Day One: Welcome to Geneva<\/strong><\/p>\nOur group gathered in Geneva, where everyone had the opportunity to meet before the adventure began. Over dinner we discussed the exciting journey ahead, introducing the geology that would accompany us throughout the tour and getting to know one another before setting off into the Alps.<\/p>\n
Day Two: The Jura Mountains and the birthplace of the Jurassic<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\nOur first full day took us along the shores of beautiful Lake Geneva before continuing north towards Lake Neuch\u00e2tel and the Jura Mountains.<\/p>\n
Our first major stop was the spectacular Creux-du-Van<\/strong>, an enormous natural limestone amphitheatre carved by glacial erosion. Standing at the edge of its towering cliffs, we examined the folded rocks that give the Jura Mountains their distinctive appearance while enjoying panoramic views stretching towards the distant Alps.<\/p>\nNearby we visited the famous Pierre \u00e0 Bot<\/strong>, one of Switzerland\u2019s best-known glacial erratics. This giant boulder travelled all the way from the Mont Blanc massif during the last Ice Age and became central to Louis Agassiz\u2019s revolutionary work demonstrating that glaciers once covered much of Europe.<\/p>\nLater we explored the historic town of Valangin<\/strong>, the type locality for the Valanginian Stage of the Early Cretaceous, before spending time in Neuch\u00e2tel\u2019s excellent Natural History Museum, learning more about the region\u2019s geological heritage.<\/p>\nWe ended the day in the charming lakeside town of Neuch\u00e2tel.<\/p>\n
Left:<\/strong> Creux du Van lies in the Jura Mountains, the type area of the Jurassic Period. This spectacular natural amphitheatre formed in three main stages: 1. Jura mountain building folded the rocks into the Soliat anticline, creating fractures in the limestone. 2. Karst dissolution exploited these fractures, enlarging them to form an erosional valley known as a combe. 3. Quaternary glaciers and frost weathering dramatically enlarged the head of the combe into the magnificent limestone cirque seen today. Often referred to as the \u201cGrand Canyon of Switzerland\u201d, Creux du Van is around 1,400 metres wide, with cliffs rising to about 160 metres above the forest floor.<\/p>\nTop right:<\/strong> View from the summit of Chaumont across Lake Neuch\u00e2tel towards the Alps. The prominent snow-covered peak is Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Western Europe, standing 4,805.6 metres above sea level.<\/p>\nBottom right: <\/strong>Typical thrust faulting and folding in the Jurassic limestones of the Jura Mountains, exposed in La Cernia Quarry near Neuch\u00e2tel. The inclined limestone beds have been compressed and stacked by faulting during the formation of the Jura Mountains.<\/p>\nDay Three: The Top of Europe<\/strong><\/p>\nAfter travelling through the Bernese Alps we arrived in Grindelwald beneath the immense north faces of the Eiger, M\u00f6nch and Jungfrau.<\/p>\n
From there we boarded the famous mountain railway to Jungfraujoch<\/strong>, Europe\u2019s highest railway station at 3,463 metres above sea level.<\/p>\nFew places illustrate the power of glaciation quite like this. Surrounded by snow-covered peaks, we looked across the immense Aletsch Glacier \u2013 the largest glacier in the Alps \u2013 and examined classic glacial landforms shaped over thousands of years.<\/p>\n
The combination of world-class geology and breathtaking scenery made this one of the highlights of the entire tour.<\/p>\n
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Left:<\/strong> The GeoWorld Travel group at Pierre \u00e0 Bot, a famous glacial erratic of Mont Blanc granite. The boulder was transported over 100 km by the Rh\u00f4ne Glacier during the last Ice Age and was later used by Louis Agassiz as key evidence for his revolutionary theory of glaciation.<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>A cast of the Triassic dinosaur Plateosaurus, based on a skeleton discovered in the Gruhalde clay pit at Frick, northwestern Switzerland, on display in the Natural History Museum of Neuch\u00e2tel. Plateosaurus lived around 210 million years ago and is one of Europe\u2019s best-known early dinosaurs.<\/p>\n\n
