The Pfynwald or Bois de Finges is a natural reserve and one of the largest continuous

Scots pine ''Pinus sylvestris'', the Scots pine (UK), Scotch pine (US) or Baltic pine, is a species of tree in the pine family Pinaceae that is native to Eurasia. It can readily be identified by its combination of fairly short, blue-green leaves and orang ...

forests of Europe. It is located on the language border between German- and French-speaking

Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 ...

, Switzerland, on the alluvial cone below the

Illgraben The small Illgraben valley is one of the most geologically unstable regions of Switzerland, and is located south of Leuk in the Canton of Valais. Geology and geography The valley consists of triassic dolomite, porous limestone and quartzite,WS ...

valley. The area is protected under federal law since 1992 and harbors one of the last untouched riverine landscapes of Switzerland. On a length of about seven kilometers, the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

is allowed to meander freely. The western part of the natural reserve is dominated by prehistoric rock falls, alluvial deposits, and ponds. The forest clearing in the middle of the park contains a manor, with its origins dating back to 1000 AD, and a memorial to the 1799 battle between the French and the revolting Upper Valaisans. The name of the area derives from one of two

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

terms: ''ad fines'' (at the border) or ''pinus'' (pine tree). File:Picswiss VS-69-31.jpg , View of the alluvial cone below the Illgraben and the eastern part of the Pfynwald/Bois de Finges File:ETH-BIB-Pfynwald-Schuttkegel von der Kirche Muraz sur Sierre-Dia 247-13255.tif , On the right, the western part of the Pfynwald/Bois de Finges. The area is dominated by overgrown rockfall debris. In the background, with its gentle slope, the alluvial cone.

References

* {{Cite web , url=https://hls-dhs-dss.ch/de/articles/008553/2010-09-28/ , title=Pfynwald , date=2010-09-28 , access-date=2022-06-09 , last=Bellwald , first=Werner , publisher=

Historical Dictionary of Switzerland The ''Historical Dictionary of Switzerland'' is an encyclopedia on the history of Switzerland that aims to take into account the results of modern historical research in a manner accessible to a broader audience. The encyclopedia is publishe ...

Valais Nature reserves in Switzerland