The Confident Hiker

April 2018

This 2 Day Hike follows again partially the 4 section hike “Au fil du Doubs”. Samuel and me hiked the first section of this beautiful river hike, that I missed out on last time and chose again a more “plateau centered” route with an adventurous ascent for the second day.

Day 1: Les Brenets to Maison Monsieur

We took the train and bus to Les Brenets on a grey rainy April day, with a few patches of blue sky, which implied that it might open up a bit more during the day. I was exited to explore the route from Les Brenets to Maison Monsieur that I have heard being compared to the Norwegian Fjords. Once again the lack of sun didn’t bother me but rather seemed fitting to the magical surroundings that we would find ourselves in, after passing through the village of Les Brenets down to the river. Walking through those wild nature-built canyons, we reached “Saut du Doubs” after about 50 minutes. You could hear the 27 meter high waterfall roaring, before you would see it, while the Doubs would turn into a wild river, the closer we got to the waterfall. We took a moment to observe the water flowing down over the rocks, splashing uncontrolled and playfully.

After leaving the Saut du Doubs, we eventually reached the Lac de Moron, a lake damming the Doubs; it was fascinating to see the different “temperaments” of the water – going from that untamed and splashing river to this still and peaceful lake. On a narrow path we walked right next to the lakeside; there was no sound except the occasional birdsong and the rustling of the fallen leaves beneath our feet. Once again I got the feeling of being one of the two only humans on earth, exploring a new world on this chilly morning. The effortless bends of the river reminded me of how artistic nature can be, when left untouched (at least for the most part). Like a brushstroke the water lead through the canyon, the forest to it’s left and right laying calmly, partially covered in slow wandering wafts of mist.

It was one of those moments, where I hoped that the path and the scenery around us never changes. It was just absolutely perfect and magical and adventurous and – as always – timeless.

After a while the path lead upwards and away from the water and we reached the dam at “Barrage du Châtelot”. An impressive sight that had already as a kid always captivated and frightened me at the same time. Passing via a tunnel through a massive rock formation, we could admire the dam from a vantage point.

From the dam we started an ascent into the valley. The weather changed just like the scenery around us did. In the more narrow valley, surrounded by moss covered trees, we where given warm gentle sunshine after the rain, which we took as an opportunity to make a break for lunch on some rocks close to the river.

Remembering lunch and taking the time for it is always easier with Sam I came to notice – with him, when the time for food comes, his inner “motor” just stops working until he has eaten and he takes time to do so. Which is a good thing! 🙂

So with our motors all fueled up again, we continued our journey through the canyon with a slender calmly flowing Doubs to our left and steep rocks to our right.

After another 2 hours, we reached our destination for today: Maison Monsieur, a small settlement right at the water, which was so still, that it perfectly mirrored the surrounding hills and the blue sky with it’s white clouds. We where welcomed by our very friendly hosts of the hotel Maison Monsieur and shown to our room, where we first took off our hiking shoes – always a long awaited moment after a long day of walking and treated ourselves to a hot shower.

Typically one of course orders fish in a place, where it can be more or less gotten directly out of the water; but since we are both vegetarians, we ordered a big plate of salad with a side of fries (and the most delicious Sauce Tartare) as well as a cold beer. A couple of rounds of Hanabi (a super fun card game) later, we fell into a deep sleep. And even though my feet and my shoulders hurt from the hike today, I could not wait to put my shoes and my backpack back on and continue the hike tomorrow.

Click here to see the 1st section on “SchweizMobil”

Day 2: Maison Monsieur to Le Creux-des-Biches

The next morning we where again greeted by fog and clouds but unlike the day before, the sky already opened up, when we stepped outside after our breakfast, offering yet another beautiful view of the lake and the surrounding hills.

It was another 40 minutes from Maison Monsieur to Biaufond on the “fil du Doubs” before we would start to hike upwards, back on the plateau. The path first lead for a moment over the highway, before we crossed the river at “La Rasse” and entered France. Next to the water the charming little path brought us all the way to the Lake Biaufond, where we crossed another bridge back to Switzerland.

Biaufond presented itself in a very different atmosphere compared to last time I was here. Drenched it sunlight, surrounded by juicy green pastures, I dare to say it felt a bit less mystical; but instead it was inviting to make rest at the lakeside, lay in the grass and get lost in the blue sky above. Even though that seemed like a very attractive option, we chose to march on.