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Left: <\/strong>Some of the GeoWorld Travel group examine the cobbles beneath their feet in Neuch\u00e2tel\u2019s old town. These rounded stones once formed the bed of the River Seyon, which flowed through the centre of the city until it was diverted into a tunnel in 1843. The cobbles include a wide variety of Alpine rock types, such as serpentinite, transported to Neuch\u00e2tel by glaciers during the Ice Ages before being reworked by the river.<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>The GeoWorld Travel group on the Eiger Express from Grindelwald to Eigergletscher, passing alongside the iconic 1,800m-high north face of the Eiger, one of the world\u2019s most famous and challenging climbing faces.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Left: <\/strong>The GeoWorld Travel group on the Eiger Express from Grindelwald to Eigergletscher, passing alongside the iconic 1,800m-high north face of the Eiger, one of the world\u2019s most famous and challenging climbing faces.\u00a0<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>A spectacular recumbent fold within the Helvetic nappes, photographed from Eigergletscher station. The fold appears to be associated with a thrust fault beneath it.\u00a0<\/p>\nDay Four: Understanding how mountains are built<\/strong><\/p>\nToday\u2019s journey took us through the beautiful Lake Lucerne region before entering the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the Tectonic Arena Sardona<\/strong>.<\/p>\nHere we visited one of Switzerland\u2019s most famous geological locations \u2013 the Glarus Thrust<\/strong>.<\/p>\nAt Lochsite we examined one of geology\u2019s greatest puzzles, where ancient rocks over 250 million years old lie directly above rocks less than 50 million years old. This remarkable relationship helped scientists understand that enormous slabs of rock can be pushed many kilometres over younger rocks during mountain building.<\/p>\n
Later we travelled by cable car to Tschinglen Alp before taking a gentle walk to Firstboden, where magnificent views of the Glarus Thrust and the famous Martin\u2019s Hole perfectly illustrated the immense forces that created the Alps.<\/p>\n
Left: <\/strong>The scene outside the Jungfraujoch complex, photographed from the uppermost reaches of the Great Aletsch Glacier. The summit of the Jungfrau (4,158 m) rises in the background, while the rocky saddle of the Jungfraujoch is crowned by the Sphinx Observatory. In summer, visitors can enjoy snow sports on the glacier.\u00a0<\/p>\nTop Right: <\/strong>One of the major Alpine shear zones exposed near the Jungfraujoch. Here, intense deformation during Alpine mountain building juxtaposed different units of the Aar Massif crystalline basement, producing a complex network of ductile shear zones and faults.\u00a0<\/p>\nBottom Right: <\/strong>Sophie descends into the Ice Palace at the Jungfraujoch. Carved within the upper Aletsch Glacier, the Ice Palace consists of tunnels and chambers first excavated in the 1930s, allowing visitors to walk through the interior of Europe\u2019s largest glacier.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Left: <\/strong>The Great Aletsch Glacier, viewed from the Jungfraujoch. At around 20km long, it is the largest glacier in the Alps. The striking dark medial moraines mark where tributary glaciers have merged, with the lateral moraines of the individual ice streams joining to form long ribbons of debris down the centre of the glacier. On the right-hand side of the image is the summit of Eggishorn (2,869m), which offers one of the finest panoramic views of the Aletsch Glacier and was visited later in the trip.\u00a0<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>Mount Pilatus, viewed across Lake Lucerne. The mountain is composed mainly of Cretaceous limestones belonging to the Helvetic nappes, which have been thrust northwards over younger Molasse Basin sediments during Alpine mountain building. In the foreground, the waters of Lake Lucerne occupy a valley shaped by Quaternary glaciers.<\/p>\n\n
