Gsteig bei Gstaad is a municipality in the Obersimmental-Saanen administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. Gsteig was formerly known by the French name of Châtelet. History Gsteig is first mentioned in 1312 as Chastelet. In 1453, it was mentioned as Steig. The villages of Gsteig and Feutersoey grew up along the roads over the Col du Pillon and the Sanetsch Pass. During the Middle Ages, a castle was built in the valley to protect and control the passes. The castle is first mentioned in 1458 and today is in ruins. At one time there was a settlement at Ussers Gründ which was destroyed by a landslide. Originally Gsteig was part of the district and parish of Saanen. The village church of St. Theodul was consecrated in 1453. It became a filial church of Saanen in 1500. In the early 16th century, Bern adopted the new faith of the Protestant Reformation, however Gsteig did not convert until 1556. Traditionally the villagers practiced seasonal alpine herding and farming and made a little money off trade over the passes. Beginning around 1900, tourism became a major part of the local economy. Today there are several hotels and a number of vacation homes in the municipality. Tourist sites include the Diablerets Glacier, the castle ruins, the Arnensee and the nature preserve at Oldenhorn. Geography Gsteig bei Gstaad has an area of . As of 2012, a total of or 37.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 36.2% is forested. The rest of the municipality is or 1.4% is settled (buildings or roads), or 1.2% is either rivers or lakes and or 24.0% is unproductive land. During the same year, housing and buildings made up 0.7% and transportation infrastructure made up 0.6%. A total of 28.8% of the total land area is heavily forested and 5.4% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 8.7% is pasturage and 28.4% is used for alpine pastures. Of the water in the municipality, 0.8% is in lakes and 0.5% is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 9.2% is unproductive vegetation and 14.6% is too rocky for vegetation. The municipality lies in an upper valley of the river Saane in the Bernese Oberland and consists of the villages of Gsteig and Feutersoey, plus a number of outlying farms. The route to the Col du Pillon, an alpine pass,