Belchen Tunnel
Encyclopedia
The Belchen Tunnel is a motorway tunnel
in Switzerland
, and forms part of the A2
motorway from Basel
to Chiasso
. It is 3.2 km long, and lies in the northern (slightly northwestern) part of Switzerland. It links Eptingen
in the canton of Basel-Country
with Hägendorf
in the Canton of Solothurn
. The tunnel was built in the mid-1960s. It was completely renovated in 2003.
circulated, dealing with a "white woman" ("weisse Frau") of the Bölchentunnel ("Bölchen" is local dialect for "Belchen"). Shaped as an old white-clothed hitchhiking woman, a ghost (though not initially recognized as such) appears out of nowhere in front of the drivers and sometimes even speaks to them.
The first known Belchen ghost was actually male. The first written credentials about the phenomena (dated June 1980) are about a male hitchhiker who was picked up, but despite the driver's high rate of speed, after some time passed the person was no longer in the car.
Towards the end of that year, the "white woman" began appearing in or outside the tunnel. On January 6, 1981, the tabloid Blick
wrote about the sightings, followed by other media also adopting the story. Basel Police received many phone calls, dozens of which had to be logged.
The "Bölchengespenst" (Bölchen ghost) became a popular subject for 1981's Shrove Tuesday
carnival. Even the musicians of the Oberbaselbieter Ländlerkapelle treated the legend. Later, the discussion cooled down - until the 1983 edition of the book Baselbieter Sagen reported further strange sightings of the white woman. There were two female jurists who picked up an inconspicuously dressed, clumsy, pale, middle-aged woman in Eptingen
. When later asked if she felt better, she answered "No, unfortunately not. I am not well at all (or "It isn't going [at all] well (for me)" from the German "Es geht (mir) [gar] nicht gut."). Something really awful is going to happen, something very dreadful!" (Swiss-German: "Nei, leider nid. Es goht gar nid guet. Es passiert öppis Schrecklichs, öppis ganz Furchtbars!") When the two jurists next looked at the backseat, the woman had disappeared.
." In Läufelfingen
, the woman wears a green loden coat, in the Canton of Bern, a girl in a short leather jacket appears. In the area of Basel, as with the case in Tenniken
, a man wearing black is seen. The man prophesizes an earthquake and a hard winter before disappearing. The mysterious hitchhikers can even disappear if the car has only front doors and no back doors.
A 1981 article in the magazine Schweizer Volkskunde describes analogous visitations. According to it, such "modern ghosts of the road" were seen in other Swiss Cantons and tunnels, such as the Luzernerland area and in Toggenburg
.
Tunnel
A tunnel is an underground passageway, completely enclosed except for openings for egress, commonly at each end.A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic, for rail traffic, or for a canal. Some tunnels are aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations or are sewers...
in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, and forms part of the A2
A2 (Switzerland)
The A2 is a motorway in Switzerland. It forms Switzerland's main north-south axis from Basel to Chiasso, meandering with a slight drift toward the east....
motorway from Basel
Basel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
to Chiasso
Chiasso
Chiasso is a municipality in the district of Mendrisio in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.As the southernmost of Switzerland's municipalities, Chiasso is located at the border with Italy, in front of Ponte Chiasso...
. It is 3.2 km long, and lies in the northern (slightly northwestern) part of Switzerland. It links Eptingen
Eptingen
Eptingen is a municipality in the district of Waldenburg in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland.-Geography:Eptingen has an area, , of . Of this area, or 47.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 47.6% is forested...
in the canton of Basel-Country
Basel-Country
Basel-Landschaft , is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. The capital is Liestal...
with Hägendorf
Hägendorf
Hägendorf is a municipality in the district of Olten in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland.-History:Hägendorf is first mentioned in 1036 as Hagendorf. In 1102-03 it was mentioned as Haegindorf.-Geography:...
in the Canton of Solothurn
Canton of Solothurn
Solothurn is a canton of Switzerland. It is located in the northwest of Switzerland. The capital is Solothurn.-History:The territory of the canton comprises land acquired by the capital...
. The tunnel was built in the mid-1960s. It was completely renovated in 2003.