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Left:<\/strong>\u00a0The Grosser Mythen (1,898m) and Kleiner Mythen (1,811m), viewed from Schwyz. These striking peaks are erosional remnants of the Klippen Nappe, a slab of Late Jurassic limestone thrust northwards during Alpine mountain building. Differential erosion of the hard limestones and softer underlying rocks has created the distinctive notch in Kleiner Mythen and the saddle separating the two peaks. They are among the best-known \u2018klippen\u2019 of the Alps-isolated erosional remnants of a thrust sheet, from which the Klippen Nappe takes its name.<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>View from the Bohl viewpoint across Lake Lauerz towards the Rigi massif. Rigi is composed of Subalpine Molasse-sediments eroded from the rising Alps and deposited in the Molasse Basin before being folded and uplifted. At the western end of the massif (left-hand side of the image), the Wildhorn Nappe has been thrust over the Molasse, marking the Alpine thrust front and the transition into the Helvetic nappes<\/p>\nDay Five: Glaciers past and present<\/strong><\/p>\nOur morning began beside the Rhone Glacier<\/strong>, source of one of Europe\u2019s great rivers.<\/p>\nPerhaps nowhere else in Switzerland is the impact of climate change more immediately visible. Over the past 120 years the glacier has retreated around 1.3 kilometres, leaving behind striking evidence of its former extent.<\/p>\n
Later we returned to the Jungfrau-Aletsch UNESCO World Heritage Site via cable car, reaching Eggishorn for arguably the finest viewpoint overlooking the mighty Aletsch Glacier<\/strong>.<\/p>\nStanding high above this vast river of ice offered an unforgettable perspective on the largest glacier in the Alps and the powerful forces that continue to shape the landscape today.<\/p>\n
That evening we travelled to T\u00e4sch, our base for exploring the Matterhorn.<\/p>\n
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Left:<\/strong> The GeoWorld Travel group examining the Glarus Thrust at Lochsite, one of the world\u2019s most famous geological outcrops. Here, 300\u2013200-million-year-old Verrucano rocks have been thrust more than 100km over much younger 35\u201330-million-year-old Eocene flysch. The Glarus Thrust became one of the key pieces of evidence that mountains are built by large-scale overthrusting, and today forms the heart of the UNESCO Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona World Heritage Site<\/p>\nTop right:<\/strong> Viewed from the Elm\u2013Tschinglenalp cable car station, the Tschingelh\u00f6rner expose three contrasting rock units: Permian Verrucano at the top, Jurassic limestone beneath, and Eocene flysch below. The Verrucano has been thrust more than 100km over the younger Jurassic limestone and flysch along the Glarus Thrust. Martin\u2019s Hole is eroded through the Jurassic limestone where a tectonic sliver of flysch has been emplaced. The hole formed where the shear zone marking the contact between the flysch sliver and the surrounding Jurassic limestone is intersected by a small brittle fault, creating a zone of weakness exploited by erosion. Twice each spring and autumn, the rising sun shines through Martin\u2019s Hole and briefly illuminates the church at Elm.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Left:<\/strong> A spectacular recumbent fold in the Jurassic limestones of the Axen Nappe, seen from Klausen Pass. The pass is one of the classic localities for viewing large-scale folds within the Helvetic nappes, exposed by glacial erosion. These folds formed during Alpine compression as the nappes were transported northwards over the European continental margin.\u00a0<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>The Rh\u00f4ne Glacier is the largest glacier in the Uri Alps and the source of the River Rh\u00f4ne, which flows through Switzerland and France before reaching the Mediterranean Sea. The glacier rests on Carboniferous granite belonging to the Aar Massif, the autochthonous crystalline basement of the European continent. Since the late 19th century, the glacier has retreated by more than 1.3km and has thinned dramatically. The photograph shows the newly formed proglacial lake and polished granite bedrock exposed by the retreating ice. The lake did not even exist in 2018, illustrating just how rapidly the glacier has changed in recent years. The next photo shows the same view, but 4 years ago in 2022 \u2013 the glacial retreat is, sadly, very clear to see.\u00a0<\/p>\nDay Six: The Matterhorn and the remains of an ancient ocean<\/strong><\/p>\nOne of the most anticipated days of the tour took us into the iconic mountain village of Zermatt<\/strong>, dominated by the unmistakable pyramid of the Matterhorn.<\/p>\nThe geology here is every bit as remarkable as the scenery.<\/p>\n
