High Stubble Menu Heritage and Tours Sceneries and Men History of Men Geology and Climate Landscapes Hautes-Vosges The “Plateau des Mille Etangs” Fougerolles and Val d’Ajol Valleys Ballons of Franche-Comté Vosgian Valleys Haut-Rhin Valleys Wine-growing Foothills Natural Heritage Orchards Forests High Stubble Lakes, Ponds, Peatlands Ravines, Cliffs and Scree Slopes Calcareous Grasslands Local Products and Craftsmanship The Park Certification Label The Wood Industry Meat Producers Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Mineral and Natural Spring Waters Fruit and Vegetables Products Fougerolles Orchards and Kirsch Fish Farming Vosgian Cattle Breed Cheeses Small Fruit, Aromatic and Medicinal Plants Alsatian Wine Smoked Meats and Andouilles Farmhouse-Inns Farm Shops Craftsmanship Textile Granite Lava Sandstone Wood industry Farm Markets Cultural Heritage Thermal Heritage Industrial Heritage Farms Country of Art and History Religious Heritage Intangible Cutural Heritage Heritage and Memory Castles Thematic Roads and Tracks Tourist Routes Treetop Adventure Park Barefoot Trails Environment Awareness Structures Parks and Botanical Gardens Museums and Heritage Sites Thermal Baths Venues for Shows, Exhibitions and Festivals At the Park Doors Colmar Remiremont Belfort Lure Mulhouse Luxeuil-les-Bains Saint-Dié-des-Vosges Nature activities Guided Walks and Discovery trails A Farm, A Hike Mountain Guides Pedestrian Hikes Club Vosgien / Club Alpin (Vosgian / Alpine Clubs) Reception Centres for Educational Stays Trail Mountain Biking and Cyclo-Tourism Equine Activities Climbing Skydiving Aeromodelism Fishing Water Sports Winter Activities Nature vacations Camping in Nature Panda Lodgings and Guesthouses Hôtels au Naturel (Hotels in Natural Settings) The Ballons des Vosges Regional Natural Park offers a large variety of natural environments. In itself, the forest covers two-thirds of territory. Still, the Park is rich with a multitude of other resources. High stubble (altitude meadows), peatlands, glacial cirques, rocky cliffs, rock slides, lakes and rivers intermingle harmoniously. Nearly 5,000 hectares of moors and lawns, locally known as high stubble, cover the main Hautes-Vosges summits. Above 1,000 meters, the great crest climate is exceptionally rude. The trees suffer from wind, snow and freezing fogs on peaks. These stubbles are not wild: clear forests topped the summits, and had been repeatedly altered by the hand of Man from the end of the Neolithic Age (5,000 to 6,000 years ago) – notably forest fires for clearing. Dwellers first developed a transhumant pastoral economy on these already cleared summits. The past centuries have seen many successive forest clearings, sometimes even on steep hills. These high stubbles shelter: Blueberries, Heathers, Pasque Flowers, Arnica, Vosges Pansies or Fennel from the Alps. Such natural environments, unique in Europe, hail from climatic conditions and Man-Nature relationship over several millenniums. Author advisa View all posts