The Holiday Trilogy Part 3: The Black Lake

To end my „holiday trilogy“ the best way possible, I decided to cover a hike I did at the Black Lake in the beautiful canton of Fribourg. "Not another Black Lake," you might think, but looking back to my time there, I had to say, that it probably was the most gorgeous Black Lake I've seen so far. :) Hiding deep in a valley in the heart of the canton Fribourg, the lake is surrounded by wonderful mountains and features some popular hiking destinations like the Gastlosen in the vicinity. As an exception in this holiday, my timing for once was perfect, because after all the rain I had, finally a day full of sunshine was predicted and I can tell you already that the weather god didn’t let me down this time. To explore the area around the Black Lake, the campsite at the end of the lake was the perfect base and that was where I started in the early morning of a lovely Sunday in the middle of May. Five minutes into the hike, I already had to stop for a first time, as it was way too hot and I had to take off some clothes. Walking upwards from the very beginning, shirt and shorts were more than enough and I was glad that the trees of the forest I just had entered spent some shade from the burning morning sun.

A first glimpse of the beauty that lay ahead of me :)

Not many people were on the trail yet, only a guy on an e-bike with his ski across his back passed me during that first ascent. To me, that was a pretty unusual sight, as I couldn’t imagine where he wanted to go skiing at that time of the year. :) Leaving the gravel road behind before long, I mostly headed upwards on a lovely trail in the woods. When the trees eventually started to thin out, I entered an absolutely gorgeous valley and had to take a minute to appreciate its beauty. High mountains could be seen to the left and right and as a lot of snow still covered the best part of the valley, the guy with the e-bike suddenly made more sense. :) Coming upon a signpost, the time that was written on there for my destination seemed a bit too long, but only when I had a look on the map, I realized that I actually was in the wrong valley. Ooops. :) Somewhere along the way I had missed a turnoff and now had to take quite a detour. For once however, it didn’t bother me at all, as the scenery was just too beautiful.

Looking and walking into the wrong valley :)

Getting deeper into the valley and closer to the mountains, the views along the way were just incredible, so it definitely had been the right choice to not check the map all the time. :) Too soon I had to leave that beautiful landscape behind, but starting to hike along a mountainside, the next terrific view was basically just around the corner. Rounding a rather long bend, the Black Lake suddenly came into view and passing a bench five minutes later, it was the perfect spot to sit down and enjoy the stunning panorama.

The Black Lake from above :)

Moving on after the short break, I entered the woods again and soon had to walk through snow for the first time today. There still was quite a lot of it and the path vanished more than once, but as I hadn’t been the first one to go through there, I just followed the footprints left by the others. Slowly pounding through the snow, I finally entered the valley I had intended to visit and before long an Alp called Untere Euschel came into view. Once more, the surrounding mountains made for a wonderful scenery and another short break was necessary to marvel at the beauty of our Mother Earth.

The Alp Untere Euschel can be seen between the trees to the very left of this picture

Stepping onto a wide gravel road at the Alp, it was the main difference to the valley before. The road led all the way through it and eventually would bring me to the Euschelspass, my first goal of today. Before that though, there was more trudging through the snow and my shoes soon were as wet as if it had rained all day long. :) The landscape however, easily made up for the sodden socks and coming upon the Obere Euschel just before the pass, I was surprised to see that the restaurant amidst all the snow actually had open. As I had brought some food along, I just carried on and sat down on the bench at the Euschelspass to enjoy the marvelous view towards the Gastlosen in the distance. Looking at them from afar, they definitely moved further up the list of places I want to visit in Switzerland. :)

Basically all the craggy peaks you can see on this picture, form the popular mountain range called the Gastlosen

Having reached the Euschelspass, it was time to ponder the next step. The idea had been to scale the Fochsenflue if there wasn’t too much snow, but looking right at it, it was incredibly difficult to judge if it was possible or not. There seemed to be not much snow left anymore, but the ascent looked steep from below and then not a lot of snow is needed to get into trouble. Well, at the end reason triumphed over desire and I decided not to attempt it. That was most probably the right decision and also gave me an excuse to come back again one day. :) So instead of the Fochsenflue, I just walked up a nearby hill and being all alone on the top, I took another longer break to enjoy the silence and the still gorgeous views.

