On the Fribourg Alpine Foothills Trail from Rechthalten to Fribourg

Friday May 17, 2024 -- After a nine-week hiatus in the Okanagan Valley in BC, Canada (not a hiatus from hiking, though), I am back at it in my beloved Switzerland, where the landscape is so much more varied and there is so much to see and experience over even small stretches.

On my own this day, I picked just the right place for a 15-km walk in the Western part of Switzerland, as the best weather prognosis was in the area from Bern to Geneva. It takes four hours to travel to Geneva, so that was too far for this day trip, but only two hours to the lovely medieval city of Fribourg, my goal for the day.

I started in a small village called Rechthalten, just a 15-minute bus ride from Fribourg, and made my way toward the city along the themed trail called the "Freiburger Voralpenweg" (or Fribourg Alpine Foothills Trail), from where you get views of the "Pre-Alps" of Canton Fribourg, as well as some lovely pastoral landscapes. 

We have been to the city of Fribourg several times already, so I didn't go into the old town this time, but approached the city from the south, high above the Sarine River via the Bourguillon gate, from where I walked past two monasteries before crossing the river right to the base of the unique Neuveville-St.Pierre funicular. (This funicular, celebrating its 125th birthday this year, is one of only seven remaining European funiculars which run on water ballast, and this one runs purely on city wastewater). As we have ridden on this funicular before, I opted to walk up the staircase to the train station, which wasn't the best idea after a 14-km walk! 

Most interesting for me is that this region is part of the French/German language border, and even though French is the main language spoken in the city, just east of here where I started on my hike, the people spoke only German! It was weird to switch to French as I approached the city...

Heading by bus from Fribourg train station to Rechthalten (a 15-minute ride to the start of my hike), this is the view past the lower part of the city and across the Sarine River to where I walked down before entering the city. At the arrow is the old (1367) Bourguillon City Tower, from where I got some fantastic views of the city. 

Starting on my hike in Rechthalten at 11:30. The lady at the bakery where I got my sandwich did not speak French at all, although we are so close to the French part of Switzerland. Of course I had to have a look into the church first. 

Interior of the Catholic Church in Rechthalten, built between 1765 and 1768

I have an ambitious hike ahead of me, 3½ hours to Fribourg, and as it turns out, this was an almost 15-km walk! (Freiburg is the German name for the city, as this is on the French/German language border, and a lot of the names are both in French and German). 

Some of the pretty houses in the village of Rechthalten, as I head out on my hike. 

There is always some nice tasteful artwork to admire along the way!

And so many daisies! Such a happy looking flower. 

I walked almost 15 km this day, about four hours of pure walking time. I started in Rechthalten at 11:30, and caught the 17:04 train to Zurich from Fribourg. 

Lovely pastoral landscape here

Looking south and east to the summits of the Freiburg Pre-Alps

I'm following Trail no. 78: "Freiburger Voralpenweg", but the "Panorama" sign has convinced me to take a small detour here!

Taking a detour to a small hill from where I have been promised a panorama view!

View southeast to the Freiburg Pre-Alps, past the roofs of Rechthalten village. 

View north and west from the look-out point. Those are the Jura mountains in the background. 

It's the perfect time of year for a hike in the alpine foothills, as the meadows are lush and full of all kinds of flowers. 

Along the way at a small farm called Etiwil, I saw this cute "Spycher", a traditional building originally used for storage with small living quarters above for elderly parents once their children have taken over running the farm. 

At 12:30 I took a lunch break on this bench, with a view of the mountains. On the far right you can just see the summit of Mt.Moléson, which is just south of the town of Gruyères, and the symbol of the Fribourg Pre-Alps

A close-up look at the summit of Mont Moléson about 30 km to the southwest, a summit we have yet to visit!

Now I am approaching the village of St.Ursen, from where we started a previous hike in 2019 to reach Fribourg via the Gottéron Gorge, a trail which is currently closed due to storm damage (my photos HERE).

Heading down to the village of St.Ursen

The St.Ursus Chapel at this location dates from 1445, dedicated to Saints Mauritius, Ursus, and Victor. The fresco above the door was done in mid 17th Century. 

Details of the St.Ursus Chapel. There really once was a Saint Urs!!!

