Famous lake, beautiful trail

Various paths lead to Lauenensee, which is marked on the map as «Louwenesee» and celebrated in a famous rock ballad as «Louenesee». Here is probably the most beautiful route described: It starts at the Rohrbrücke post bus stop. On the other side of the Louwibach, follow the signpost "Rohr", after a few meters the nature reserve of the same name comes into view. Reed grows on the alluvial land as far as the eye can see. This is mowed and piled up as litter. The route follows the Louwibach, which winds through the valley floor. The reed gradually transitions into forest, which is pleasantly cool even in summer. After Rohr-Oey the path forks; here go right. The path ascends, wooden carved animal figures accompany the hikers on the Lauenen sculpture path. About 100 meters higher, the famous Lauenensee comes into view. The mountain lake lies blue-green between the mountains, surrounded by reed belts, marsh meadows, cottongrass, and dark firs. It is possible to circle the water on the right side, which actually consists of two lakes. The beautiful landscape and the idyllic lake invite you to linger. Meanwhile, Lauenensee has become a tourist hotspot, but the hustle and bustle is limited to the immediate vicinity of the lake. The return path runs via Legerlibrügg. Shortly after the post bus stop, the path turns left again towards Rohr. Through the Rossfalle gorge you return to the valley floor - from there you return via the outbound route to Lauenen.

Background: The hike passes through two nature reserves. In 1956, the people of Lauenen prevented the water of the Geltenbach from being diverted for electricity generation. This led to the Gelten-Iffigen nature reserve, which also includes the Geltenschuss and Tungelschuss waterfalls. Lauenensee is considered a paradise for water birds. The alluvial and wetland areas in the valley floor are also protected.