Page 153 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Switzerland

the second week of August,
it hosts the Marché Concours ABSINTHE
National des Chevaux, a Absinthe may be the preferred tipple of
showpiece for the area’s anguished poets and painters in Paris,
unique breed of Franches- but the Green Fairy (left) actually
Montagnes horses. comes from the canton of Neuchâtel
(p150). The spirit was banned for a
century, though many continued to
25 distil it in secret, creating colourful
Creux de Van anecdotes of clandestine activity that
are told in the Maison de l’Absinthe in
Môtiers (www.maison-absinthe.ch).
! B4
Walk or cycle the Absinthe Trail, which
This horseshoe-shaped rock connects dis tilleries, restaurants
formation in the Jura is and even a choc olate shop that uses
sometimes nicknamed absinthe in its products.
Western Switzerland’s “Grand
Canyon” (the Rhine gorge
stakes its claim for the east
of the country). That may be isolated spot with a mythical Doubs. The town grew up
a bit of a stretch, but still, the status – during the century around the hermitage that
160-m- (525-ft-) high cliffs that absinthe was banned in Ursicinus, a disciple of
are impressive and offer far- Switzerland, covert drinkers St Columba, established
reaching views of the Jura would come here to enjoy it here in the early 7th century.
mountains and the lush valley in secret, preparing it in the The focal point of the town
below – if you dare look over traditional way, by slowly is its beautiful Romanesque
the vertigo-inducing edge. adding water, a process and Gothic church. It has a
The easiest way to access it known as “troubling”. fine Romanesque portal, with
is to drive up the road to the statues of the Virgin and
restaurant near the top, though St Ursicinus. There are many
it’s much more satisfying to 26 fine old medieval houses, as
earn the views by hiking up well as a graceful arched stone
the steep path through the St-Ursanne bridge, built in 1728 across
woods from the village of ! B3 @ n Place Roger the River Doubs on the south
Noiraigue. To descend, take an Schaffter; www. side of St-Ursanne, which
alternative path down through juratourisme.ch provides a good view of the
the centre of the horseshoe. town and its setting. The
You’ll pass by the fontaine A charming medieval walled bridge features a statue of St
froide, a natural spring where town with fortified gates, John Nepomucene, who is
the water is a chilly 4° C (39° F) St-Ursanne is set in a deep often considered the patron
year-round. It’s a peaceful, canyon washed by the River saint of bridges.

152-153_EW_Switzerland.indd 153 14/11/2018 16:05