photos from somme

Pascal Lando, photos & texts – Jean-Pierre Belliard, translation

the somme department

You can find on this page several general informations about the Somme, department of France where the photos presented on this site were taken.

the somme in picardy : geographic situation

The Somme (80) is a department located in the north of France and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Picardy region of France. The Somme has 5 adjacent departments : Pas-de-Calais, Nord, Aisne, Oise and Seine-Maritime. With 6000 km² wide and 555000 people, the Somme has for capital Amiens.

the somme natural heritage

The bay of Somme is the biggest estuary of the North of France, located at approximately 2 hours by car from Paris. The bay extends over 70 km² between the headland of Hourdel in the South and the headland of Saint-Quentin-en-Tourmont in the North. There are many places offering disorientation and relaxation in the Somme Bay: the Parc du Marquenterre (Marquenterre bird sanctuary), Bird House, Valloires Abbey, the gardens of Valloires, seashores...

A few kilometers from there, the Somme valley dislpays its so particular lights and colors. The fishermen's and trekers's paradise, along channels and meanders of the river. Suzanne, Frise, Bray on the Somme, Péronne or Proyart are so many stopovers of charm in a department, full of surprises.

cultural and architectural heritage

The Somme, it's also the memory of the most terrible and murderous of the battles of the World War 1. The "Circuit du souvenir" (memory path), battlefields of the Somme, the memorials, museums and cemetery, is of a big interest for a lot of English tourists.

Finally, the Somme is the ground of gothic cathedrals (Notre Dame d'Amiens), castles (Rambures, Lucheux), the small trains of Froissy and the Somme Bay Railway, archeological sites...

travel to somme

To do.