Travelling by cable car to Klein Matterhorn, we explored rocks that once formed part of the floor of the ancient Tethys Ocean before Africa and Europe collided. Walking through tunnels cut into these rocks, and even through glacial ice itself, provided an extraordinary opportunity to witness both tectonic and glacial processes up close.<\/p>\n
Later we followed sections of the Matterhorn Glacier Trail, where recently exposed rocks reveal fragments of ancient oceanic crust transformed deep within the Earth before eventually being uplifted to almost 4,000 metres above sea level.<\/p>\n
With the Matterhorn towering above us throughout the walk, it was a truly unforgettable day.<\/p>\n
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Left:<\/strong> View of the Rh\u00f4ne Glacier from exactly the same viewpoint as the previous photo. This was taken 4 years ago in 2022 and the glacial retreat is, sadly, very clear to see.\u00a0<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>The white geotextile blankets mark a small remnant of ice preserved from melting. This protected ice is all that remains of the former Rh\u00f4ne Glacier Ice Grotto (Ice Palace), while the surrounding glacier has wasted away. When we last visited in 2024, the glacier surface extended to the line of these blankets. By 2026, almost all of the surrounding ice had disappeared, dramatically illustrating the glacier\u2019s rapid retreat.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Left: <\/strong>Eggishorn (2,869m) provides one of the finest panoramic views of the 23km-long Great Aletsch Glacier, the largest glacier in the Alps. From this viewpoint, three major ice streams\u2014the Grosser Aletschfirn, Jungfraufirn and Ewigschneef\u00e4ld\u2014merge to form a single trunk glacier. Their former lateral moraines become the striking medial moraines that trace the paths of the converging ice streams downstream. The Great Aletsch Glacier is the centrepiece of the UNESCO Swiss Alps Jungfrau\u2013Aletsch World Heritage Site.\u00a0<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>Outside the Zermatt Museum stands a spectacular block of metamorphosed pillow basalt (eclogite). The original pillow structures, formed by basaltic lava erupting onto the floor of the Tethys Ocean, are still clearly visible despite the rock having undergone high-grade metamorphism. During the Alpine collision, these oceanic basalts were buried to depths of around 50\u201370km, where high pressures transformed them into eclogite. They were subsequently exhumed during mountain building and later exposed by erosion, preserving the remarkable pillow structures. The boulder was collected from the mountains above Zermatt and placed outside the museum as an excellent example of the oceanic crust preserved within the Penninic nappes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Left:<\/strong> The Matterhorn (4,478m), viewed from Zermatt. Widely regarded as the world\u2019s most famous mountain, its distinctive pyramidal shape has been carved by glaciers eroding four steep faces and intersecting ar\u00eates. Geologically, the summit consists of African continental crust (Dent Blanche Nappe) thrust over rocks of the former Tethys Ocean and the European continental margin during the Alpine collision.\u00a0<\/p>\nRight:<\/strong> The GeoWorld Travel group ascends towards the Klein Matterhorn (3,883m) aboard the cable car. Beneath us lies the Upper Theodul Glacier (Oberer Theodulgletscher), which flows from the Breithorn Plateau. Rapid glacier retreat has exposed large areas of bedrock belonging to the Theodul Unit, recently recognised as a sliver of continental crust preserved within the oceanic rocks of the Zermatt\u2013Saas ophiolite nappe.\u00a0<\/p>\nDay Seven: Along the Europe\u2013Africa collision zone<\/strong><\/p>\nToday\u2019s excursion into the beautiful H\u00e9rens Valley continued the story of the Alpine collision.<\/p>\n
