Genevois Trip

When, from Cluses, one heads back toward Geneva either on the National road or on the expressway, one drives on the bed of the huge Arve glacier, which used to flow down from the Mont Blanc massif, and, again, on both sides of the road around Bonneville you can see traces of moraines with pretty vineyards sitting on them. After you arrive in Saint-Julien-en-Genevois via Annemasse, the best road to take for education is the N201 toward Annecy.

Geologically this is a depression between the Jura, which you can see in the distance on your right, and the Pre-Alps, called here the Bornes, which will soon appear on your left. Here and there you can still see large chunks of the Jura, such as Le Salève, which dominates Geneva. The whole area, a sort of hilly piedmont dedicated to the polyculture of vegetables, fruits, and flowers, and the making of cheeses, is named the Avant Pays. The maximum altitude there is 4200 feet, and rivers crisscross the countryside in deeply interesting gorges. You will pass over Les Usses, the gorges of which are spanned by striking bridges known as the Ponts de la Caille; the old bridge, impressive in my young days, now just looks cute and quaint.