When a love-struck capercaillie harassed the deputy editor-in-chief of blick.ch, it also showed that mountain bikers in Zurich also like to ride the hills between Lake Zurich and Lake Sihl with their steep flanks and challenging trails. During the pandemic, the number increased and so did the number of trails built by riders themselves.

For the responsible forester Pirmin Schuler, this was the limit. "The damage to roots and soil is obvious. And above all: every forest has an owner, you can't just drive through wherever you like." The gamekeeper also says that there are too many mountain bikers on the Höhronen, he adds.

But Schuler, the corporate forester, is also a pragmatist. "The bikers are there, it can't be prevented." So he sought contact with those who ride mountain bikes in his area. He used the local newspaper to call on bikers to get in touch so that a solution could be found together. "There needs to be offers for bikers and clear rules that they adhere to," he says.

One person who spoke up was Daniel Bürgi. He grew up in the area and has been riding his mountain bike here for many years. "During Corona, trail building reached a level that the forester could no longer tolerate." Bürgi got involved because he feared that bikes would be banned on his local mountain.

The solution: simple, local and as natural as possible

The bikers and the forester quickly agreed that they wanted a low-threshold, local solution. Not a big project with countless people involved and the canton overseeing everything. "We bikers also wanted the trails we were allowed to ride to remain as natural as possible." Just no trail construction company, was the motto.

The result is a small trail network called "Mad Grouse Trails", consisting of four hand-dug routes. Grouse is the English word for capercaillie. "We only accept mountain bikers on these four trails and on the official hiking trails and nowhere else," emphasizes forester Pirmin Schuler.


An external partner is using trip counters to check whether the measures are having the desired effect, i.e. that the trails that were built on their own initiative are no longer being used. The Strava heatmap will also be used to determine where the bikers are riding. "If we don't achieve our set goals and the rules of conduct are not adhered to, then we will stop the exercise. Then there will be bans," warns forester Pirmin Schuler

"Go" or "No"

Information boards at the two largest parking lots and at the start of the trails inform bikers about the applicable rules. "Go" applies at the start of the approved trails, "No" at all others; the message from the forest owners in mountain biker style.

Mountain biker Daniel Bürgi is happy with the solution: "It was a give and take. I think the agreement is good for both sides." He accepts that the mountain bikers are allowed to use the trails on probation, so to speak. "I think it will work. I'd rather have a solution like this than the cat and mouse game we had before and a ban at some point."

The bike community is on board. "On the first day of shoveling, 25 people came and by the evening we had built the first trail," says Daniel Bürgi. In the meantime, the other three have also been completed and approved. The Mad Grouse association is responsible for maintenance. "We also raise awareness, but we don't play police," emphasizes Daniel Bürgi, who chairs the association.

However, there is one major restriction at Höhrohnen. The trails are closed from the end of November to the end of March as well as at dusk and at night, so that the wildlife can rest in peace. The Mad Grouse Trails then belong to the capercaillie and other forest dwellers

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