Sassenage Caves – Grenoble
Sassenage Caves – Grenoble
Sassenage, nestling at the foot of the Vercors, has managed to retain its village character despite the nearby influence of Grenoble.
The village is home to a world-renowned caving spot: the Cuves de Sassenage caves, which were formed over one-and-a-half million years ago.
Fashioned by an underground river, the Germe, the galleries riddle the eighty-million-year-old limestone massif...
The Cuves, or cisterns, owe their name to the two giant "cauldrons" worn into the rock at the caves entrance.
Inside, we walk or more accurately squeeze our way through a one-kilometre-long maze of galleries and steps that follow the underground rivers and their spectacular erosions...
Popular belief says that if one of these cavities fills up at the Epiphany, the season will be a good one for wine and wheat. The charm of the Cuves has always attracted painters, poets and explorers... as well as walkers in search of an enchanting location.
The galleries, and their evocative names (Hell Gallery, Tomb Alley), supposedly inspired Dante for his description of Hell in the Divine Comedy.
The Rataplanades Room owes its name to the Dauphiné-patois name for the bats that used to inhabit it (five different species, including two rare in Europe, are still present in the cave).
The path leading up to the Cuves from the village (a ten-minute walk) gives the walker many magnificent views of the fast-flowing Furon. After visiting the caves, you can continue along the path to the Resistance memorial at Pont-Charvet, and from there set out on an agreeable hike across the Vercors Plateau.
Open 1 April till 31 October, 10 a.m. till 6 p.m., every day except Mondays. Every day in July and August.
Contact
tel. +33(0)4 76 27 55 37
