La Glacière de Saint George, deep
in the forest a few kilometres and 350 vertical meters uphill from the village
of St George above Rolle.
![](../pictures/jura/jura-hole-gouffre1.jpg)
February 2002
![](../pictures/jura/jura-hole-gouffre3.jpg)
With
fencing thoughtfully built round some of it, and ladders leading downward about
15 meters to a broad ledge, then another 15 meters or so to a floor with permanent
ice and passages leading off in several directions, the "Gouffre",
or "abyss", is a protected natural monument and accessible only by a
path through the forest.
![](../pictures/jura/jura-hole-gouffre4.jpg)
Despite
the Forest Service's best efforts to warn passersby off, footprints in the snow
can be clearly seen leading down to the ladders. On a dark day in February 2002,
we know whose footprints they were not.
![](../pictures/maps/glaciere-petite-rolle.jpg)
(The
single-track road that passes to the northeast, at 1250m, leads down to the village
of St.-George; the road to the south, at 1320m, leads down to Longirod.)
from SwitzerlandMobility (http://map.schweizmobil.ch/?lang=en)
![](../pictures/jura/jura-hole-gouffre5.jpg)
![](../pictures/win/winter2003r-10.jpg)
It's
still here two years later, 29 February 2004.
![](../pictures/win/winter2003r-11.jpg)
The Glacière de St-George, so-called because it's got permanent ice in the lower passages and because it's above the village of St-George (of dragon fame)
![](../pictures/win/winter2003r-12.jpg)
Ladders are thoughtfully placed at intervals down to the bottom, where passages lead off in several directions.
![](../pictures/win/winter2003r-13.jpg)
From the bottom I once tried to squeeze off though a few of them, lucklessly, as they were clearly intended for skinny people.
![](../pictures/win/winter2003r-14.jpg)
The sign hanging from the gateway tries to dissuade people from descending in winter. No worries.
![](../pictures/jura/jura-hole-gouffre7.jpg)
Joe
and Marlowe visiting the Gouffre on 30 December 2004
![](../pictures/jura/jura-hole-gouffre11.jpg)
![](../pictures/win/win2012c19.jpg)
Kristin at the Glacière, 12 October 2013