The Confident Hiker

May 2024

Since we have a car, I started to think more about loop trails or circular hikes. I have to admit, I was always a bit opposed to them; I like the idea so much, to start on point A and end up on point B and to not be somewhere twice on the same day. But having the car presented the chance to get somewhere a bit further away for a day-hike without the hustle of finding the good public transportation connections and so on this sunny Pentecost Sunday, we made our way to the Naturpark Thal.

While there are several beautiful trails to choose from – one very popular one being the “Jura Crest Trail” section 5 from Balsthal to Weissenstein – I wanted to try something different. Having given this area very little attention so far, I also knew very little about the trail-offer. When I came across a hike called “Wolfsschlucht Weg” (Wolf Gorge Trail), I was highly intrigued.

So we packed up the car and left the sunny Büsserach and drove towards the Passwang. As soon as we arrived on the pass however, the weather drastically changed from sunny and blue skies to thick white fog. The area is beautiful, no matter the weather so we enjoyed the drive but I was nonetheless hoping that the sun would still push its way though the clouds later on.

Arriving in the village of Welschenrohr, it already looked a bit more promising but the temperatures were chilly and there was a harsh wind blowing. After parking the car in the village center right at the trail we headed out, direction the farm of Sollmatt, where we intended to make a little detour off the marked route. Soon the fog and the clouds lifted, revealing a blue sky, the Balmberg and the beautiful mountain ranges of the first Jura chain.

Having arrived at the farmhouse Sollmatt about 20 minutes in, we continued on the straight path up instead of taking a turn to the left. The reason, we did this little detour is the project “Wisent Thal”, which is an experiment to bring European bisons (Wisent) back to Switzerland around 1000 years after their extermination. To see if the animals can survive in the wild here in Switzerland, a test heard of 25 bisons lives in an approximately 100 hectares big enclosure for 5 years, before they can also be outside of this enclosure. It is observed, how they handle interaction with their relatives, the cows, other animals and us human beings (and let’s be honest: how us humans handle interaction with them) as well as how it affects the agricultural and forestry use.

Their enclosure can be accessed without any registration or accompaniment (although you can register for a guided tour); the rules for entering their habitat are clearly stated and it is really important to follow them.

Entering through the gate, I felt a bit nervous but also quite excited and we were instantly rewarded for our detour. About six Wisent were in the middle of a field, majestically marching through the fog rising from the dark, almost black soil. Despite there being other hikers, it was completely silent, as we all watched the animals with respect and admiration. The imagination to encounter them in the wilderness in the future filled my heart with joy.

Passing though the enclosure, you will meet the “Wolfsschlucht Weg” again, a bit later on. As it is said, to not come closer than 50 meters to the Wisent, we chose to turn around instead and walk back to the crossroads and continue on the official hiking trail again.

Upon coming out of the forest we had to cross the mainroad, before immediately entering the Wolfsschlucht on the other side. A cantonal forest reserve, the Wolfschlucht is a narrow gorge with rock walls (up to 100 meters high), caves and washouts. The trail lead steadily upwards through the gorge (about 300 meters in hight difference on roughly 1.5 kilometers) next to the Wolfsbach, a little water stream. The flora was gorgeous and diverse: mossy rocks, tall trees, flowers and a nice cool and humid climate.

Curious as to how the gorge got its name, I googled it and it turns out, that there are several “Wolfschluchten” and they are not only in Switzerland. The name comes from them being either actually inhabited by wolves, the howling of the wind in between the narrow rocks that is reminiscent of the howls of a wolf or even the hunting technique of chasing the wolves into a narrow gorge to shoot them.

Coming out of the gorge, the trail continued in a zick zack line through the forest, still climbing until we reached Tufftbrunnen. Now passing through lush alpine meadows covered with colorful wildflowers, we made our final push of this quite demanding climb. And upon turning our heads back around, we were once again reminded, why it is worth to climb: the view towards the Jura chain was quite spectacular. The peaceful quiet, crickets chirping in the grass, gray clouds moving across the blue sky and creating shadow plays over the green meadows made this a place hard to just pass through.

We walked on the side of the Tannmattchopf through the forest over a gravel path, before stepping out of the woods and on the ridge from where we enjoyed yet another beautiful view over the valley below. The vast vistas almost made me forget, that we were no more than 1’150 meters in elevation at this point.

