The Vosges Club (french: Club Vosgien, officially the ''Fédération du Club Vosgien'', german: Vogesenclub) is a French

rambling Walking is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities in the United Kingdom, and within England and Wales there is a comprehensive network of rights of way that permits access to the countryside. Furthermore, access to much uncultiv ...

organization that covers the

Vosges Mountains The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single ...

in the regions of

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

, eastern

Lorraine Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gr ...

and the northeastern part of

Franche-Comté Franche-Comté (, ; ; Frainc-Comtou: ''Fraintche-Comtè''; frp, Franche-Comtât; also german: Freigrafschaft; es, Franco Condado; all ) is a cultural and historical region of eastern France. It is composed of the modern departments of Doubs, ...

History

The club was founded on 31 October 1872 in

Saverne Saverne (french: Saverne, ; Alsatian: ; german: Zabern ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It is situated on the Rhine-Marne canal at the foot of a pass over the Vosges Mountains, and 45 km (27& ...

and recognized as a

charitable organisation A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a ch ...

in 1879. Its first chairman was Curt Mündel, known for his much-printed guide ''Die Vogesen – Reisehandbuch für Elsaß-Lothringen und angrenzende Gebirge''. In the period around 1890–1910 the Vosges Club erected

viewing tower An observation tower is a structure used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision to conduct long distance observations. Observation towers are usually at least tall and are made from stone, iron, and ...

s on the summits of the Scherhol,

Grand Wintersberg At , the Grand Wintersberg (german: Großer Wintersberg) is the highest hill in the North Vosges in Alsace, France. The Grand Wintersberg lies about four kilometres northwest of Niederbronn-les-Bains. The massif separates the valleys of the Fa ...

Wasenkoepfel The Wasenkoepfel (526 m) is a hill northwest of Oberbronn in the Lower Alsace in the French Vosges. It is the highest point of the southern Wasgau, a Franco-German, cross-border region that comprises the southern part of the Palatinate Fore ...

, Brotschberg,

Climont Climont, formerly called "Clivemont" in Old French, and "Winberg" in Old Alsatian, is a conical sandstone peak of the Vosges mountains. The mountain, with a cut-off shape, is known from afar by walkers and modern-day travellers. Situated today i ...

, Champ du Feu, Heidenkopf, Ungersberg and Faudé.

Aims and organisation

The Vosges Club has 111 local branches (as of 2006, 126 by 2020) and about 34,000 members. The head office is in

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

. Its chief executive currently is Alain Ferstler. The aims of the club include the maintenance and waymarking of just over of footpaths and trails. The

waymark Trail blazing or way marking is the practice of marking paths in outdoor recreational areas with signs or markings that follow each other at certain, though not necessarily exactly defined, distances and mark the direction of the trail. A blaz ...

s are put up by just over 760 volunteers (which averages out at approximately per volunteer). The club manages its own hostels and maintains

refuge hut Refuge is a place or state of safety. It may also refer to a more specific meaning: Safety * Area of refuge, a location in a building that may be used by occupants in the event of a fire * Bunker, a defensive fortification designed to protect pe ...

s. In addition to promoting hiker tourism the Vosges Club is also dedicated to other outdoor activities like

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done fo ...

and

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...

, as well as

nature conservation Nature conservation is the moral philosophy and conservation movement focused on protecting species from extinction, maintaining and restoring habitats, enhancing ecosystem services, and protecting biological diversity. A range of values unde ...

. The club publishes walking guides and maps, as well as its own magazine, ''Les Vosges'', which comes out 3 times a year. The Vosges Club is a founding member of the French Ramblers' Association (''Fédération française de la randonnée pédestre'') and the

European Ramblers' Association The European Ramblers Association (ERA); Europäische Wandervereinigung (EWV); Fédération Européenne de la Randonnée Pédestre (FERP), is a network organisation working for promotion of walking, hiking, creating trails, exchange of the know-h ...

External links

Official homepage
{{Authority control Hiking organizations Sport in Vosges (department) Sports organizations of France Tourism in France Sport in Strasbourg