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From Schwarzsee to Guggisberg

Here is one more section along the panoramic trail. This one consists of starting from Lac Noir in the Singine-region to reach Guggisberg in the Schwarzenburgerland. All these place names are there to remind one that one is on the linguistic limit. Well, when one says border, one should rather speak of a linguistic transition zone. Indeed, in many places in the Singine, it is in one’s interest to master both French and Swiss German. It may seem restrictive, but it has so much charm when one speaks both languages.

Departing from Lac Noir, the route is straightforward: one follows the Singine Chaude to descend to Zollhaus. The name of the latter place may seem surprising (Zollhaus = customs), but when one looks at the outline of the cantonal border, it becomes more obvious. Indeed, after crossing the Kalte Sense, one gains a foothold in the territory of the canton of Bern.

From this point one climbs through pastures passing through the Siten farms to reach the Brönnti Egg (burnt ridge). From there, the continuation is done by descending in the direction of Laubbach.

Not having found a suitable place to picnic, the heifers having left the pasture in a sorry state, we went down to the forest hut of Brannwald. There, rays of sun had accompanied us during the meal until suddenly, the atmosphere had become gloomy and dark. At that point, we thought maybe it would be good to continue. Soon after, the rain started to fall. The amazing thing is that less than an hour had passed between the weather we experienced in the sunny pastures and the downpour… like what, the weather can change very quickly.

From Laubbach, a nice climb brought us to Guggisberg, a legendary place, since the famous song of Verena refers to this place. This is the oldest Swiss song that has come down to us by oral transmission. This song (the Vrenelilied) is a melancholy song telling the story of little Verena who yearns for her Hans-Jakob living on the other side of the mountain and who would rather die than not be able to see her lover again. No wonder this song was punishable by death in the mercenary troops in the service of the King of France. Especially since it is very likely that many mercenaries were not of age by modern standards. It should be remembered that in those days’ families were large, often poor, and sending a son to serve a European nobleman meant one less mouth to feed.

Route: Schwarzsee Bad – Schwarzsee – Zollhaus – Mittlere Seite – Brönnti Egg – Neuböden – Laubbach – Guggisberg
Distance: 18.5Km
Altitude gain: 680m
Duration: 5h30

 

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