The village centre of Herbligen lies at the exit of the Kiesental valley, where it opens out into the open terrain of the Aare Valley. In this municipality in the canton of Bern, tangible traces of village history meet themes relating to nature and landscape management. You can plan your trip according to whether you are mainly interested in historic buildings and their stories, or would also like to include places to visit in the surrounding area.
Village history in buildings and trail stops
Herbligen’s well-preserved historic landmarks include farmhouses, Stöckli (small adjoining farmhouses) and granaries. The building inventory illustrates and describes 13 buildings worthy of protection and 16 buildings worth preserving. The Baumann-Stock has retained its historic form without external structural alterations. The region’s first school of this kind was located there, on the main road. Another school story leads to Helisbühl: in the 18th century, there was a shared school there for Brenzikofen and Herbligen, with 40 to 50 children.
The Oberdiessbach information trails also lead to Herbligen and explore topics in church history. The brochure, published in 2018, lists 47 trail stops and invites visitors to discover them on foot. Trail stop K8 is located in the «Wydibühl» community centre and is associated with Pietism, the state church and free churches. At Helisbühl, the site is considered a probable Alemannic and possible Celtic place of sacrifice. It can be viewed from a seating area on Mattlisbühlstrasse. The cautious interpretation of Helisbühl thus differs from the concrete stories about the village’s buildings and schools.
Landscape and habitats
At the edge of the forest above Wydibühl, the «Reptile Castle» offers reptiles and other small creatures shelter and a habitat. Habitat conditions can change over time. At Gollermattgrabe, there is an open drainage ditch with a wetland habitat. These two features draw attention to different habitats: a refuge for small animals and a wetland alongside an open ditch.
The agricultural land has also been landscaped. After the land consolidation, new hedges were planted and previously culverted watercourses were brought back to the surface. Sections of a near-natural stream were planted with native shrubs; wildflower grass mixtures were sown on the slopes where the topsoil had been removed. Falkenfluh, on the municipal boundary, has a launch ramp from which hang gliders take off in good weather.
Excursions in the surrounding area
Aeschlenalp is a place to visit in the area around Herbligen. From Heimenschwand or Schwarzenegg, it can be reached on foot or by bicycle via forest trails. Aeschlenalp offers views of the Aare Valley and Lake Thun; on a clear day, the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau come into view. These destinations complement the village’s historic stops with an excursion option that offers a specifically mentioned view.
Fresh alpine cheese is available seasonally in the area, sold directly from the alpine farm. The Oberdiessbach–Münsingen postal bus line stops at Herbligen-Dorf. If you plan to travel on this line, check the current timetable. This makes it easy to combine village history, landscape topics and an excursion in the surrounding area to suit your interests.
Discover more destinations: Wichtrach, Kiesen, Münsingen, Linden, Oberhünigen, Grosshöchstetten, Worb, Zäziwil.
For the overview of the wider area: Konolfingen.
