After that last outing on the Trans Swiss Trail, the rains came to the west and north of Switzerland. Within days, the snow of the previous week was gone from the streets of Basel. Only in the places where the snow ploughs had piled it up did any snow remain. And by the end of the week, every trace of snow was gone. The rains continued through that weekend and into the following week. On some days, the rain gave way to snow flurries, but they didn’t last long, and the snow did not stick on the ground. As the week went on, it looked like there might be one dry day on Sunday. Not a bright sunny day, but at least it would be dry. So I resolved to go out on the trail again on Sunday, two weeks after my last outing.
According to the guide to the trail, the next stage would take me to St. Imier, but I resolved to go further, intent on making it to the next town, Renan, if I could. That meant that instead of doing one of the guidebook sages on the route, I would do one and a half stages.
I set out early from Basel to get to Saignelégier where I had finished last time. The mainline train took me to Glovelier, and from there a narrow gauge mountain railway brought me to Saignelégier. I mention this because the route is a very picturesque one, and worth taking. I was not sure what to expect in terms of snow on reaching Saignelégier. Would the weather that brought rain to Basel have brought snow to this town, another 700m above sea level? Or would the same rains that washed the snow away in Basel have washed away the snow there as well? It was clear coming to the town that the latter was the case. So I wasted no time but went straight out on the trail. Out in the countryside, there were still patches of snow, but even there, it was only a remnant of what had been there two weeks previously.
The trail for this section was on tarmac, and very soon I was approaching Muriaux. The trail does not go into that village at all, but turns south, alongside the railway line. Still on tarmac, and with patchy snow on either side, the trail passes the tiny village of Les Emibois. Soon after that the trail turns eastwards and starts to ascend to higher ground. There was more snow on this section, and while the trail itself was clear, the pastures on each site were snow-covered.
I went on over a small hill to come to the little town of Les Breuleux. Apparently there has been a settlement there at least since the 15th century. The town has tow sites that are on the Swiss National Heritage list, both of them farmhouses, but I decided to visit the local church. Although not very old, the church is decorated in a neo baroque style, and has some interesting features. The patron saint of the church is Saint Joseph the Worker. He is honoured, along with Mary, on side altars, each with its own woodcarving. It should be remembered that there is a tradition of wood carving in Switzerland, something that farmers became very skilled at, whiling away the winter months while the mountain fields were under snow. I have to say that of the two statues, I prefer the one of St. Joseph. It is not over-reverential, depicting a carpenter with the tools of his trade. The walls of the church have several stained glass windows, all of good quality.
Then I was on my way again, out to the western edge of the town before turning south. I very soon came to the end of the road, and then I was into the snow, as I made my way into the forest. Along this track, the snow was not deep, and it was well packed with previous travellers, so the going was easy. But about one kilometre into the forest, the trail turns sharp left, and immediately I was into much deeper snow. It was up to my knees, and at times every step was sapping energy. It seemed better under the trees, and where practical, I strayed off the track to take advantage of the shallower snow under those trees. There were traces of previous footprints in the snow, but they must have been before the most recent snowfalls, because they were no easier to walk in than the untrodden snow itself.
I went on up the slope through the more dense part of the forest to reach the farm at Les Allevaux. At that stage, every step was sapping energy, and I was slowed down a lot. I began to wonder if I would reach Renan. I was sure of reaching St.Imier, but Renan seemed a different prospect as my feet sank into snow that was up to my thighs in places. Determination carried me forward and I reached the trail junction at Le Bardot. From there it was only a short distance to the main ridge of Mont Soleil. Whereas I had approached the mountain from the north, the tourist routes to this mountain are on the southern side. There is even a funicular railway that brings people, skiers and tourists, most of the way from St. Imier to the summit. Once I reached the ridge, I was in among those tourists. The route along the ridge to the summit was easier, with the snow mostly hard packed by the feet of many tourists.
The summit itself was in mist. Some summits are marked by cairns, while others are marked as triangulation points, but Mont Soleil is marked by a single large windmill. I didn’t hang around but went straight on down to the road on the southern side. From there a mixture of road and forest trail brought me on down to St. Imier.
As I came into St. Imier, I realised that I was not as much behind schedule as I had feared I might be when I was trudging through the deep snow, so I immediately headed out of town and on towards Renan. I was on an easy trail now, through rolling countryside, with just patchy snow.
When I looked at the train timetable, I realised I would have to hurry up if I was not to miss one train and then have a lengthy wait in Renan. So I put on all speed and soon strode through the village of Sonvillier. The route ascends slightly from there, not by much, less than a hundred metres, but enough to be tiring after coming so far. Nevertheless, I was still walking fast, and passing the Sunday strollers, who probably wondered why this crazy guy was in such a hurry. Renan soon came into view, and before long I was there.
I made the train with less than five minutes to spare. It was a good days walk, from the easy tarmac of the area near Saignelégier, to the deep snow on Mont Soleil, to the countryside trail out of St. Imier.
And my total step count for the day was 43,569.
Walkingman 