Grotte et Reculée des Planches

Also called the "Bout du Monde" (End of the World), the reculée des Planches, near Arbois, is certainly one of the most impressive in the region. A deep cut in the Jura massif, due to the erosion of runoff water that created in the limestone cliffs chasms, caves and a whole underground crystalline architecture. The edge of the plateau is thus pierced by numerous valleys that hide caves, or "baumes", in their depths and end in a very steep rocky cirque. High overhanging cliffs covered with dense vegetation show at their top the white or grey limestone rocks. Further down, in the marly, impermeable subsoil, rainwater escapes from a steep horseshoe-shaped slope.

The cave, for its part, offers the spectacle of an underground river, its waterfalls and lakes, with giant's kettles carved by erosion, an archaeological site and a gallery-museum. Outside, the reculée's cliff reaches 245 m, one of the highest in the Jura.

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