Anyone who has worked on mountain bike trails, their construction, or their official approval knows that a trail network like this requires time, commitment, and coordination. The trails in Jeizinen also have a long development history. Valais took a positive direction on mountain bike routes early on, allowing implementation to proceed relatively quickly.
Between 2017 and 2018, Bikeplan developed the master plan for the district of Leuk as part of the Bike Valais/Wallis project. The master plan includes 15 routes across the district, with four routes planned for the area around Jeizinen.
The subsequent trail permitting phase took another two years. During that time, Bikeplan also planned the signage and introduced measures to raise awareness of nature and shared trail use (coexistence). During implementation, the Leuk region’s forestry service, led by Bikeplan, carried out various mountain biking measures on existing trails to ensure safety and coexistence. Water management on—or, more precisely, away from—the trails was improved through drainage measures, while stone armoring and similar measures protected the trails against erosion.
The master plan resulted in three local routes in the Jeizinen area (ML 117: Jeizibärg Bike, ML 118: Jeizi Enduro, ML 114: Torrenttrail Bike) and one regional route (ML 41, Valais Alpine Bike, Stage 2: Leukerbad – Rinderhütte – Raron – Unterbäch).
Bikeplan also developed master plans in Valais for Goms, Aletsch Arena, Naters-Belalp, Brig/Simplon, Um Visp, Saastal, Lötschental, Crans-Montana, Verbier, and Région Dents du Midi. These subsequently served as the basis for approving and implementing mountain bike trail networks and tracks under Valais’s recreational transport legislation.
