Jura hikes
The Jura is 15 minutes away from my home and I go there often, especialy in mid-season (march, april, november) when there is still snow on the Alps. I already published several specific Jura hikes :
In this post I collect a few I do less often and I have less memory about. This post also features the only hikes I did in Canton Solothurn and in Canton Jura!
Gorges Areuse (Neuchâtel)
- Start point: Champs du Moulin, 610m
- Destination: Noiraigues, 730m
- Highest point: Destination
- Distance: ~4.5 km one way
- Elevation gain: ~130 m
- Time: ~6-7h
- Difficulty: Moderate to challenging
You can do this hike in several lengths. Even starting all the way in Boudry it becomes quite long. The best part is the one between Champ du Moulin, where you can park near the Reataurant La Truite, and Noirague where the actual gorges sit. The rest is just a stoll along the river. I don't remember much of it except that it is very green and the charming stone bridge above the gorge! See details about lengths and time above! To come back you can take the same way or use the train to the stop Champ du Moulin from where it is just 5 min to go back to the parking.
Weissenstein (Solothurn)
- Start point: Weissenstein, 1270m
- Destination: Nesselboden, 1050m
- Highest point: Röti, 1396m
- Distance: ~6 km
- Elevation gain: +210 / - 440 m
- Time: ~1.5 - 2h
- Difficulty: Easy
I remember well this hike but I don't have many pictures. So I relegate it to a forgotten one.
The hike starts at Weissenstein a hotel on the jura peak behind Solothurn. We did it, slightly unconventionally, downhill. We left the car at the cable car station parking in Oberdorf 650m and we took the lift up almost directly to the highest point at 1270m.
From there a grassy and gentle hike bring you to the Röti viewpoint at 1396m in about half an hour. This is the highest point for the hike. There are nice places for picnic along the way. From there we decided to continue downhill and regain the lift at its middle station collecting some other viewpoints along the way.
From Röti the path goes a bit along the grassy ridge and then enters the forest. After a section downhill you arrive to a crossroads at 1230m and you can turn downhill on a large gravel road that brings you to Nesselboden, the cable car mid station. But we decided to add a deviation and go up a much smaller path in the forest to Balmfluechöpfli 1290m. It is worth the deviation! Even though I prefer the vire from the Jura more towards the Suisse Romande because it overlooks the lakes as well.
From there we went back the same way and down the gravel road to Nesselboden where we took the lift back to the parking. Overall it was a 2h hike including lots of photos and extending it all the way to the bottom would add about 1h. But this section of the trail is also the least interesting as it is mainly on the road.
For your information the path we took was a large circle but there is a much more direct way from the bottom to Weissenstein, that will take you there in about 2h30, mainly following the road. Or you can also arrive to the top by car when the small road is open.
Soubey (Jura)
- Start point: Restaurant du Relais, Soubey, 470m
- Destination: Loop to the start
- Highest point: Unnamed hill (only if you take the inland return option)
- Distance: ~20 km loop
- Elevation gain: ~450 m
- Time: ~5h
- Difficulty: Moderate (just because long)
This hike wins the prize as the only one in Canton Jura in my blog and probably will hold its seat for a while. But it was a very pleasant one and with a cool tweak at the end.
It starts in Soubey 470m, or better we parked in a large parking a few hundred meters from the village. Here you'll be in a green and gentle valley around the river Doubs. The hike goes at first on a small road following the river in direction of St-Ursanne. After awhile the path becomes smaller and goes just along the river which is green and beautiful. A couple of bridges make the trail cross back and forth. Our arrival point was Tariche the location of a camping and restaurant that also have a boat to cross the river that you have to pull with a rope! We crossed it back and forth to try the experience. From there you can go back the same way of via a more direct but more hilly way going a bit more inland from the ricer bank. In our case, we took the hills the way back. Overall it takes about 2h return. If you have more time or if you do not have a car you can also continue for about 1h along the river and go to St-Ursanne. I read the path is beautiful all the way and the town is a medieval town with an ancient bridge and monastery definitely worth a visit!
Gorges de la Poëta Raisse (Neuchâtel)
- Start point: Parking near Môtier (Neuchâtel), 750m
- Destination: Gorges Poëta Raisse, 1000m
- Highest point: Rigi Kulm, 1797m
- Distance: ~2.5 km one way
- Elevation gain: ~280 m
- Time: ~45 min (one way)
- Difficulty: Easy
I rememebr little of this hike anyway it starts in a clearly marked parking outsite Môtier (the Neuchâtel one) and goes in the woods mostly with a gently incline to a waterfall. There are a few picnic tables along the way that can be used. It takes around 1h30 return. Perfect for a family hike!
La Dôle (Vaud)
- Start point: Parking of Monts Jura skilifts (France), 1240m
- Destination: La Dôle, 1677m
- Highest point: Destination
- Distance: ~3 km one way
- Elevation gain: ~440 m
- Time: ~1h15 min (one way)
- Difficulty: Easy to moderate
La Dôle is a typical Jura hike, you can do it from several sides. The summit is well visible from afar with it's round white observatory on the top. I did it once from the St Clergue side but I really don't remember so I tell it here in an unconventional way: I did it ski touring from the french side. I started in the parking of the Monts Jura skilift. The parking (1240m) is in France but there is an invisible border and the charlift going to La Dôle is in Switzerland.
I unfortunately I cannot give a GPS for this one because I went a bit random. I started on the ski slope on the right of the chairlift and then cut right following some tracks. I then crossed a section of forest to avoid the skiers and finally went into the track of the chairlift that is not actually an official path but was well groomed by previous skiers and went up steady and without difficulties. At some point I had to traverse a net that prevented skiers from above to ski below the chairlift. After that it becomes steeper for the last section that end at the end of the chairlift and is at this point we'll visibile.
Arrived io with a few more meter to effor you can go up to the obeservatory and the summit triangle, 1677m, where you'll the lake in the other side. As I was on ski anskied down the normal slopes and as it was early I took the chairlift back up for one more and in so doing I reclimbed in less then 5 min then pas I took more then 1h to do earlier!
This hike is also totally doable in summer for about 2h-2h30 time return.
Comments
Post a Comment