Adventure from La Cure to La Chaux-de-Fonds on foot with a dog

Hello, I’d like to embark on a little trip in my home country, Switzerland. I’ll start walking from La Cure, heading toward Le Noirmont first, then I’ll improvise my route—but it’ll probably follow the French border... at least as far as Lac de Joux.

I’ll decide day by day how much farther to go after that. My goal is to stay in nature as much as possible, wander around for as long as I can, and restock food in villages or towns along the way.

I’m thinking of mostly camping, but we’ll see if I end up in a hotel or another campsite depending on my route.

I’d love to reach La Chaux-de-Fonds on foot... maybe even Delémont. The whole thing should take about a week, give or take.

I’ll be bringing my dog, and I’m preparing for this as soon as I’m ready.

Any tips to make sure everything goes smoothly for us? Things I should know—or avoid? What about shepherds with their flocks of sheep? And isn’t hunting season open right now?

I’m not sure if what I’m planning is even doable, which is why I’m asking around.

This’ll be my first time doing something like this—wandering in nature *and* with a dog. I’m really excited for this adventure... and I need it. Thanks!

Good evening! If you want to camp rough, watch out for water points and wells—they’re really rare when leaving La Cure. When you leave La Cure, you’ll need to push on to Le Brassus to find water. Also, if it’s really hot, it’s better to walk in the forest because it’s cooler. In the Risoux forest, I know the water points—there are only two or three at most. As for valleys with sheepdogs, I don’t know about the Swiss side. But since there’s plenty of space, you can easily avoid them.

Good evening,

I’m thinking of mostly doing bivouacking

Just a heads-up about the rules around authorized bivouac spots—between federal, cantonal, and municipal regulations, the Swiss seem pretty strict on this: https://homme-nature.ch/bivouac-en-suisse-est-ce-autorise/

In Switzerland, you're never really sure of anything... there are tons of exceptions to the rules 🙁. There are even rules that only apply to foreigners—for example, parking. And when you get fined, you remember it for a long time. Sometimes it’s ten times the rate applied in France! Personally, unless I’m absolutely certain I have the right, I’d avoid bivouacking in Switzerland. Even more so with a dog!!

At first glance, this seems really complicated... And yeah, traveling with a dog is always complicated, even without wild camping—just walking in a forest, there are laws as if the dog were some kind of separate living being... I’ll keep looking into it, checking with local municipalities and all... I’ll just make some calls to see what they say for now... Anyway, thanks for your helpful info—right now, I’m still packing, which isn’t easy already, but your tips are really helping. Thanks! :)

Where I live in the Vercors, you can bivouac—that is, you can pitch your tent for the night. You absolutely have to take it down early in the morning and, of course, leave the place clean just as you found it... makes sense!

From what I understand, in Switzerland, it’s already hard to know where you’re allowed to bivouac, but above all, it’s forbidden to pitch a tent! They don’t explain how to go about it. It’s tough to bivouac without a tent, especially when it rains! 🙁

just walking in a forest, there are laws as if the dog were a separate living being...

Don’t worry if you’re walking even in the Risoux Forest where no one passes—no one will come and point out that you have a dog. You might be worrying over nothing. On the Swiss side of the Risoux Forest, there are I don’t know how many cabins in the woods. Normally, they’re reserved for forestry workers, but if you arrive in the evening, stay overnight, and leave early in the morning, I doubt anyone will say anything. Check out the refuge.info site to locate these cabins on the Swiss side. I’ve passed through there before and didn’t see any signs saying wild camping was forbidden.

To be honest, I’ve already camped wild in Switzerland, but I always did it in full ninja mode—completely invisible—and I’ve never had any issues. I totally agree about respecting nature; we leave the place exactly as we found it :)

Thanks, Mathews, your tips are super helpful!

Good evening Shaloudog, you're welcome! Have a great hike! I recommend Swiss topographic map number 460T from the Swiss Federal Office of Topography 🙂

A solution for bivouacking without a tent: use a hammock with a mosquito net and a tarp for rain. It's lighter than a tent. I've already used this gear, but in the tropics. When you're used to sleeping in a hammock, it's the ideal solution and very practical in the forest, especially for staying low-key...

Thanks Djalma, you're right—having a decent backpack isn't exactly a walk in the park either xD

Should've adopted a donkey instead of a dog so it could carry everything for me xD

hi there, you might be able to get a Carrix cart, but I’m not sure if they still make that model.

Thanks, but I’d rather keep my hands free for when I need to hold my dog’s leash—I’ll manage with my bag, and besides, it’ll force me to take only the essentials! :)

If you feel like exploring the Risoux Forest, you can discover the "Wall of Inscriptions," totally lost in the woods. From La Cure, head down to the village of Les Rousses, then take a forest road to the Bonnefoy Chalet, where you can spend the night. You can pitch a tent nearby—just be aware that nights can still get cold. From there, you can continue to the Wall of Inscriptions. Next, reach the Chalet des Ministres, another shelter, and head toward the Gaillard Chalet. From there, you can cross back into Switzerland and descend to Le Brassus. There are a few shelters right at the Franco-Swiss border, like the Chalet d'Italie. There’s a well for water.

Alternatively, if you stay on the French side, you can reach the Hérisson Waterfalls.

I’ll give you an update on my route—I’m going to do it from Les Rousses to Le Brassus. It’s decided, and it’ll be simpler for a first adventure in nature.

Actually, I think I won’t leave the Forêt du Risoux for a few days. There must be tons of trails to explore, and the photos look pretty nice.

I’ll prep a bit, but I’ll also improvise part of the route. The idea is just to enjoy nature, and the Forêt du Risoux really speaks to me.

I'm going to do this, from Les Rousses to Le Brassus

It's really short! A good walker can do it in one day, or take up to two days at a leisurely pace. By road, it's about 17 km, and if you follow the GRP Tour de la Haute Bienne, it shouldn't exceed 20 km with 550 m of elevation gain

I’ll admit, I’m tempted to head out this Saturday—nothing’s stopping me from going farther after Les Brassus or even staying on the French side... Not sure yet... But it’ll probably be a bit of a last-minute thing

Hey, aren’t you heading toward Le Noirmont? Just a heads-up: if you want to cross from France into Switzerland—specifically the Vaud canton—the trail isn’t marked when leaving Chalet Gaillard (FR) through the Risoux Forest. It’s not easy to find. After you pass a stone wall, though, it’s marked, and you’ll reach Chalet de la Combe Herbée. Otherwise, there are restrooms at La Cure train station where you can fill up your water bottle.

No, I’m going from Noirmont to Brassus, then either heading to Grand Risoux or, alternatively, Lac de Joux. Either way, I’ll make it to Petit Risoux. Tomorrow, I’ll pick up the map next to the 460T—it’s amazing! Anyway, it’s either I start from Noirmont and do the Risoux forest another time, or the other way around. But starting from Noirmont seems simpler to me.