The Réserve Naturelle du Bout du Lac is a nature reserve located in the marshland at the southern end of Lake Annecy, where the Ire and Eau Morte rivers flow into the lake. The park has trails for pedestrians and horse riders, as well as viewpoints on the lake. There are also beavers in the rivers but I did not see any during my visit. Unfortunately, it started to rain pretty hard while I was there so I had to rush a bit.
After the Roc de Chère, I continued on my loop around Lake Annecy: My next stop was the center of the village of Talloires. The short path to the so called Cascade d’Angon (Waterfall of Angon) starts there. The waterfall is at the end of a slippery trail carved in the rock. I then kept going up, in the direction of the Ermitage de Saint-Germain. Saint Germain was a monk who founded the abbey of Talloires, on the shore of Lake Annecy, in the 11th century. The ermitage is a church built on the location where he used to come for retreat. There is also a great view on the lake from there. I then went back down to Talloires.
The Roc de Chère is a national nature reserve in the village of Talloires, on the eastern bank of Lake Annecy. I went there by bike from Annecy, while doing a loop around the lake. There are many trails in the forest and a few viewpoints on the lake.
Pointe de Banc Plat is a peak located at the south-west of Lake Annecy in the Bauges Massif. The area around it is known as Montagne du Charbon. The summit has a great view on the Bauges and the mountains around the lake. This page has the itinerary that I tried to follow: After the summit, instead of taking the ridge to Dent des Portes, I actually went back on the same path as the one I took on the way up.
The Jardins Secrets (Secret Gardens) are a private garden and residence in Vaulx, near Annecy in Haute-Savoie. It was built over 30 years by one man and his family. It can be visited from April to October.
The Pays de l’Albanais is the region of Haute-Savoie between Lac d’Annecy and Lac du Bourget. Among the interesting things to do in the area are visiting the Jardins Secrets in Vaulx, the Gorges of the river Fier and the castle of Montrottier.
The Taillefer (in the foreground on the photo above, taken from the Ermitage de Saint-Germain) and the Montagne d’Entrevernes (background) are mountains in the Bauges Massif, on the western shore of Lac d’Annecy. This page details an itinerary similar to the one that I followed (except that, at Col de la Cochette, I stayed on the ridge instead of going down on the other side).
Mont Veyrier dominates the north-east side of Lake Annecy. This article describes the itinerary that I followed.
After returning from Japan, I spent the summer in Annecy, in the mountainous Haute-Savoie area of France. For my first hike, I went to Pointe de la Rochette and Rocher du Roux (actually, just a viewpoint nearby), near La Tournette (the highest mountain bordering Lake Annecy) in the Bornes Massif.
On my last full day in Japan, I checked out early from my apartment in Tokyo and headed to a hotel next to the airport in Narita (Chiba prefecture). I then spent the rest of the afternoon strolling around Narita. The main highlight of the city is Naritasan Shinshoji Temple: It is a large buddhist temple dedicated to Fudo Myo. Besides the temple buildings, Naritasan is famous for its Gion festival, held every summer, its massive Great Pagoda of Peace and a large garden.