Forêt de la Hardt & the Rhine Floodplain
Stretching east of Sélestat toward the Rhine, the Forêt de la Hardt is one of the last surviving fragments of the great alluvial forest that once lined the entire Upper Rhine — a cathedral of white poplars, willows and pedunculate oaks laced with oxbow lakes and seasonal flood channels. It is one of the most biodiverse lowland forests in France, and almost no tourists come here.
What Makes It Special
The forest sits within the Petite Camargue Alsacienne nature reserve network and shelters species more associated with Eastern Europe than Western France: black storks, kingfishers, European tree frogs and — in the oxbow lakes — European beavers that have recolonised the Rhine floodplain over the past two decades.
In spring, the forest floor erupts with wild garlic (ail des ours) and marsh marigolds, and the air fills with the calls of nightingales. In autumn, the poplar and willow canopy turns a luminous gold that reflects in the still water of the étangs.
How to Explore It
A network of flat, well-marked cycling and walking trails departs from the Sélestat riverside area and loops through the forest, with the longest circuits reaching the Rhine bank itself. The tourist office provides a free trail map with points of interest marked.
The Réserve Naturelle de l'Île du Rhin, accessible from the village of Marckolsheim (15 km south), offers a wilder, less-managed extension of the same ecosystem and is worth combining into a longer day by bike along the EuroVelo 15 Rhine Cycle Route.
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