earth!