Looking at the Fochsenflue (the peak in the middle) and its mighty neighbors

Retracing my steps to the Euschelspass, I hiked back along the gravel road to the Untere Euschel and took a turnoff there to head towards another viewpoint in the vicinity. Ascending gently, the next half an hour led me along the hillside and just before I left the Euschelsvalley behind for good, I came upon another lovely wooden bench which marked the perfect spot for my lunch break. Sitting down, I enjoyed a hearty meal, a refreshing Guinness and the view back to where I had come from.

A lunch break with a view. :) Taking a look back towards the Euschelspass

Resuming the hike once my stomach was filled, it didn’t take long anymore until I had to descend towards a plateau with a big farm on it. Walking across, the way led upwards again on the other side and while I ascended along another beautiful mountain path, the trail started to alternate between patches of gravel and patches of snow. Combined with the many gorgeous lookouts, it simply was an entertaining walk and the time passed by so fast that I came upon the next turnoff sooner than expected.

Just an impression from along the way :)

The Hohmattli was where I intended to go and it meant one last effort on today’s hike. A steep ascending slope had to be conquered and while the views had been amazing at the turnoff already, they became even better with every step I took. Frequently I turned around to marvel at the majestic mountains to my opposite and coming upon the Hohmattli after a short but intense ascent, a 360° panoramic view greeted my eyes that instantly became another highlight of the day. Not only the nearby mountains were impressive, but the view was actually that good, that I was able to see all the way to the Bernese Alps and its famous mountains Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau. Wow!

What a view! The Bernese Alps can be seen peeking out at the horizon to the very left of this picture

Taking one last break, the time as always flew by and I had to say goodbye to the Hohmattli sooner than I wanted to. It had been a good decision to come here though, also because amidst all the popular destinations in the vicinity, the Hohmattli was less known and therefore less visited. A gem among gems, one could say. :) What now was left to do was to descend to the Black Lake. Retracing my steps to the turnoff and back along the mountainside for a while, the junction to the lake appeared before long. Turning right, I passed the last patches of snow and started to walk down a steep slope. Entering the forest after a while, the descent couldn’t really keep up with the rest of the day and I wasn’t mad at all when the houses of the Black Lake made their appearance. Making my way to the lake itself, I had another beer there and enjoyed the beautiful panorama for a final time today.

There are way too many beautiful places on the earth!

It was the perfect ending of a fantastic day and herewith comes a big thank you to Karin for giving me the recommendation to pay the Black Lake a visit. Much appreciated! :)

Highlights of the day: the detour through the first valley, the views from the first "peak" and from the Hohmattli

This hike is for you if:

- you want to explore the surroundings of the Black Lake

- you’re looking for marvelous views over the Alps of Fribourg

- you want to take a swim after a strenuous day of hiking :)

- you don’t mind many people on the trail

This hike is not for you if:

- you’re looking for secluded hiking trails

- you mind to walk up and down a lot

- you want to avoid farms and Alps :)

While orientation in general was no problem, the hike at some points could have been marked a bit better. As mentioned above, I missed a turnoff in the beginning and had to take a longer detour. Actually, I do remember the turnoff, but it only mentioned some unknown name on the sign, that's why I had ignored it. So if you want to take the shorter route, make sure you don’t miss that turnoff. :) As the short cut is an official hiking trail, you can find it on every common map. Also the scramble up the hill at the Euschelspass (number 2 on the map) wasn’t marked, but the way there is obvious. As for the descent, some parts could have been marked a bit better as well, but with a look or two on the map you too should be fine there. :) Please note that in summer there is a cable car available, so if you want to spare yourself some ascending/descending, just include it into your hike. :)