The area, undergoing a period of change, is a veritable playground for lovers of outdoor pursuits. Footpaths thread their way through the cultivated plateaus of the Soissonnais and the wooded valleys typical of the Laonnais. Ailette Lake is a fabulous site for indulging in all types of outdoor sports. This is where the third Centre Parks in France is due to open, a peaceful and varied lakeside setting for the lucky people who stay there. The Ailette valley is a place where the terrible fighting of the First World War has left its mark. High above the Ailette river, the Chemin des Dames still bears the scars of the battle front, scene of the last German victory in 1917. The Ailette valley is indeed a place of contrasts, the peaceful landscape of today so starkly different from its war torn past.