Day 2 From Sörenberg to Spiez

Reasonably well-rested, we start after a hearty breakfast at 9:00 towards Schneebärgli, from where we ride down to Kemmeribodenbad on a beautiful trail.

There, you can still see the effects of this spring's flooding at the bridge.

We initially ride through the forest and meadows uphill, until there is a steep and exhausting climb, at the end of which... an even steeper and impassable rocky path begins and at its beginning my bike simply stops despite my manly effort.

A fellow rider remarks, 'The path has more advantages than disadvantages.' I hesitate to imagine an ascent that has more disadvantages than advantages...

Well, the only option is to carry the bike up the trail, which is finally completed after about 500m.

The rest of the climb is simply beautiful and sunny, and we finally arrive at Widegg (1719m) in good spirits. Shortly afterwards, we take a break at a small farmhouse with freshly chilled floating Panaché in the water trough.

Meanwhile, the farmers' wives are somehow loudly making cheese.

The descent is then 'varied':

Initially on nice paths and (a bit too much) road, there are longer discussions at the Bort junction about the route: Some participants do not want to take the planned crossing because it is "impassable." Since apparently we still have a guide with us (which I didn't know until then), the group splits up here...

Bravely, I of course start the crossing (because I don't want to ride on asphalt uphill and downhill), only to dive into the reality of steep climbs, horizontal sections, and mini "descents" combined with "giant" roots and rocks after 300m. I have to dismount several times in a panic because my riding strategy somehow didn't work, especially since the slope is also steep. The other riders manage it better, but also with several dismounts. Well, such trails just don't exist in the Taunus region.

After regrouping and a short drink break, the descent really gets exciting... Steep meadows, boulders and gravel with steps, as well as narrow hairpin turns on steep gravel, test the nerves and technique.

In the end, everyone gets down almost without a scratch 😉 and somehow I rode through cow dung towards the end.

Arriving at the lake, we roll into Spiez.

Conclusion: Very beautiful and varied, but compared to the previous day, this tour was more demanding for me, as I left a lot of energy in those roots.