Here we explored rocks that originated both within the ancient ocean and on the African continent itself, allowing us to piece together the extraordinary events that closed the Tethys Ocean and built the Alps.<\/p>\n
Combined with spectacular glacial valleys and dramatic mountain scenery, the geology made for another fascinating day before spending the evening in the historic town of Sion.<\/p>\n
Left:<\/strong> The observation deck at the summit of the Klein Matterhorn (3,883m), the highest point in Europe that can be reached entirely by cable car. Less than 1 km from the Italian border, it offers one of the finest geological panoramas in the Alps. Dominating the view is the Matterhorn, whose summit is composed of African continental crust (the Dent Blanche Nappe) thrust over the Zermatt\u2013Saas Ophiolite, a remnant of the Piedmont Ocean. In effect, you are looking at a former plate boundary.\u00a0<\/p>\nTop right:<\/strong> A natural crevasse exposed within the ice cave at Matterhorn Glacier Paradise. The cave has been excavated into the glacier, allowing visitors to see the internal structure of the ice. The crevasse formed as the glacier flowed downslope and fractured under tension, providing a glimpse into the hidden network of cracks that develop within moving glacier ice.\u00a0<\/p>\nBottom right: <\/strong>Descending by cable car above the Lower Theodul Glacier. The glacier has become fragmented by rapid retreat, exposing extensive areas of bedrock belonging to the Theodul Unit, recently recognised as a sliver of continental crust preserved within the Zermatt\u2013Saas Ophiolite. On the right, the Gorner Glacier occupies the main valley. The broad grey trimlines on the valley sides mark the glacier\u2019s former surface, showing that the ice has thinned by well over 100m in recent decades.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Left:<\/strong> Garnet\u2013phengite schist of the Theodul Glacier Unit, seen beside the Matterhorn Glacier Trail. The rock originally formed as continental crust before being caught up in the Alpine collision and metamorphosed under high-pressure conditions. The conspicuous red garnet crystals and silvery phengite mica record burial to depths of tens of kilometres before the rock was returned to the surface. The Theodul Glacier Unit is now recognised as a sliver of continental crust enclosed within the Zermatt\u2013Saas ophiolite nappe.\u00a0<\/p>\nRight: <\/strong>View along the Matterhorn Glacier Trail. In the foreground, the blue-green rocks are serpentinite of the Zermatt\u2013Saas ophiolite, representing mantle rocks from the floor of the former Piedmont Ocean. They are separated by a thrust fault from the reddish garnet\u2013phengite schists of the Theodul Glacier Unit, a sliver of continental crust enclosed within the ophiolite nappe. Immediately behind the schists, although largely hidden from view, are eclogites formed by high-pressure metamorphism of ocean-floor basalts. The distant peaks belong to the Dent Blanche nappe and are composed of African continental crust that was thrust over the Zermatt\u2013Saas ophiolite during the Alpine collision.\u00a0<\/p>\nLeft: <\/strong>Boulder of eclogite derived from oceanic basalt of the Zermatt\u2013Saas ophiolite, found a short distance off the Matterhorn Glacier Trail. During the Alpine collision, this former ocean-floor basalt was buried to depths of tens of kilometres and transformed into eclogite. Elsewhere along the trail, eclogites derived from basaltic dykes within the continental Theodul Glacier Unit can also be seen, showing that both the oceanic crust and the adjacent continental sliver shared the same high-pressure metamorphic history.\u00a0<\/p>\nTop right:<\/strong> The Pyramides d\u2019Euseigne in the Val d\u2019H\u00e9rens. These spectacular earth pyramids are erosional remnants of Late Pleistocene glacial moraine. Large boulders perched on their summits act as protective capstones, shielding the underlying unconsolidated sediment from erosion while the surrounding moraine is washed away. The pyramids, typically 10\u201315m high, continue to evolve as erosion gradually reshapes the landscape.