Les Vieux-Prés Bike

Route report
54 photos

Route report, 54 photos

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Les Hauts-Geneveys–Les Vieux-Prés–Les Hauts-Geneveys

This is a pleasant, easy loop trail, ideal for families, assuming that everyone is fit enough to handle the elevation gain. The route leads through crop fields, pastures and mixed terrain crisscrossed by hedges and typical dry-stone walls.

The recommended starting point for this tour is the train station of Hauts-Geneveys. But the route is also easy to access from other villages in the north of Val-de-Ruz, from Fontainemelon to Villiers. Mostly following the edge of the forest, the route leads about 6 km downhill in several stages. The views frequently open up over the wide valley of Val-de-Ruz. The fertile soil of the valley floor is very valuable for the canton and the entire region. The fields changing colour with every season are a pretty sight.

From Villiers the trail climbs to the flatland of Les Planches and then continues to Les Vieux-Prés. Here, at the foot of Mont d'Amin the landscape is no longer dominated by agricultural terrain, but rather by pastures and cattle. A few rocky single trails now follow, bordered by the typical dry-stone walls of the Jura region. This is where concentration and leg strength are required.

Montagne de Chézard and Montagne de Cernier are next. This type of countryside is known mostly from Normandy: Since the agricultural use is not as intensive as in the Mittelland because of the altitude, a so-called “bocage” or mixed landscape is found here. The pastures are enclosed by hedges and rows of trees. The paths on the other hand are bordered by dry-stone walls. From Montagne de Cernier the route follows the “Path of the Unemployed”. The name suggests that it was built during hard economic times. Continuing along the train track we arrive at the starting point in Hauts-Geneveys, the highest village in Val de Ruz with views of the valley basin, the Mittelland and the Alps.

This is a pleasant, easy loop trail, ideal for families, assuming that everyone is fit enough to handle the elevation gain. The route leads through crop fields, pastures and mixed terrain crisscrossed by hedges and typical dry-stone walls.

The recommended starting point for this tour is the train station of Hauts-Geneveys. But the route is also easy to access from other villages in the north of Val-de-Ruz, from Fontainemelon to Villiers. Mostly following the edge of the forest, the route leads about 6 km downhill in several stages. The views frequently open up over the wide valley of Val-de-Ruz. The fertile soil of the valley floor is very valuable for the canton and the entire region. The fields changing colour with every season are a pretty sight.

From Villiers the trail climbs to the flatland of Les Planches and then continues to Les Vieux-Prés. Here, at the foot of Mont d'Amin the landscape is no longer dominated by agricultural terrain, but rather by pastures and cattle. A few rocky single trails now follow, bordered by the typical dry-stone walls of the Jura region. This is where concentration and leg strength are required.

Montagne de Chézard and Montagne de Cernier are next. This type of countryside is known mostly from Normandy: Since the agricultural use is not as intensive as in the Mittelland because of the altitude, a so-called “bocage” or mixed landscape is found here. The pastures are enclosed by hedges and rows of trees. The paths on the other hand are bordered by dry-stone walls. From Montagne de Cernier the route follows the “Path of the Unemployed”. The name suggests that it was built during hard economic times. Continuing along the train track we arrive at the starting point in Hauts-Geneveys, the highest village in Val de Ruz with views of the valley basin, the Mittelland and the Alps.