Jura Höhenweg 4: Hauenstein to Balsthal

Breakout! It is now four weeks since I returned to Switzerland from the US, and immediately went into a kind of quarantine because of Covid-19. Things were falling apart so rapidly in the US that I was worried about bringing back infection with me, and so I went out the minimum in the two weeks after my return. As can be seen in my other posts, I have still gone walking each day, but talking to no one, meeting no one, and touching as little as possible. The problem has been that since my return, the weather has been glorious, and the mountains have been calling to me. I would not describe it as cabin fever. That is a term that originates from north American fur trappers and Klondike gold miners who were confined to a pitiful amount of space for almost 5 months of the year. No, it has been more of a yearning just to get out, walking the mountain trails and breathing the mountain air.

After four weeks it was time to go. I chose a weekday, and I chose to follow one of my projects, taking the next stage of the Jura Höhenweg. Switzerland has been combatting the Covid-19 pandemic through a combination of rules and guidelines. They are a pragmatic people, the Swiss, and the government treats its people as having reasonable intelligence and a sense of responsibility. So they have issued guidance on going out as little as possible, washing hands, keeping one’s distance from other people and so on. The rules include no gatherings of more than 5 people, and there have been fines issued for breaking that one. So, I wasn’t sure if I was entirely legal in going to the mountains, but I decided to go anyway.

My route was to go from Hauenstein to Balsthal, taking in the summits of Belchenflue and Roggenflue. I got the train to Läufelingen and made the short walk from there to Hauenstein. I met no one on the way, and I was still alone as the route took to the farmland and forest after leaving Hauenstein.

It was on the route from Hauenstein to Belchenflue that I met my first fellow escapee: a cyclist coming in the opposite direction. It meant that I was not alone. If I was breaking the rules, I would not be the only one. I passed Challhöchi and the General Wille Haus. Switzerland has been neutral through two world wars and has been ready to defend itself in both of them. In WW1, the general leading the Swiss army was General Wille, and near Challhöchi, the Swiss Alpine Club has a mountain hostel named in his honour. It is fitting, because from Challhöchi to Belchenflue, the route follows an old military road. Belchenflue had strategic value in WW1 as it commanded views of the country to both north and south. Between 1914 and 1915, the Swiss army build a road from Challhöchi to the summit. The current walking route follows that road. The rocks at the side of the road are decorated with the insignia of some of the military units that built the road.

Not long after passing Challhöchi, an amazing thing happened. I saw an eagle. I could almost say I met an eagle. From the downward sloping ground on my right, it came up, slowly ascending in circles, within twenty metres of where I was standing. I stood there spellbound, aware of the privilege granted to me in seeing something so wonderful. Only as we started to fly off to the south did I whip out my camera to take a picture. The result was a two-second video showing something small, and indistinct flying away. In my walks, I have seen many wonderful things, and I have managed to capture some of them on photographs or video. But the most wonderful of all are the things that the mind photographs. I have no regrets at not getting a photograph of that wonderful bird. I am reminded of the lines of William Blake:
He who binds himself a joy,
Does the winged life destroy.
He who kisses the joy as it flies
Lives in eternity’s sunrise
It is good enough for me that I saw the eagle. That was a privilege. I can ask no more.
And so I came to the summit of Belchenflue. The summit is a rocky outcrop emerging from the forest. It was a breezy day, with a cool wind coming from the west, but I stayed long enough to appreciate the views on all sides before going on again.

From Belchenflue, the route drops quickly through forest and farmland. As I went, I came across more escapees from the national quarantine. Besides the cyclist on my way to Belchenflue, I had met two more people just short of the summit, and on the descent, I met a further four people. We all greeted each other with the standard “Grüzi”, but kept our distance as well. And as the descent levelled off, the route followed a short gorge, before emerging into the fields above Bärenwil. Bärenwil itself was almost like a ghost town. The only signs of life were on a building site for a new house. The restaurant in the middle of the village was closed, but the owners had set up a self-service coffee table, with payment on an honour system, and a vending machine for cold drinks. Enterprise will always emerge, even in adversity.

But Bärenwil is only halfway on this section of the route. I didn’t delay but went on into the forest to the south of the village, and ascended the ridge, coming back out into the open on Schlosshöchi. To my right were great views of the valley, and the village of Holderbank.

Prominent in the valley is the castle of Alt-Bechburg. The castle was built originally in the 11th century by the barons of Bechburg. It went through a succession of owners until it was acquired by the Bloch family late in the 16th century. They bought it as part of a package deal and were more interested in the other elements of that deal, so the castle went into disrepair in the 17th century. Then, in 1713, it burned down. The ruins have been excavated, and the castle is considered a site of national importance for Switzerland. As I passed, and looking down at the ruins, I mentally added the site to the list of those places I must visit someday. However, I don’t know if I ever will.
My route continued reasonably flat and through pleasant open country for a while before descending to Tiefmatt. Along the way, I could see the Roggen mountain in front of me.

I continued to see more walkers as I went. At Tiefmatt, I passed a group of four people, just under the regulation maximum of five. Then came the ascent to Roggenschnarz. This section was steep, with steps built into the mountainside. Though steep, there is no great height involved, and I soon came to the flatter ground of the summit.

The summit is woodland, and the route continues in a pleasant very gentle upward trajectory to reach Roggenflue itself. The rocky outcrop there once again allows magnificent views to the south, with the Alps plainly to be seen.

From Roggenflue, the trail descends rapidly towards Balsthal. By now, it was afternoon, and I continued to meet other walkers as I went. Altogether through the course of the day, I counted that I met twenty walkers, and that one early morning cyclist. That in a distance of about 24km. I reached Balsthal satisfied that the guidelines ask me to stay at home as much as practical, but do not prevent me taking to the mountains as long as I exercise due care. The route down to Balsthal took me through some meadows and woods with flowers in bloom. I am ashamed to say that I don’t recognise most of them, but I can nevertheless appreciate their beauty.

In Balsthal, as in everywhere else right now, there are very few businesses open, and after a short wait, I took the bus to begin the journey back to Basel.
And my step count for the day was 42,604.