\u00a0<\/p>\nBottom right:<\/strong> Members of the GeoWorld Travel group enjoying a guided tour of the Centre de G\u00e9ologie et Glaciologie in Evol\u00e8ne. The museum provides an excellent introduction to the geology and glacial history of the Val d\u2019H\u00e9rens, with displays explaining Alpine tectonics, glaciers, and the evolution of the surrounding landscape.\u00a0<\/p>\nDay Eight: Ancient landscapes beneath modern Switzerland<\/strong><\/p>\nOur exploration continued around Sion with visits to several fascinating geological locations.<\/p>\n
At Sanetsch we examined a major unconformity recording the beginning of Alpine mountain building, alongside huge folded rock sequences that beautifully demonstrate the immense forces involved.<\/p>\n
Later we enjoyed a boat trip across the remarkable Saint-L\u00e9onard Underground Lake<\/strong>, Europe\u2019s largest natural subterranean lake, formed through the dissolution of ancient gypsum deposits deep beneath the surface.<\/p>\nThe day concluded with visits to the impressive medieval castles overlooking Sion.<\/p>\n
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Top left: <\/strong>Members of the GeoWorld Travel group at Ferp\u00e8cle, one of the finest locations in the Alps for studying glacier retreat. This photograph was taken where the Mont Min\u00e9 and Ferp\u00e8cle glaciers still converged as a single glacier in the 1980s. Continued retreat has left a broad ice-free valley between the two glacier tongues. The walk crosses a succession of moraines marking the retreat of the Mont Min\u00e9 Glacier since its Little Ice Age maximum in 1864. The surrounding mountains are composed of orthogneisses of the Austroalpine Dent Blanche nappe, representing continental crust derived from the former African margin.\u00a0<\/p>\nTop right:<\/strong> Members of the GeoWorld Travel group walking across the spectacular karst landscape of the Sanetsch Pass. This walk crosses the Diablerets Nappe of the Helvetic nappe complex, close to its tectonic boundary with the overlying Mont-Gond Nappe, which forms the browner-coloured mountains beyond. The pale limestone pavement is Urgonian Limestone (Barremian\u2013Aptian, c.125\u2013113 Ma), deposited on a warm, shallow tropical carbonate platform similar to the modern Bahamas. Following uplift and erosion, these limestones were deeply karstified before being overlain, after a gap of approximately 50 million years, by Eocene marine sediments and Oligocene flysch deposited in a deep foreland basin during Alpine mountain building.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Top left: <\/strong>Entrance to the Saint-L\u00e9onard subterranean lake, the largest natural underground lake in Europe. The cave has formed by the dissolution of Triassic gypsum, part of an evaporite sequence deposited as the supercontinent Pangaea began to break apart. Repeated flooding and evaporation of restricted seawater produced thick layers of gypsum and salt before the opening of the Tethys Ocean. These evaporites, together with associated marble and coal shale, formed part of the sedimentary cover of the Brian\u00e7onnais microcontinent, now incorporated into the Penninic nappe complex. The cave lies close to the tectonic boundary between the Penninic and Helvetic nappe complexes.\u00a0<\/p>\nTop right: <\/strong>Visitors explore the Saint-L\u00e9onard subterranean lake by flat-bottomed boat. The lake occupies a cavern dissolved within Triassic gypsum, part of an evaporite sequence deposited during the initial breakup of the supercontinent Pangaea. At approximately 300m long, it is the largest natural underground lake in Europe open to the public.\u00a0<\/p>\nMiddle right:<\/strong> The Emosson Dam, completed in 1973, is the third-highest dam in Switzerland at 180 m high. It forms part of one of Switzerland\u2019s largest hydroelectric schemes, supplying electricity through an extensive gravity-fed network that collects meltwater from surrounding rivers and glaciers. The original Emosson Dam, completed in 1925, now lies submerged beneath the reservoir. During planning in the 1960s, the Swiss\u2013French border was adjusted so that the entire dam would lie within Switzerland.