Philipp Peterer

Switzerland - 12-Apr-20 -

Adding a beech forest to the long list of inscribed beech forests seems to be the easiest way to get a new WHS in Europe. Switzerland also wants a piece of this cake and added two beech forests to its tentative list. I visited one of them, the Bettlachberg forest during the coronavirus lock down weekend. The forest is easy to reach by car. It’s just a few minutes outside Grenchen and there is a road leading right into the forest. We parked our car next to the street and hiked up to the old castle ruin of Grenchen, within the forest. It’s a rather easy uphill hike. Doable in less than one hour and really fun on a sunny day. In the end it is just a forest and it is heard to gasp the OUV. But I have the same problem with the already inscribed parts, so why not. On a positive note, there were lots of beech trees. Much more than I saw in the forests in Bulgaria or Italy. On the other hand, it is not a virgin forest. It is clearly maintained like any other forest in Switzerland.

It will probably be inscribed one day. I, personally, am against it. I would like this beech forest madness to stop. Further, Switzerland has with Corbusier and Pile Dwellings already too many of these underwhelming multi national WHS.  The forest is only for hardcore collectors, but can easily be combined with Berne and La Chaux-de-Fonds/Le Locle.