A series of articles in the Jungfrau Zeitung provides a good insight into the state of mountain biking in the Jungfrau region. There is the forester who tells how he caught shoveling boys in the act. However, he did not fine them, but explained to them that every patch of forest belonged to someone. He then let them go after a day's hard labor in the forest. A reader letter writer then asks for understanding for the boys, who at least spend their time in nature instead of gaming.

A month later, journalist Ben Abegglen visits Louis Eisenhut, an ambitious gravity biker and Instagrammer. He represents the growing number of mountain bikers in the region who enjoy riding trails and would like to do so in the forests and mountains that are their home. The illegal trails are an expression of the fact that there are no legal offers, says Eisenhut, sounding like a seasoned trail lobbyist.

A letter to the editor follows from an old-school forest owner who has no sympathy for anyone doing anything in the forest other than logging, hiking or collecting mushrooms. He knows the laws are on his side.

1000 signatures are just the beginning

So if mountain bikers don't want to bike forever in accordance with the eleventh commandment (don't get caught!), they need to campaign for a legal route. Louis is now making a start with a petition and has collected over 1000 signatures online within a few weeks. The spirit of the times speaks for the project - mountain biking is one of the most popular sports in Switzerland and since 2018, the Federal Constitution has stipulated that the public sector must also provide cycling infrastructure in addition to hiking trails.

However, Louis Eisenhut and his sporting friends will have to wait a long time before they can roll over an officially approved trail on the contested Rugen or another hill in the Jungfrau region. And the Jungfrau Zeitung will never run out of material for explosive stories from the forest.