The best walks and hikes around Beurnevésin

Observation post No. 2 in Largin was a Swiss wooden blockhouse during the First World War. From here, Swiss soldiers observed the French and German positions just a few hundred meters away and monitored Swiss neutrality. The post was thus located immediately at the southern end of the Western Front. The original blockhouse was reconstructed in 2012 based on historical models and can be visited today.

Kilometer 0 – Border stone of the Western Front The border stone No. 111 at Largin near Pfetterhouse marks the so-called “Kilomètre Zéro”, the southern starting point of the Western Front in World War I. From autumn 1914, the front ran here between France and Germany; on the Swiss side, the neutral Swiss army observed the events. From this point, the front line stretched for around 750 km to the North Sea. Today, the border stone, the reconstructed Swiss observation post, and numerous trenches and bunkers commemorate this special section of the Western Front.

The Largtalbahn: Dannemarie–Pfetterhouse–Bonfol The line was called Largtalbahn in German, or the Dannemarie–Pfetterhouse railway line. It ran from Dannemarie (Dammerkirch) through the Largtal via Dannemarie → Altenach → Mertzen → Friesen → Seppois-le-Bas → Pfetterhouse → Swiss border → Bonfol → Porrentruy. The French section was about 20 km long. The line opened in 1910 and was initially a connection within the then German Empire, or between the German Empire and Switzerland. When the line was built, Alsace still belonged to the German Empire. The state treaty for the railway connection between Pfetterhausen and Bonfol was concluded in 1906 between the German Empire and Switzerland. With the start of the First World War, cross-border traffic was stopped. The border between Pfetterhouse and Bonfol was closed. At the same time, Pfetterhouse was located directly at the southern end of the Western Front. The railway could no longer be used simply as a normal international connection. The military significance of the area was considerable: military operations took place in the forests on both sides of the border, partly to prevent Alsatians from fleeing to Switzerland. Even today, traces of shell impacts are still present there.

At border post 111, on the French-Swiss border near Pfetterhouse, the Western Front of the First World War officially began in the autumn of 1914. This spot, where the borders of France, Germany and Switzerland had previously met, became the symbolic Kilometre Zero of a front line that stretched over 750 kilometres to the North Sea. Today it is a peaceful spot along a hiking and cycling trail, where you literally stand at the start of one of the most defining fronts in modern history.

This old railway bridge in pink sandstone, located on the route of the former railway line between Bonfol (Switzerland) and Pfetterhouse, is today a charming part of the cycle route on the Altmühlenweg trail. The bridge was rebuilt to allow cyclists and hikers to pass safely and is a tangible reminder of the time when Pfetterhouse was a strategic border station between France, Germany and Switzerland. From 1871 to 1914, it was the "tri-border point" of Europe, and during the First World War the Western Front began here at the so-called Kilometre Zero.

The boundary markers mark the border and demarcate the territory. After the Franco-Prussian War (1870-71), Alsace became German and a D replaced the fleur-de-lis. After the First World War (1914-18), Alsace became French again and an F was carved over the D, which sometimes still appears, despite the oblique erasure. 1743: Ancien Régime, likely installation of the old boundary markers with the crozier of the former bishopric of Basel and the fleur-de-lis. 1817: The Bernese bear replaced the bishop's crozier following the Congress of Vienna (1815), which reorganized Europe after the fall of Napoleon and assigned the territory of the former bishopric of Basel to the canton of Bern.

Near the border stone 111, the official Kilometre Zero of the Western Front, there was a wooden observation post of the Swiss army during the First World War. This Poste d'observation N°2 offered a view of the French and German lines, while Switzerland maintained its neutrality 1. The post was a symbol of the tense calm at this unique border location, where three armies followed each other closely. Today, the site has been partly reconstructed and forms a special historical point along the hiking and cycling path in the far south of Alsace.

Beautiful pond on the edge of the forest. Many paths lead through the woods, enough to make a nice little outing from Vendlincourt.