Of course the town also has a regular parish church as well. 

Inside the St.Ursen parish church. 

More lush flowering meadows as I make my way along the trail on the outskirts of St.Ursen. 

(Apparently the trail I took around the town is closed due to construction! The road wasn't closed when I entered it on the south side, but I saw the sign on the post as I returned to the road on the north side! The sign says the trail is closed till end of June!)

Some nice forested sections. Along the way, some of the trails through the meadows were very muddy, so it wasn't bad to have some paved or forest roads to walk on.

Always nice to see the cows in the pastures. 

Nice walking trails. The farm is called Balterswil. 

Another look toward the Fribourg Pre-Alps

This is a "Great Spotted Woodpecker", the most numerous and widely-distributed woodpecker in Europe

I sat on a bench here and admired this view for a while. Even though the sky was partially overcast, I still had a lot of sunshine this day. 

On the outskirts of Fribourg in Bourguillon/Bürglen is a pilgrimage church called "Notre Dame du Carmel", from 1433. In the Middle Ages, Bourguillon was the part of the city where the citizens afflicted with leprosy were banished to. 

A quick look into the small church. The sunshine on the statue looks quite pretty....

There were many very pretty stained-glass windows in the "Notre Dame du Carmel" church. 

Approaching the Bourguillon City Gate, erected in 1367. I was able to walk up to the top floor in the tower to get some nice views over the city

A nice view down to the lower part of the old city, where there is a lovely restaurant in the Marionette Museum, where we have eaten on two separate occasions. There are several bridges over the Sarine/Saane River. 

The eastern gate and a part of the old city wall. "The fortifications of Fribourg are the most important ensemble of medieval military architecture in Switzerland" (See also this website)

Looking down at the Loreto Chapel and the old town of Fribourg

Next stop is the Loreto Chapel (Chapelle de Lorette), for some more nice views of the city. 

A look at St.Niklaus Cathedral (Cathédrale St.Nicholas)

The city is built around the bends of the Sarine River

Looking back at the Bourguillon Gate from the Loreto Chapel. 

This bridge finished in 2014 is called the Poya Bridge. 

On the other side of the river, you can see the tracks of the funicular from the lower city (Basseville) to the upper city

Zoomed view of the funicular cabins crossing. When I got to the station, I elected to climb the stairs on the right instead of riding the funicular. This is the only funicular in Europe which runs on wastewater ballast, celebrating 125 years this year. 

This cute chapel called St.Jost was erected here in 1684 and belongs to the Montorge Monastery, which I passed on my way down to river level. 

This is the Montorge Capuchin Monastery (1626), with the Loreto Chapel and Bourguillon Gate in the background. 

Heading down through the Maigrauge Gate (built in 1350)

This is the church building at the Magerau Cistercian Abbey (1255) down by the river. Unfortunately you could only get into the foyer part of the entrance. But a nice look at the gothic arched ceilings. 

The cliffs carved by the Sarine River. It was on that upper part where I walked through Bourguillon just before the Bourguillon Gate. 

Crossing the Sarine River into the Basse-Ville

I got to the funicular station at 16:40, and it was leaving in five minutes to get to the upper part of the city. But I decided to walk up the long set of stairs (kind of hard after 14 km of walking) instead. We rode the funicular twice before, see also the photos of our 2018 walk around the city --> HERE. 

Interesting information: The Neuveville-St.Pierre Funicular went into operation in 1899 and still contains its original machinery. There are only seven such funiculars left in Europe which run on water ballast. And this is the only one that uses the city wastewater. This year the funicular celebrates ist 125th birthday. Here is a small video which demonstrates how the funicular runs on water ballast. (The upper cabin has to be heavier than the lower one, and the amount of water filled into the tanks will depend on the number of passengers riding).

The steeple of Cathédrale St.Nicholas, with the City Hall building in front of it. 

From the top station of the funicular I can see the Bourguillon Gate. From here I just had enough time to get to the train station for the 17:04 train. In retrospect, it would have been better to take the funicular!

What the three hikes in this area look like on Google Satellite Maps. (Photos here: 2018 and 2019)

Location of Fribourg in Switzerland

One of my favourite views as we leave the Bern train station on the way to Zurich. This is the steeple of the Bern Cathedral.