"""Spirit of Place""
Elisabeth Gewinner's favourite spot
I don't know if there's a spirit in every place but I've often felt a presence. Especially in the mountain. My husband Bernard and I were passionate about it. Obsessed even. Whether it be the Alps or Vosges ridges. Walkers on untarmacked paths, always enthralled, tackling unspoilt scenery touching the purest skies.
Grandiose or simply moving, the spirit of place whispers something to us that appeals to all our senses. Especially in the morning and evening when everything is calmer. Birdsong, bubbling streams, lights and colours that change with the time and season... There's nothing like simple things to clear out the cobwebs and lighten your heart.
The miracle is that the spirit is only talking to you. It gives everyone something specific that you can share as you walk with your friends or family.
And then there are spirits that never leave us. Familiar spirits who talk to us every day, just outside our door and that we never tire of.
For me it's Coucou Lake, an unassuming but magical place.
For many its refreshing charm is a start point or stage of a journey. Around Salm and its château, Maxe peat land, Framboise Valley and lake, the Great Oak, Malplaquet and the Trois Planchers site, Chatte Pendue, Les Passeurs trail and so many more well-known places popular with hikers who love the Donon's treasures.
Walking was as vital to Bernard as breathing. And Coucou Lake was his daily hike. He went there almost every morning, often at dawn to ponder over the fresh promise of the day. Always the same but always different. The magic may be mysterious but it never fails.
The spirit of Coucou Lake now has a very unique sound to it. And I'm the only one to hear it..."