Allos (; ) is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France.
Allos is a high mountain commune in the southern Alps. The commune experienced a significant rural exodus in the 19th century, following the population movement of the department. Then the town was overwhelmed for eighty years by winter sports: the construction of accommodations and ski-lifts has changed the landscape and the mountain urbanisation. The economy was profoundly altered with almost all jobs being found in tourism. Traditional agricultural activities persisted only marginally.
Historically Allos, located in the valley of the Verdon, has long been linked to the Ubaye Valley: first at the time when Ubaye belonged to the States of Savoy (from 1388 to 1713) then after it became part of France it continued to be administered across the Col d'Allos (impassable in winter). Even after the Revolution, it was attached to the Barcelonnette district. It was not until 1985 that it was (administratively) turned towards the valley by accepting the connection to the Canton of Colmars.
The inhabitants of the commune are known as Allossards or Allossardes
Geography
Allos is located some 12 km south of Barcelonnette and some 100 km north-west of Nice at an altitude of 1425 m. The Allos valley is traversed by the Verdon which has its source in the Foux d'Allos in the Sestriere valley at 2500 m altitude.
Access to the commune is by the D908 road: a tortuous road running off the D902 south of Barcelonette which passes through the heart of the commune and the village before continuing south to Colmars.
Located at the edge of the Mercantour National Park, the country of Upper Verdon and the Allos valley offers landscapes of great beauty: from the famous Lac d'Allos (Allos Lake) which is the largest mountain lake in Europe to the waterfall of La Lance, near Colmars-les-Alpes. The flora is rich and varied depending on the altitude: larch, spruce, fir as well as Alpine clematis, peonies, and Martagon.
Geology
The mountains around Allos are composed of black schist.
Relief
All around Allos from the Col d'Allos (2247 m, north of the village) and in a clockwise direction: on a north-south ridge of the Cheiroueche mountain (2362m) which overlooks the village, the Roche Grande (2409 m), completely denuded of vegetation; to the north: the Petit Cheval de Bois (Little Wooden Horse) (2754 m) and the Grand Cheval de Bois (Large Wooden Horse) (2838 m), the Pichs or Nivoulet (2575 m); to the east: the Cimet (3020 m), separated from the Teton (2969 m) by the small col de Talon (2678 m), Mount Pelat (3050 m), and between Allos and Mont Pelat the Tête du Vallonnet (Head of Vallonnet) (2710 m) and the Tête de Prachastel (Head of Prachastel) (2320 m); around Lake Allos: the Trou de l'Aigle (Hole of the Eagle) (2961 m), the Col de la Petite Cayolle (2639 m), the Garrets summit (2822 m), the Montagne de l'Avalanche (Mountain of Avalanches) (2729 m), the Tete du Lac (Head of the Lake) (2626 m), the group of Tours du Lac (Towers of the Lake) which is five peaks between 2585 and 2745 m, and the Tete de Valplane (Head of Valplane) (2624 m); to the South: the Roche Cline (2415 m) and on the right bank of the Verdon the Autapie (2435 m); to the west: the Gros Tapie (2371 m), the summit of Valcibière (2375 m), the Mourre Gros (2652 m), the Tete Noire (Black Head) (2560 m), the Tete de l'Auriac (Head of Auriac) (2639 m), the Trois-Évêchés (Three bishoprics) (2818 m), the Tete de la Sestriere (Head of Sestriere) (2575 m); to the northwest of the Col d'Allos: the Tete de Vescal (Head of Vescal) (2515 m).
The peaks to the west of Allos belong to the Massif des Trois-Évêchés (Three bishoprics mountains) while to the east are the secondary mountains of Mount Pelat.
Environment
The town has 1,869 hectares of woods and forests.
Hamlets
La Beaumelle; La Beaume; La Foux; La Foux d’Allos; Le Seignus (Bas and Haut); le Villard (Bas and Haut); Le Brec Bas et Haut; Sainte-Brigitte (Basse and Haute); Le Foreston; Bouchiers; La Peyrière (Basse and Haute); Prémin; Montgros; Champrichard; La Colette;