The white lake - Hans Rock

Date 23/05/2021

A walk on the heights of the white lake (Lac Blanc) located in Orbey, in the Haut-Rhin.

Greenery, nature, height, a bit of water, and it's the perfect mix for a Sunday walk. It was obvious that I had to pass by this place and go photograph it without hesitation. I'll take you there. The starting point is very easy to find: it is directly on the car park. It is possible to walk a small part of the way around the lake, but the escapade quickly leads to a dead end. Let's get some height instead.

Roots that make you lose your sight
The first few metres are littered with roots

Roots, roots and more roots. No doubt about it, we are in the forest. Let's continue our ascent. A confirmed level was advised to do this walk and... I can only confirm it, the paths are steep, slippery.

marked white lake trail red circle rocks
Follow the red circle

Half an hour later and a few more meters up, the first reward arrives. At the bend in the path, we can enjoy a very nice view of the lake.

view of white lake orbey
View of the lake

Time to breathe, drink a little, and we start walking again. We are now at the foot of this staircase which seems to lead directly to heaven.

staircase rocks sky white lake hans rock
The stairway to heaven

A word of advice: if you are afraid of heights, don't go. Similarly, if the weather is not good, turn back, as mud and rocks rarely go together...

statue of the virgin from the white lake trail orbey
stacked rocks white lake orbey trail
At the bend in the road

A little more walking...

Virgin statue at the top of Hans Rock
The statue of the Virgin on top of the Hans Rock

And finally the reward after 2 hours of walking through the rocks. Here is the highest point:

view of the white lake from the highest point
The whole area is overlooked

The view is breathtaking, and the reward is worthy of our efforts. Due to lack of time (the joys of curfew), we could not do the full loop. So we turned back, threading our way through rocks and roots. And then... it's only a goodbye after all!

What about you?

Do you wanna share your experience? Do you have any question? Tell us! :)