Bern Canton, Vinelz.
Summary sheet:
Distance: 41.5km.
Elevation gain: 319m.
Cycling time: 2h 40min.
Access: Car, bus to our starting point; or train, starting at a different location.
Parking: Parkplatz Seestrandweg, Erlachstrasse 20. (In 2021, day parking cost 10CHF and the machine only accepted coins).
Bus: Stop at Erlach, Gostel.
Train: Biel/Bienne.
Since we have decided to do more cycling trips, we started going around all of the Swiss lakes. Our 4th lake to try, was lake Bienne. Based on our previous experiences of the lake, we had no idea what to expect from our cycling trip. We visited Bienne city and Taubenloch Gorge before, but we didn't know the area around the lake. Our only experience of it, was walking through St Peter's Island; with which we felt quite disappointed. The cycling tour ended up being wonderful and picturesque! We met a few cyclists and hikers. We fed ducks, swans and birds (we suggest bringing some snacks for them too:).
FOOD & DRINKS
There are numerous picnic opportunities on benches facing the views, green grass parks/meadows or sides of vineyards. One can find restaurants/cafes in many places around the lake: there are plenty in Erlach, Le Landeron, Ilge, Bienne, Täuffelen, Lüscherz. At the end of our day, we enjoyed chilled beer and take-away burgers at Erlach beach next to the camping; listening to live music.
PLAY PARKS
We had lunch at a park in Le Landeron (Bellerive 16), facing the lake. There was a large play park just behind the park, which Alek liked a lot.
We also spend a long time at a play park near the beach in Sutz. There was also a shop and a cafe offering beer and ice cream (unfortunately they only accepted cash or Twint).
Pictures from Sutz.
DESCRIPTION
We started the loop from the Southern part of the lake, going West. At the start, we didn't follow any official cycling routes (but there are still marked cycling paths on the roads) and we joined routes 5 and 50 from Bienne, going back to the car.
Most of the path is quite flat with small hills; and the main climbs are at the West side of the lake. Some climbs are tough - I gave up on 1 hill and walked to the top pushing the bike for ~2 minutes. Simon (on the road bike) seemed more happy with the climbs than me! It was so pretty on this side of the lake, that I felt urges to stop every 5 min to take some pictures & experience the view at a slower pace. The hills are covered in vineyards and lots of sun. The path got more busy once we joined the main road coming into Bienne, but it was only for a short period of time. Once we got out of the city, it was quiet again. The Eastern side of the lake had smooth hills, but easy to cycle through.
USEFUL LINKS
The official cycling routes 5 & 50 can be viewed in detail on SchweizMobil website here. More information about the lake can be viewed at MySwitzerland website here or Jura Tourist website here.
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