Harder Kulm
| Harder Kulm | ||
|---|---|---|
 Harder Kulm |
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| height | 1321 m above sea level M. | |
| location | Bernese Oberland , Switzerland | |
| Mountains | Emmental Alps | |
| Coordinates | 631.59 thousand / 171867 | |
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The Harder Kulm is the " local mountain " of Interlaken ( Switzerland ) and actually not a mountain at all, but a prominent lookout point of the western Harder (westernmost and wooded part of the approximately 30 km long mountain range between Brünig Pass and Harder Kulm), and is located directly north of the Kur- and conference venue. It belongs to the Emmental Alps and is located at an altitude of 1321 m . It is accessible from Interlaken Ost by a funicular .
Location and surroundings
From the restaurant and viewing platform you have a panoramic view of the Jungfrau region. Lake Thun lies to the west and Lake Brienz to the east . To the south you can see the Bödeli , with the communities of Unterseen , Interlaken , and Matten , as well as the world-famous triumvirate of the Eiger , Mönch and Jungfrau .
Development
The Harderbahn , a funicular that reaches the summit in eight minutes, leads up the mountain . The railway was opened on May 5, 1908 and completely modernized in 1966. Gradients of up to 64% are overcome on a 1435 m long route. In contrast to many other funicular railways, which take their way straight up, the Harderbahn almost describes a quarter circle: it leaves the valley station in a northerly direction and reaches the mountain station in a westerly direction. For many, the mountain station does not mean an end point, but actually only the starting point for further excursions. Hiking trails were laid out during the construction of the railway and expanded over the years.
Such a path leads to the listed Höhbühl pavilion in the Harderwald. Interlaken's homeland security enforced the “neat buildings that fit into the landscape” of the valley and mountain stations, the pavilion and the restaurant. The valley station building has been preserved without any major changes, as it was in the first years after the turn of the century and is one of the listed buildings in Interlaken. The architecture of the former hotel and current restaurant in the pavilion style has not changed much either.
Wildlife
The ibex is omnipresent in the Interlaken region . Since it is curious and less shy than chamois, it was all too easy to become a heavy prey for hunters with the advent of the handgun. But other factors such as diseases and the expansion of the high pastures also led to the colony becoming smaller. For this reason, Friedrich Michel called a meeting on February 25, 1913. It was unanimously decided to found a wildlife park association with the priority aim of reintroducing the Alpine ibex. The wildlife park was built in 1914 very close to the Harderbahn valley station . The first breeding pair arrived in 1915 and the first fawns were born in the Alpine Wildlife Park in 1917/18. The colony developed extremely well and a few years later the first release on the Hardergrat took place. In addition to ibex, the Alpine Game Park also offers a habitat for marmots.
Rockfalls
The Harder - Augstmatthorn - Brienzer Rothorn chain consists of chalk and, to a small extent, tertiary sediments from the Wildhorn ceiling. The layers of rock on the Harder have overturned. The younger ones below, the older ones above, they dive south under the Bödeli. The Chammechlack, a huge gap, was created by the erosion of a layer of marl and grew larger and larger.
On March 24, 1956, there was a rockfall. Huge boulders had loosened up on the Hardermanndli. As it was read in the newspaper Volksblatt , shortly after 8 a.m. on Saturday evening, the population of Interlaken and Unterseen was startled by a tremendous rumble in the Harder.
On May 18, 1980, various residents observed how the earth masses moved in the abnite forest and in the Ried area. Walter Gigon suspected that the rock was deposited on a layer of clay that became a slide due to the wetness of the snowmelt. Rock and earth started moving.
So that people can sleep peacefully despite the known danger of falling rocks, rockfall nets were installed and protective dams were built up. A monitoring program, an early warning service and a compulsory booklet have also been created. According to the compulsory booklet, the rock areas with questionable stability must be checked periodically.
The legend of Hardermanndli
From the vernacular it is said that a strolling monk high in the forest on the Harder met a child from the Untersee while collecting wood. He chased it and chased it down the forest path. Then, in her anguish of the heart, the pursued girl jumped over the terrible, sudden river and crashed into the depths. But the monk was turned to stone by the heavenly judge of earthly misdeeds. He, Hardermanndli, is cursed to look down at the scene of his crime for millennia.
literature
- Ralf Roman Rossberg : The Jungfrau Region . 2. revised Edition. Hallwag AG, Bern / Stuttgart 1992, ISBN 3-444-10378-6 .
- Peter Wenger: Harder - 100 years of the Harderbahn - 1908-2008 . Schlaefli & Maurer AG, Interlaken 2008.
- Walter O. Gigon: Sketches from the geology of the Bernese Oberland - the Bödeli and its surroundings . 4th edition. Schlaefi AG, Interlaken 1981.
- Ueli Flück: Chammechlack, wooden loop, rock falls . Oberländisches Volksblatt No. 18, Interlaken August 13, 1985.
- Ueli Flück: Hadermanndli throws boulders down into the valley . Oberländisches Volksblatt, Interlaken. December 27, 1991.