The "white woman" - an urban legend
January 1981, a modern mythVanishing hitchhiker
The vanishing hitchhiker story is an urban legend in which people travelling by vehicle meet with or are accompanied by a hitchhiker who subsequently vanishes without explanation, often from a moving vehicle...
circulated, dealing with a "white woman" ("weisse Frau") of the Bölchentunnel ("Bölchen" is local dialect for "Belchen"). Shaped as an old white-clothed hitchhiking woman, a ghost (though not initially recognized as such) appears out of nowhere in front of the drivers and sometimes even speaks to them.
The first known Belchen ghost was actually male. The first written credentials about the phenomena (dated June 1980) are about a male hitchhiker who was picked up, but despite the driver's high rate of speed, after some time passed the person was no longer in the car.
Towards the end of that year, the "white woman" began appearing in or outside the tunnel. On January 6, 1981, the tabloid Blick
Blick
Blick is a German-language daily tabloid newspaper published in Zürich, Switzerland since 1959 by Ringier.It has a circulation of 275,000 and a readership of 750,000 . Only the free daily 20 Minuten has a higher circulation in Switzerland....
wrote about the sightings, followed by other media also adopting the story. Basel Police received many phone calls, dozens of which had to be logged.
The "Bölchengespenst" (Bölchen ghost) became a popular subject for 1981's Shrove Tuesday
Shrove Tuesday
Shrove Tuesday is a term used in English-speaking countries, especially in Ireland, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, Germany, and parts of the United States for the day preceding Ash Wednesday, the first day of the season of fasting and prayer called Lent.The...
carnival. Even the musicians of the Oberbaselbieter Ländlerkapelle treated the legend. Later, the discussion cooled down - until the 1983 edition of the book Baselbieter Sagen reported further strange sightings of the white woman. There were two female jurists who picked up an inconspicuously dressed, clumsy, pale, middle-aged woman in Eptingen
Eptingen
Eptingen is a municipality in the district of Waldenburg in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland.-Geography:Eptingen has an area, , of . Of this area, or 47.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 47.6% is forested...
. When later asked if she felt better, she answered "No, unfortunately not. I am not well at all (or "It isn't going [at all] well (for me)" from the German "Es geht (mir) [gar] nicht gut."). Something really awful is going to happen, something very dreadful!" (Swiss-German: "Nei, leider nid. Es goht gar nid guet. Es passiert öppis Schrecklichs, öppis ganz Furchtbars!") When the two jurists next looked at the backseat, the woman had disappeared.
Other variations
Such visitations don't only happen inside or around tunnels. A re-edited edition of the Baselbieter Sagen mentions similar cases at other Basel places: "the Heidegg castle's lady," "the maiden on the goat," and "the grey woman in ZunzgenZunzgen
Zunzgen is a municipality in the district of Sissach in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland.-Geography:Zunzgen has an area, , of . Of this area, or 38.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 49.9% is forested...
." In Läufelfingen
Läufelfingen
Läufelfingen is a municipality in the district of Sissach in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland.-History:Läufelfingen is first mentioned in 1226 as Leinvolvingen. In 1481 it was mentioned as Leiffeldingen.-Geography:...
, the woman wears a green loden coat, in the Canton of Bern, a girl in a short leather jacket appears. In the area of Basel, as with the case in Tenniken
Tenniken
Tenniken is a municipality in the district of Sissach in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland.-Geography:Tenniken has an area, , of . Of this area, or 47.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 41.2% is forested...
, a man wearing black is seen. The man prophesizes an earthquake and a hard winter before disappearing. The mysterious hitchhikers can even disappear if the car has only front doors and no back doors.
A 1981 article in the magazine Schweizer Volkskunde describes analogous visitations. According to it, such "modern ghosts of the road" were seen in other Swiss Cantons and tunnels, such as the Luzernerland area and in Toggenburg
Toggenburg
Toggenburg is the name given to the upper valley of the Thur River, in the Swiss Canton of St. Gallen. Currently, it is one of the eight constituencies into which the canton is divided....
.
External links
- "Plötzlich war die Frau weg, fort, einfach nicht mehr da" Volksstimme, 25 January 2001