An easy walk of about 1.5 kilometers from Wilderswil train station, and only about three kilometers from central Interlaken, is the romantic ruin of Unspunnen Castle. Its history is recorded back to the early 1200s, and although its builder is unknown, it was the center of a baronial fief in the 13th and 14th centuries.
Along with the nearby Rothenfluh, Unspunnen guarded the medieval Lütschinenbrücke bridge at Gsteig. Some sources hold that these ruins inspired Lord Byron to write his poem Manfred, and it is true that much of it was written during his travels through the Bernese Alps in September of 1816.