\u00a0<\/p>\nBottom: <\/strong>Mont Blanc (4,805.59m \/ 15,766ft), photographed from the Emosson Dam. The highest mountain in the Alps and western Europe, it straddles the French\u2013Italian border. The massif consists predominantly of Carboniferous granite, emplaced during the Variscan mountain-building event around 300 million years ago. During the later Alpine orogeny, this ancient European continental basement was uplifted to form the Mont Blanc Massif.\u00a0<\/p>\nDay Nine: Mont Blanc and the Lavaux Vineyards<\/strong><\/p>\nOur final full day combined spectacular scenery with one last geological story.<\/p>\n
Travelling by funiculars and panoramic railway, we climbed towards the Emosson Dam<\/strong>, enjoying magnificent views across the Mont Blanc massif from one of Switzerland\u2019s most scenic mountain routes.<\/p>\nWe then visited the dramatic Trient Gorge<\/strong>, where rushing water has carved deep into the bedrock, before continuing to the UNESCO-listed Lavaux Vineyard Terraces<\/strong> overlooking Lake Geneva.<\/p>\nHere we explored how ancient river deposits, later sculpted by the Rh\u00f4ne Glacier, created the stepped slopes that now support one of Switzerland\u2019s most famous wine-growing regions.<\/p>\n
Returning to Geneva, we celebrated an incredible journey through one of the world\u2019s most geologically fascinating countries.<\/p>\n
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Top left: <\/strong>Viewed from the crest of the Emosson Dam, the smaller dam in the distance is the Vieux Emosson Dam. Both dams are built on the Carboniferous granitic basement of the Aiguilles Rouges Massif. Beyond the reservoir rise Middle Triassic sedimentary rocks of the Vieux Emosson Formation, deposited across coastal tidal flats unconformably above the granite. These rocks preserve one of Europe\u2019s most important vertebrate footprint localities. Although long thought to be dinosaur tracks, the footprints are now known to have been made around 240 million years ago by large crocodile-like archosaurs (pseudosuchians), before the evolution of the first true dinosaurs. Unlike the nearby Helvetic nappes, these rocks remain attached to their original European basement and were not transported long distances during Alpine mountain building.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\nTop Right: <\/strong>Members of the GeoWorld Travel group touring the interior of the Emosson Dam. Here our guide, Katrin, explains one of the dam\u2019s pendulums, which is suspended inside the concrete structure to monitor tiny movements caused by changes in water level, temperature and the immense weight of the dam itself. Instruments such as these have been used for decades to ensure the long-term stability and safety of large concrete dams.\u00a0<\/p>\nMiddle Right:<\/strong> Our GeoWorld Travel group poses with the dinosaur sculpture outside the Emosson visitor centre. The sculpture commemorates the internationally important Middle Triassic archosaur tracksites preserved high above the reservoir. Although the footprints were originally thought to have been made by dinosaurs, they are now known to have been left by large crocodile-line archosaurs around 240 million years ago. The cyclist\u2019s helmet celebrates the 2016 Tour de France stage finish at Emosson, which was made possible by a temporary construction tunnel through the dam that allowed the race caravan and support vehicles to leave the otherwise dead-end valley.\u00a0<\/p>\nBottom Right:<\/strong> Our GeoWorld Travel group gathers around a relief model of the Emosson hydroelectric scheme during our guided tour of the dam. The model shows the extensive gravity-fed network of tunnels, reservoirs and water intakes that collect meltwater from rivers and glaciers across the Mont Blanc Massif in both Switzerland and France before it is channelled to generate hydroelectric power. It is one of the largest hydroelectric systems in the Alps and an excellent way of appreciating the scale and complexity of the engineering.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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