Pilat Regional Natural Park ( French: ''Parc naturel régional du Pilat'') is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

of mountainous countryside in the

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (ARA; ; frp, Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Ârpes; oc, Auvèrnhe Ròse Aups; it, Alvernia-Rodano-Alpi) is a region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Au ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

of southeastern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The park spans the departments of

Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...

and

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 ...

, and covers a total area of . The mountain terrain ranges from to in elevation. Forty-seven

communes An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, relig ...

dot the landscape, with approximately fifty thousand residents. The land was officially designated a regional natural park in 1974.

Member communes

The park includes 47 member communes: *

Ampuis Ampuis () is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. See also Communes of the Rhône department The following is a list of the 208 communes of the Rhône department of France. This list does not includes the Lyon Metropolis ...

Le Bessat Le Bessat () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Loire department The following is a list of the 323 communes of the Loire department of France. The communes cooperate in the foll ...

* Bessey *

Bourg-Argental Bourg-Argental (; frp, Lo Bôrg-Argentâf; oc, Lo Borg d'Argentau) is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Loire department *Ary Bitter Ary Bitter (1883–1973) was a French artist, ...

* Burdignes *

Chavanay Chavanay () is a Communes of France, commune in the Loire (department), Loire Departments of France, department in central France. Population Twin towns Chavanay is town twinning, twinned with Waldkirch, Germany, since 1994. See also *Commune ...

* Chuyer * La Chapelle-Villars * Châteauneuf * Colombier *

Condrieu Condrieu () is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. It is situated on the right bank of the Rhône, some south of Vienne and 44 km south of Lyon, at the foot of the lower slopes of the Mont Monnet. It has an area of 921 h ...

* Doizieux * Échalas * Farnay * Graix * Les Haies * Jonzieux *

Loire-sur-Rhône Loire-sur-Rhône (, literally ''Loire on Rhône'') is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. See also *Communes of the Rhône department The following is a list of the 208 communes of the Rhône department of France. This list ...

Longes Longes () is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. See also *Communes of the Rhône department The following is a list of the 208 communes of the Rhône department of France. This list does not includes the Lyon Metropolis ...

Lupé Lupé () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Loire department The following is a list of the 323 communes of the Loire department of France. The communes cooperate in the following ...

* Maclas * Malleval *

Marlhes Marlhes () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Population , Twin towns Marlhes is twinned with: * Féouda, Togo * Charette, Quebec, Canada Personalities Marcellin Champagnat, catholic saint and founder of the Mari ...

Pavezin Pavezin () is a Communes of France, commune in the Loire (department), Loire Departments of France, department in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Geography The village is at the top of the Couzon Valley, on the norther ...

* Pélussin * Planfoy * Roisey * Saint-Appolinard *

Sainte-Croix-en-Jarez Sainte-Croix-en-Jarez () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Loire department The following is a list of the 323 communes of the Loire department of France. The communes cooperate ...

* Saint-Genest-Malifaux * Saint-Julien-Molin-Molette * Saint-Michel-sur-Rhône *

Saint-Paul-en-Jarez Saint-Paul-en-Jarez () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Geography The Dorlay river, a tributary of the Gier that rises in the Pilat massif, flows through the commune. Population Twin towns Saint-Paul-en-Jarez is tw ...

* Saint-Pierre-de-Bœuf * Saint-Régis-du-Coin *

Saint-Romain-en-Gal Saint-Romain-en-Gal (; frp, Sant-Reman-en-Gâl) is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. It is located south of Lyon, on the west bank of the river Rhône. Vienne, Isère is on the opposite bank of the river and the two settleme ...

* Saint-Romain-les-Atheux * Saint-Sauveur-en-Rue * Tarentaise * La Terrasse-sur-Dorlay * Thélis-la-Combe * Trèves * Tupin-et-Semons *

La Valla-en-Gier La Valla-en-Gier () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Loire department The following is a list of the 323 communes of the Loire department of France. The communes cooperate in th ...

* Véranne *

Vérin Vérin () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Loire department The following is a list of the 323 communes of the Loire department of France. The communes cooperate in the followi ...

* La Versanne

References

External links

Official park website
Regional natural parks of France Geography of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Geography of Rhône (department) Geography of Loire (department) Tourist attractions in Rhône (department) Tourist attractions in Loire (department) Protected areas established in 1974 Tourist attractions in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes {{Europe-protected-area-stub