Erlach sits at the south-western tip of Lake Biel, a little Bernese town of one steep street climbing to a castle, with vineyards on the slope behind and reed beds and beaches along the shore below. The flat ground by the water, the Strandboden, is where archaeologists have found traces of prehistoric lakeside villages, part of the network of pile dwelling sites around the Alps inscribed by UNESCO in 2011. Five or six thousand years ago farmers built their houses here on posts at the water's edge, and the waterlogged mud preserved timbers, tools, seeds and even textiles in astonishing detail.
From Erlach a long, narrow strip of land, the Heidenweg, runs out across the lake to the St. Petersinsel, which stopped being an island when the Jura water correction of the nineteenth century lowered the lake. Jean-Jacques Rousseau spent a few blissful weeks there in 1765 after being driven out of his previous refuge, and later wrote that they were the happiest of his life. On the north shore, the wine villages of Ligerz, Twann and La Neuveville line the water beneath steep terraces of Chasselas vines, and the language border runs straight through the region, French on one side, German on the other.
Riding here offers the best of both worlds. The roads along the lake are gentle and scenic, with vineyards and villages and constant views of the water, although the north shore road is busy, squeezed between the railway and the cliffs. Above it, the Jura rises like a wall, and the climb to the Chasseral, with its hairpins, open pastures and enormous views across the Swiss plateau to the Alps, is one of the finest rides in western Switzerland. Swiss speed limits are strictly enforced and fines are steep, so keep an eye on the speedometer.
Le Landeron and La Neuveville, three or so kilometres away, have fuel and shops, and Murten, twelve kilometres away, is a lovely walled town on its own lake. Erlach has a few restaurants and cafés, and the beach is a pleasant place for a swim on a hot day. Try the local white wine with a plate of lake fish, perch or whitefish, in one of the restaurants along the shore.