Col de Sainte-Marie (772m) walks

A beautiful historical hike near the Wisembach National Forest.A reminder of the facts:1871 - Alsace/Moselle are annexed by Germany, which modernises many areas.1914 - The heir to the Austrian throne is assassinated / Germany declares war on Russia, France and Belgium. Soldiers occupy villages and mountains.November 1918: the trenches are filled in, the blockhouses and other structures destroyed, but around a hundred remain visible in the heights of the Val d'Argent.

This circular hike links the Col de Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines to Chaume de Lusse, through typical Vosges forests of beech, fir, blueberry and high-altitude meadows. The forest paths and roads offer beautiful panoramic views of the Val d'Argent and Meurthe valleys. This is a fairly dynamic route that leads to Chaume de Lusse via a varied course, including sustained climbs (which is why we rate it as difficult), forest passages and open ridges. Part of the route runs between Alsace and Lorraine on paths and trails marked by the GR®531, the former border from 1871 to 1918, with boundary stones marked D (Deutschland), often hammered, and F, marking the historic border and named "Chemins de la Grande Guerre" (Paths of the Great War).