Lons le Saunier, France - June 21, 2012

Leaving the Alsace region, we headed south into the Franche-Comté region and visited Lons le Saunier in the Jura department. In one travel guide Lons le Saunier is decribed as the sort of place you would stop by for a coffee if you were really thirsty. It is actually an old Roman salt city nowadays known as a spa city where visitors can sample the therapeutic effects of the salt water. In the heart of the Jura vineyards, Lons le Saunier is a picturesque and historic city. For our purposes, it was on the route we were following and had an adequate campsite nearby for a couple of nights R&R. We did make an incursion into town and confirmed the guide book's assessment.
Lons le Saunier is a sprawling, ill-defined town, home to about 19,000 people and seems to be struggling to develop an identity. The Place de la Liberté with its theater and Grand Cafe are the focal point of cultural and social activities. Geographically, the town is at the foot of the Jura massif and, although the River Vallière runs through it, the river has been enclosed since the 1960s due to contamination. Just one small section remains open where it is crossed by the Pont de la Guiche, the solitary bridge. See here for a few more images.