Forest of Argonne

The Forest of Argonne is a long strip of mountainous and wild woodland in northeastern France, approximately 200 km east of Paris. The forest measures roughly 40 miles long and 10 miles wide filled with many small hills and deep valleys formed by water run-off from the Aire and Aisne rivers rarely exceeding more than 650 feet in elevation. Post World War l the landscape of the forest was forever changed, trench warfare lead to parts of the forest being riddled with deep man-made trenches along with craters from explosives. The forest is bordered by the Meuse River on the west and rolling farmland and creeks to the east. The forest is largely oak, chestnut, and pine trees, and ferns cover much of the forest floor. Common animal life consists of wild boar, red deer, roe deer, hares, rabbits, foxes, wildcat, and brown bears. ()