This time not in the high mountains, but on a trail through forests, meadows, farms… The whole route is idyllic, angelic, picturesque. Birds sing, crickets chirp and bees buzz. The smell and sight of cut grass drying on the fields brought back fond memories of holidays in the countryside with my grandparents.
Start of the route – Sommerau BL
The trail starts at the railway station in Sommerau BL. It is a small town in the canton of Basel – Landschaft, only one hour away from Zurich by train.
The start of the trail is a light walk of about 45 minutes through the forest, along a stream until you reach the waterfall, which is 18 metres high.
This place is extremely magical. Imagine that you are in a deep forest. The sun’s rays pierce through the branches of the trees and first you see a high, vertical rock, as if the road were coming to an end and there was no passage. Then you see streams of water pouring down from above onto a large boulder. Something incredible!
Being in this place, you feel like staying longer and enjoying the scenery. But this is not the end of the route and beautiful views.
The highlight – the Wisenberg pick
The trail continues upwards to the Wisenberg pick. Although the mountain is not very high, only 1’000 m high, you will get tired on this section. There are also some steps.
Along the way you pass many pleasant places, ideal for a rest. There are also separate places for barbecues and bonfires. We stopped at one of the farms. We were attracted by the benches under a tree protecting us from the sun and the view of the orchard and grazing donkeys. Here you could buy coffee, water and a jar of local honey. I am not an expert on quality, but the honey tasted delicious.
A magic point with drinking water
Continuing through the forest, you pass a special place with drinking water. At first sight, it looks like thousands of others in Switzerland. However, according to a plaque attached to a rock nearby, this place has magical powers. You can leave all your worries and sorrows here, and they will flow with the water deep underground. I do not know if this is true, but what is certain is that after walking this route, I felt satisfied and charged with positive energy.
After getting rid of all worries we reached the top of the Wisenberg mountain. There is a 25 metre high tower from where you have a great view of the Black Forest, Jura and the Alps.
The small hill of Homberg Flue, 790 m above sea level, remains to be climbed, and then it’s downhill to the railway station in Läufelfingen.
Homburg castle ruins
Finally, there is one more attraction, the castle ruins. It was built in 1240 on behalf of Count Hermann von Froburg. The castle was intended to monitor transit traffic, and was named after the count’s wife – Neu Homberg. In 1400, the castle passed into the possession of the city of Basel and for the next 400 years it served as the seat of the bailiffs. As you can guess, the building and its users did not arouse sympathy among the citizens. In the end, the castle was set on fire on the night of 23-24 January 1798. The Canton of Basel – Landschaft took over Castle Homburg in 1941 and has been responsible for its maintenance ever since.
The ruins of Homburg Castle are the last point on this trail. As it turns out, it is not only exciting and interesting to hike in the high mountains, but also to discover places a little lower down that may not seem so thrilling at first glance.
