« I thought of pursuing the devil; but it would have been in vain, for another flash discovered him to be hanging among the rocks of the nearly perpendicular ascent of Mont Saleve, a hill that bounds Plainpalais on the south. »The Salève is really an interesting mountain which has many faces. It can look very cheerful, but at the same time it has a gloomy underlying atmosphere. One feels the heavy aura of the place. Sometimes you would think that there are faeries hidden behind trees and other times you can clearly imagine that ghosts or malign souls are sourrounding you. I guess that comes from the fact that it is very old (it dates from the secondary period/ -150 to -125 million year) and has gone through the ages collecting memories within it's stones (matter never forgets).
- Mary Shelley, Frankenstein -
The Salève saw many events as well as people pass and is loaded with history: dinosaurs, cave-men, Celts, Romans, witches, brown bears, climbers (already since the second half of the 19th century), walkers, murders, deadly hiking accidents (certain paths are very dangerous and the rock front of the mountain is treacherous), etc... Even British novelist Mary Shelley wrote about the Salève in her gothic novel "Frankenstein" (« It was echoed from Saleve, the Juras, and the Alps of Savoy; vivid flashes of lightning dazzled my eyes, illuminating the lake, making it appear like a vast sheet of fire; then for an instant everything seemed of a pitchy darkness, until the eye recovered itself from the preceding flash. », « Who could arrest a creature capable of scaling the overhanging sides of Mont Saleve? »).
No matter what you are looking for, this mountain will not leave you feeling neutral.
41 comments:
what a beautiful forest! so misterious!
À la fois impressionnant et accueillant. De toute façon; magnifique!
An interesting post about such an interesting place! And you live so close.
Ciao Rosa ! What a gorgeous ad special place !! I just had the visit of one of my childhood au pair (I was three years old !!!) she is from Thun and I told her about your wonderful blog !
amazing! love the photos and the story behind it. <3
Rosa, this is a place that would leave me atremble with excitement. A wondrous place I could get lost in...and not (completely) panic.
Wow, mesmerizing - I would love to live near this - what a wonderful place Rosa
Wow Rosa, how beautiful. I can imagine myself exploring this forest.
I really like how you play with light and colour.
I really like how you work with light and colour.
You always have the best photos! It all looks beautiful!
These are really wonderful-looking photos. I'd love to visit this place.
Paz
What a beautiful mountain and the history behind. I'd like to do some trekking there with a chocolate cake in the bag :)!
Cheers,
Gera
Lovely photos, Rosa! I loved reading about the mountain's legend!
I love it Rosa...I can spend the whole day here :D
I love this post, Rosa. Especially the part about the faeries! :)
I know how you feel, we have a lot of beautiful mountains here in Vermont ("Green Mountain") and I am fascinated by them as well.
I love the mountain and the forest pictures!
As always, I enjoy seeing your photos. They're stunning! Hope you're haveing a fabulous day.
Cheers, Kristy
That looks pretty enough to be a movie set Rosa! :o
Lovely pics rosa
beautiful pics,a real pleasure to come here and see a lot of beauty into a sinle page!:)
I can see why you love it. Stunning photography Rosa x
Voilà qui me donne envie de repartir en vacances.
Magnifique montagne et belle forêt... Je suis juste à côté, Annecy et c'est toujours un plaisir de marcher sous le couvert des arbres, dans un coin de nature préservée... Tu vis dans un bel endroit !
Je me souviens de tes premieres photos du Saleve. Ton style photographique a bien change depuis - j'aime bien ces couleurs un peu acides.
I live in the mountains and completely understand the infatuation! Interesting history!
Impressive!
Mountains never make me feel neutral, interesting info, adore the 6th picture :)
Lovely, Rosa! Fascinating history and photos.
And after reading about the spooky side of Salève I must say the music is a perfect match!
Lovely rocks, and I love the forest shots!
Rosa...images like these bring me in a very serene and far away place I once had spent time as a young girl...and now always longing to grasp again.
Beautiful and mesmerizing captures!
Ciao for now,
Claudia
How fantastic to have a mountain so inspiring, mysterious, and beautiful within walking distance of your house. I would love that!
Coucou Rosa... Me voilà bercée par la musique et les beaux paysages forestiers... et séduite complètement par les thés et le namoura ! un vrai bonheur Bises
Wow, that's a really cool story with great photographs!
It would be so calming just to walk through there snapping away with your camera. How lucky to live so near.
Such beautiful pictures and breathtaking views! I want to go there:)
Très belle promebade que tu nous proposes là, j'aime beaucoup ton traitement des couleurs (je l'ai déjà dit je crois, ou pensé en tout cas ;-)). Et je tombe sur le musique d'Acturus, et je voyage...
Toujours beaucoup de dépaysement ici, j'aime venir me ressourcer chez toi, à défaut de voyager aussi souvent que je le voudrais! Bises et bon week-end!
What gorgeous photography Rosa. Simply stunning.
Magique..
Bo week~end ma belle Rosa xx
Now, that would make for one great movie setting. Beautiful, in a haunting way.
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