The Good Spirit of Unterstell
No one knows it more, but it must have been the great-grandfather of today's farmer, with whom the story began.
At the top of Sonnenberg there was a bitter winter. The sun could not touch the snow and all the waters on the mountain were frozen to ice. They only went in front of the house when it was absolutely necessary, over to the barn to feed and milk the cattle.
One evening, when the Zenz, as his great-grandfather was called, was stepping through the snow into the stable, he heard a quiet wailing from the woods above the yard. The whining sounded almost a little creepy. The Zenz went back into the house, fetched the thick joppa, lit a lantern, and stepped through the deep snow up into the woods. Soon he saw in the pale light of the lantern a well-dressed man of stature sitting under a tree in the snow. The man seemed plagued by abdominal pain and trembled with cold.
Zenz helped him to his feet and escorted him down to the warm room. “A herbal tea made from Icelandic moss will help,” said the farmer. The guest stretched out on the bench beside the warm oven, still whining, but as he began to sip the bitter drink, he seemed to feel better at once. Soon the strange companion fell asleep on the stove bench, and Zenz and his family went to their chambers. The next morning, the guest was gone. There was a piece of paper on the table, written in beautiful writing. “My name is Balthasar, I am the good spirit of the Sonnenberg, here and there to make sure that everything on the mountain is right. I have been tormented by stomach ache for many days, even the cold, but no one in the area paid attention. But you have taken care of me. As a thank you, I will stay on the stand. I will keep watch over the farm, the surroundings and the people who live here. ”
It was only when the via ferrata at KNOTT was built that Konrad, today's farmer on Unterstell, rediscovered it. The ghost remained near the yard for years, but could not be seen. Only a photo taken from the air during the formation of the via ferrata made the good undercarriage spirit visible.