For today’s hike I made the brave decision to be adventurous and agree to a little section that was labeled as T2 (a mountain hiking trail); I of course did a little research the evening before, as I was curious, how a mountain hiking trail finds it’s way into this area (not being known for many T2 trails as far as I knew) and deemed it doable. Of course it helped to know, that Sam was with me and we could turn around if it would prove too much for me after all; there was another route that we could take.

We followed the hiking path direction “La Ferrière”, which led us first through a fairytale-like forest in the “Combe de Biaufond”, partially over little bridges and stairs, before we reached the part that gave the hike it’s T2 label: Several ladders climbing up steep rocks out of the valley. The ladders were in general well fixed, clearly well maintained and had a railing that you can hold onto as well as several “pedestals” to catch your breath if necessary. I followed through with my plan to just not look back down while climbing and focus only on the next step. I was very happy with myself, to reach the top with barely any difficulties and I am grateful, when even comparably short sections like this are being labeled as T2, so one can prepare for the challenge (or choose a different route).

Sam not experiencing any fear of heights, had to stand close to the edge and enjoy the view from above over the valley that we just crossed.

We continued on in the direction of Cul de Prés, a lake nestled in a forest clearing, which had fascinatingly light blue-ish water. Taking another moment to rest and enjoy the calm atmosphere surrounding the lake, we sat at the picnic table, eating a “late morning snack” (Merry-and-Pippin-Style 😉 ) before we continued the trail, leading us around the left side of the lake.

Over nature trails through forests and valleys we made our way further direction La Ferrière. At “La Ronde”, a little river, we started the ascent to la Ferrière and chose a beautiful sunny pasture in the middle of the ascent to be our lunch spot.

Early spring is a beautiful time to be out in nature; some plants are still in the process of returning after their winterbreak, trees showing off their first new leaves and little white, purple and yellow flowers are spread all over the pastures. It feels as if you can almost observe nature’s awakening over the course of minutes.

After finishing our lunch, we continued with the ascent before ending up on the streets of La Ferrière. Having not yet reached the end of our energy and our feet still feeling ready to walk some more, we decided to head on direction Le Creux-des-Biches via Les Bois. Now leading mostly over wider roads, offering a view over the valley, green pastures and hills, we eventually reached Le Boéchet, where we took our final rest in the Hotel “Le Paysan Horloger” and treated ourselves to a artisanal Lemonade.

From there it was only another 20 minutes before we arrived in Le Creux-des-Biches in the beautiful warm afternoon sun.

Click here to see the 2nd section on “SchweizMobil”

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I am very happy to have still caught up with one more section of the “Fil du Doubs” (now all that’s missing is the last section from Soubey to St.Ursanne); I would say, it is out of the three sections I have hiked probably my favorite one! It has a great diversity, a decent length and with Maison Monsieur also a beautiful destination to spend the night. The adventure of the second day through the Combe de Biaufond I would always do again; it was for me the right amount of thrill while still enjoyable. And as always, I enjoy to be rewarded with vast views at the end of a hike and the walk on the plateau after reaching La Ferrière allowed just that.

Wandering through the wild Fjords of the Doubs at times felt almost a bit like a dream and having arrived back “in reality”, Sam and me where both left with many unique impressions, the desire for more amazing places and paths to explore.

Details

Day 1: Les Brenets to Maison Monsieur	Difficulty: T1 (Hiking Trail) Length: 19.23 km Duration: 5:12 h Ascent/Descent: 508m/762m
Day 2: Maison Monsieur to Le Creux-des-Biches	Difficulty: Mostly T1 (Hiking Trail) plus a short section T2 (Mountain Hiking) Length: 20.49 km Duration: 5:48 h Ascent/Descent: 790m/394m

Some more useful facts about this hike

• The T2 section of the second day is a little bit of a challenge of course, but I’ve honestly seen more difficult T1 trail sections than this one. If you would want to avoid this part however there are options: for example if you from Biaufond take the trail on the swiss side about 80 meters back direction where you came from up to Cul de Prés. Or you choose a more direct route via Cerneux-Godat.
• Since to my knowledge there are no other hotels in Maison Monsieur, it is certainly worth it to make a reservation to secure a place to sleep 😊