A monumental natural staircase built by the run-off of water, the Rolampont tufa is a listed site, a living biological environment that has been active for thousands of years. A veritable natural laboratory, the tuffière transforms moss into "tuff". The bicarbonate contained in the seepage water is decomposed here: the carbon dioxide is assimilated by the mosses (photosynthesis), causing the dissolved limestone to precipitate and form the "tuff". The deposit of limestone and the growth of mosses form cushions that rise, gradually building a natural dam. In this way, the formation of the tufa leads to the characteristic layout of the stepped basins.
Free access all year round.
Visit available on the free Id-Vizit app!
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Fun tour available on the Id-Vizit app:
The little world of the tuffière and its forest
Ideal for keeping your children occupied during the walk, the little world of the tuffière invites them to discover the tuffière site, the tuff marsh and the animals of the forest... accompanied by Tufi the squirrel and his friends. In the form of quizzes, puzzles or even geolocated stages, your children will be in front of you to answer the questions. Can you keep up with them?
Walk available on the free Id-Vizit app!
- Tour du Marais: 4 km
- the Tufière de Rolampont: 11 km
For nature lovers:
The Val Vaubrien ZNIEFF is located to the east of Rolampont and covers the entire valley, including springs, rocky slopes and cliffs. The forest types are very typical of this region (an oriental species at the edge of its range, the pulmonaria obcure, can be found here): maple grove on the scree slopes, oak grove-calcareous beech grove on the slopes and above the cliffs, marshy woods at the bottom of the valley. The shaded cliffs and screes have their own specific vegetation. But the main interest of the ZNIEFF is the presence of five tufa zones, including a vast tufa massif, part of which is fossilised and part of which is still active: the tufa field is thus the largest structure of this type in the département.
Vegetation:
Some of the plants of interest are mountain species favoured by the site's cold microclimate, as well as the mosses that grow on the damp tufa and are responsible for its construction, such as the commuted cratoneuron and the whorled eucladie, which is abundant on the Rolampont tufa but rare in Haute-Marne. The spear fern can also be seen here, an artico-alpine fern that is rare on the plains (very far from its main distribution area here) and is on the regional red list of plants.
Fauna:
Insects, and more specifically dragonflies, are well represented here, with the agrion de Mercure, listed in the red book of threatened fauna in France (in danger of extinction in the northern half of the country), benefiting from national (since 1993) and international (Bern Convention and Habitats Directive) protection. Five other dragonflies are included on the red list of insects in Champagne-Ardenne: the bidentate and ringed cordulégastres, which are of mountain origin, as well as the gomphe vulgaire, the yellow-spotted cordulière and the brown orthétrum.
The site also provides nesting and feeding grounds for around thirty bird species, in particular birds of prey, woodpeckers and various passerines. It is also of great interest for hunting.
Tufière de Rolampont
