The Charmey-La Valsainte farm path

Forests covered the landscape of the Pre-Alps, and then, in order to create space for agriculture, man began to clear land from the 11th century onwards. The cleared land gave way to livestock and subsistence crops. This led to the development of the cheese-making industry, which has had a lasting impact on the landscape to this day. The introduction of transhumance to ensure optimum use of grassland also had an impact on the landscape, both in the mountains and in the valleys. Forests continue to grow on steep, inaccessible slopes, while pastures can be found almost everywhere else.

The 1950s brought major changes to the landscape, with the intensification of production methods and the abandonment of the least productive plots. Forests took over, which could pose a problem for biodiversity. Semi-natural environments, which are invaluable for biodiversity, are gradually disappearing.

In the 1990s, farmers began to play an important role in structuring and maintaining the landscape. They play an active role in safeguarding fragile natural environments and landscape features such as hedges, isolated trees and grassy paths. All this while continuing to produce meat and milk, in particular for the production of Gruyère AOP and Vacherin Fribourgeois AOP cheese at the village cheese dairy.

The landscape of the Javro valley is an example of these rich and varied habitats. Between hay meadows, pastures, forests, mountain pastures and residential areas, two itineraries highlight these landscapes. More information on agriculture and ecological networks can be found on the Park's website.

The Montminard loop is the first itinerary. Through wet meadows, this trail follows a fairly steep slope to reach the Liderrey marsh, close to the Montminard mountain pasture. Good footwear is required for some of the wet, lightly marked sections. From the Charmey museum, the walk takes 1 hour 15 minutes, covers 3.5 kilometres and is 150 metres ascent.

The second route is the Charrière trail. From Charmey, the first part follows the road towards the La Valsainte monastery. From there, the La Charrière footpath is not particularly difficult. Fruit trees and hedges accompany the walker along the path for a 1.5-hour, 5.5-kilometre walk with a 150-metre gradient. The route can be taken in either direction, and you can get there or back by post bus on the La Valsainte - Cerniat - Charmey line. Timetables are available on the SBB website.