Panoramic view from Puy de Dôme of the Chaîne des Puys region of Massif Central in south-central France
Puy de Dôme is a large lava dome and one of the youngest volcanoes in the Chaîne des Puys region of Massif Central in south-central France. This chain of volcanoes including numerous cinder cones, lava domes, and maars is located far from the edge of any tectonic plate. Puy de Dôme is located approximately 10 km away from Clermont-Ferrand. The Puy-de-Dôme département is named after the volcano. In pre-Christian Europe, Puy de Dôme served as an assembly place for spiritual ceremonies. Temples were built at the summit, including a Gallo-Roman temple dedicated to the God Mercury, the ruins of which were discovered in 1873. In 1648, Florin Périer, at the urging of Blaise Pascal, proved Evangelista Torricelli's theory that barometric observations were caused by the weight of air by measuring the height of a column of mercury at three elevations on Puy de Dôme. In 1875, a physics laboratory was built at the summit. Since 1956, a TDF (Télédiffusion de France) antenna is also located there. On the top of the mountain, there is a transmitter for FM and TV. The Puy de Dôme is one of the most visited sites in the Auvergne region, attracting nearly 500,000 visitors a year. It is a well-known centre for paragliding. The summit offers expansive views of the Chaîne des Puys and Clermont-Ferrand. A restaurant and shops are available, as well as a visitor centre giving information on the history and geology of the area. A pedestrian path (Le sentier des muletiers), formerly a Roman road, leads to the Temple of Mercury. The motor road previously leading to the summit is now closed. Visitors must hike up on foot or take the Panoramique des Dômes, a rack railway operational since May of 2012. Hikers can also reach the Puy using a footpath on the northern side, which runs past the Nid de la Poule crater. The GR 4 long-distance trail uses this footpath and the sentier des muletiers to traverse the mountain.
Size: 5759px × 3840px
Location: Le Puy de Dome France
Photo credit: © DV TRAVEL / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 122410_puy, ancient, auvergne, central, chain, chaîne, clermont, cycling, de, des, dome, ferrand, france, french, hiking, inactive, lava, massif, mercury, mountain, puy, puys, tourism, volcano, volcanoes