After passing the alpine restaurant Obere Tannmatt, we had to tackle yet another short climb, before reaching the mountain ridge, with a view too amazing not to take a break for another bite to eat.

I am fascinated time and time again, how many magical places Switzerland has to offer in nature and how they are sometimes so close to my own home. It does truly feel, that I may never see it all in one lifetime. And there is a sense of adventure on trails like this one, because you never quite know, what it has to offer you around the next corner, over the next hill or behind that row of trees…

After a few more meters over the grassy path on the ridge, we started the descent towards Mieschegg. We passed by the Wendelinskappelle, a small chapel with weathered stone statues of what seemed like children praying to Mother Mary maybe. They particularly captivated me. The original plague chapel was built 1640 by the owners of the farm Mieschegg in gratitude to have been spared by the plague. It was then rebuilt in 1941 in honor of Saint Wendelin.

The narrow path now lead though the forest before ending up in a quiet little hollow with yet another stunning view into the valley.

The sky in the meantime took on an almos “threatening” color of a dark grey and it seemed in the far distance, rain had started to fall. We got to do a final very steep climb towards Hinterer Brandberg. Walking over flower-covered pastures under this sinister sky that gradually became more stormy felt almost surreal and even a bit apocalyptical. It somehow reminded me, how much nature is its own force that follows no ones rules but its own. We can not ever expect it to be gentle or lenient to us.

A short descent later, we arrived at the alpine restaurant of Hinter Brandberg, where we decided to have a cold drink before tackling the descent back to Welschenrohr.

The sky still played with its big selection of different shades of grey and blue while we enjoyed our chat with a lovely couple from Olten and soon the rain had finally reached us and poured down for a short while, before abruptly stopping again.

The trail down is partially pretty steep but well protected thanks to the trees and follows a zickzack line. I had no troubles in terms of height or exposedness. There are several benches along the way to take a rest and maybe even spot a lynx, as this is lynx territory.

Coming out of the forest we reached the crossroads with the path that leads to the Bärenloch, a place that seems to have a very strong energy, its structure reminiscent of a cathedral. Due to a lack of time and energy however we decided against another detour and promised to go there the next time.

From the crossroads it was about another half hour to the car. The gravelroad lead over pastures, below the rock face with the Bärenloch and with a view over the mountain range across the valley. It was a fitting end to a hike full of impressive and monumental views. And once again I felt as if Iv’ve grown almost as tall as the landscape and a little bit wiser in those few hours on the trail.

Click here to see this hike on SchweizMobil

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I rave about beautiful views in almost every single post I write and that’s because they’re all amazing and it is true of this hike as well. Beyond that, this was such a varied path, that I was truly amazed, how it developed over those almost 5 hours (or “eveloped”, as I called it in my tiredness at the end of the hike – a fancy fusion of evolve and develop).

Our encounter with the Wisent – a species that does no longer exist in the wild anymore and is intended to be re-invited, our walk through the gorge, where wolves might have lived once and the passing through a lynx territory this was such a “wild hike”. To say this in a country like Switzerland is still surprising to me as it seems so much of it is inhabited by us humans.

I think back on my deeply felt experience about nature not adapting to our needs while on the trail (or ever for that matter) and how I used the word “not gentle” to describe this; and I realize, how often we as humans have failed to show gentleness to nature and yet it continues to show its beauty to us in every facet.

I do believe, that in a way while hiking, we give ourselves to nature, we offer ourselves to it, which to me is a form of trust and even dedication maybe. And I also see it as a promise to nature and all its animal inhabitants, that I intend and try my best to do right by it.

Welschenrohr to Welschenrohr

Difficulty: T1 (Hiking Trail) Length: 13.91 km Duration: 4:57 h Ascent/Descent: 862m/862m

Some more useful facts about this hike

• The paths are mostly not exposed in any way. The only times where it might take a little bit of courage is at about the 6 km mark and then again close to the end during the descent. Both those sections last only about 40 meters and no more than 15 minutes.
• There are several restaurants on the way to take a break. It is always worth to check if they are open.
• There is a bus driving up to Obere Tannmatt as well as Hinter Brandberg. They do however only drive on Sundays and Holidays.
• The detour to Bärenloch is labeled as a T2 (sometimes even T3) section. I can not speak to the trail, as I have not yet done it myself. If that changes, I will talk about it here.
• If you do pay a visit to the Wisent, please be mindful of their space and follow the guidelines on the gate.