Source de la Moselle (col de Bussang)

Bussang

The Moselle rises in the commune of Bussang, the highest of the upper valley, at the foot of the pass of the same name. A fountain, located according to Wikipedia at 731 metres above sea level (715 m in the commune's article), is presented as the official source. Refuges.info describes it as a natural spring with a strong flow, gushing from a masonry monument. But Wikipedia specifies that the river is formed by the meeting of several streams, some of which well up at more than 1,000 metres on the slopes of the Grand Drumont: the “true” source therefore depends on the definition adopted. The river measures 560 kilometres in all, about 314 of them in France, to Koblenz where it flows into the Rhine. Its ancient name, Mosella, is said to be formed from Mosa (the Meuse) and a Latin diminutive: the “little Meuse”. The poet Ausonius sang of it around 371. In 2007 Bussang laid out a “rando-ferrata de la source de la Moselle”. No local legend specific to the fountain was found.

Getting there: Below the Col de Bussang, next to a car park laid out by the roadside (“Route des Sources”). Coordinates: OpenStreetMap marker, consistent with refuges.info. Site in a protected area (Komoot, Parc naturel régional des Ballons des Vosges).

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound