Cascade mystérieuse

The Cascade mystérieuse is one of Le Grand-Bornand's best-kept secrets: here the Nant du Chinaillon squeezes into a narrow gorge and tumbles around thirty metres between two high rock walls, in the heart of a cool beech forest at the spot known as L'Arbelay, at about 1 164 m above sea level.

Its name — the "mysterious waterfall" — is intriguing, and its origin remains uncertain; the legend, meanwhile, raises a smile: it was at the foot of this fall that the very first couple of Bornandins (the people of Le Grand-Bornand) are said to have met, giving birth to the village. Locals have passed the story down from generation to generation.

Getting there is more of a stroll than a hike: about twenty minutes' walk in the shade of the beech trees, starting from the route de l'Envers du Chinaillon, the resort's high-altitude village. A few wooden staircases punctuate the path — the spot is pleasant and refreshing even at the height of summer.

The show is at its best in spring, when the snowmelt swells the stream; in autumn, the beech forest blazes with colour. The site is freely accessible from 15 April to 15 November, outside the snow season.