Le Plateau de Retord

The wide open spaces of the Plateau de Retord offer many opportunities for outdoor activities throughout the year. In winter, the Plateau de Retord ski area is accessible to all levels with nearby accommodation and a ski school. The alpine ski resort of Plans d'Hotonnes, offers in a friendly and family setting with 13 slopes suitable for novice and more experienced skiers. With more than 150 km of marked routes, the Plateau de Retord is also and above all a paradise for Nordic skiing. The three gateways to the Plateau (Cuvéry, La Chapelle, Les Plans d'Hotonnes) provide access to the trails that run through this privileged area, offering a wide variety of landscapes and panoramas. The ski area is laid out in classic and skating. It also has 10 loops to cover on snowshoes. Tobogganing, airboarding, snowtubing and big airbag enthusiasts also have a dedicated area. Equipment rental is possible in the Plans d'Hotonnes resort as well as at the Col de Cuvery. Having seen the birth of multiple Olympic and world medalists, the Plateau de Retord is naturally a land where biathlon has a special place. It is possible to follow in the footsteps of champions Simon Desthieux, Sandrine Bailly, Corrine Niogret and Delphine Burlet by trying out biathlon all year round with the ski school in the recently refurbished stadium. From spring when the combes are covered with daffodils and narcissus until the beeches change color in the fall, the Plateau de Retord can be discovered by mountain bike, on foot on the various hiking circuits, the permanent routes orientation or in the mountain pastures accompanied by the shepherds and their herd, on roller skis on the biathlon stadium or on electric scooters. Located near the southern end of the Jura Massif, equidistant from Lyon and Geneva, the Plateau de Retord is an essential point of the mythical Grandes Traversées du Jura since it can be traveled by mountain bike, road bike, on foot, on horseback, on snowshoes and soon on gravel. The Plateau de Retord is also characterized by its atypical isolated farms. High place of the Resistance during the Second World War, the situation of the Plateau and the isolation of its farms made it a fertile ground for the formation of different camps of the Maquis de l'Ain. The Sentier du Maquis located between Hotonnes and Plans d'Hotonnes as well as a commented hike in the footsteps of the Resistance fighters offered by the Tourist Office retrace the history, military organization and daily life of the Maquisards between 1942 and 1945 . The Plateau de Retord is also accessible to people in wheelchairs and Swincars.