The Franconian Jura is an upland in Bavaria

Bavaria

Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. Located between two rivers, the Danube

Danube

The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

 in the south and the Main in the north, its peaks reach elevations of up to 600 metres (1,968.5 ft).

Large portions of the Franconian Jura are part of the Altmühl Valley Nature Park. The scenic meanders and gorges formed by the Altmühl River draw tourists to visit the region.

Geologically, the Franconian Jura is the eastern continuation of the Swabian Jura. Both are part of the Jura Mountains

Jura mountains

The Jura Mountains are a small mountain range located north of the Alps, separating the Rhine and Rhone rivers and forming part of the watershed of each...

. The mountain chains are separated from each other by the impact crater

Impact crater

In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with a larger body...

 of the Nördlinger Ries

Nördlinger Ries

The Nördlinger Ries is a large circular depression in western Bavaria, Germany, located north of the Danube in the district of Donau-Ries. The city of Nördlingen is located about southwest of the centre of the depression....

.

The northern part of the Franconian Jura is known as Little Switzerland

Franconian Switzerland

The Little Switzerland is an upland in Upper Franconia, northern Bavaria and a popular tourist retreat. Located between the Pegnitz River in the east and the south, the Regnitz River in the west and the Main River in the north, its relief reaches 600 metres in height.The Franconian Switzerland is...

.