A hike in central Switzerland at the end of March 2021
It is the 28th of March. Historically, this time of year is reserved for winter sports. But this year, spring is arriving early, or so it seems. While it has already been warm, we received another load of snow just a week ago that is still lingering around. Not in the flat lands but the hills are covered in a blanked of white. Any hike with a bit of altitude will run into snow very quickly. Considering it is still march, we should not be complaining though. But we need to be careful and choosing a safe route without exposure is essential. If you didn’t know, Snow can be slippery. If you are not an experienced hiker with absolute sure footedness, then you should not expose yourself to any risky business on snow. Better safe than sorry.
Nevertheless, the weather forecast was promising, and I wanted to start my season with a bit of training. The opportunities nearby are limited, and anything which can be considered interesting is still covered in snow and too dangerous. So back to my house range it is. It is still in my plan to once run the Wildspitz chain in full. The part I have not done is the area from Chaiserstock to Unterägeri. So why not explore this area on an easy hike? No need to start from home, I can travel to Sattel and start from there instead. So here is the plan: Go to Sattel early morning by public transport. Hike across the mountain chain and back down to Unterägeri. Take a bus home. Simple right? And to not be so alone, I posted the route on a social media to see the response. Here is how that went.
The group met just after 9 am at the train station. Most people arrived by train. those who came by car found a couple of convenient parking spots next to the train station. Although these likely fill up quickly in the summer months. A total of nine people showed up. Considering the short notice of the post, I was happily surprised by the number of people. After a short, social distance hello, we set off on the hike.
As it is the first Hike of the season, we planned for something relatively easy with not too much ascend. The Halsegg is situated at about 1’300 meters above sea level and only about 500 meters ascend from the train station. The mountainside is oriented southeast, and therefore most of the ascend was in the sun. Thanks to this, we did not encounter much snow. Only part of the way was under tree foliage and therefore the shadow spared the snow some extra time. The last hundred meters of the summit push were again covered in a thin layer of snow, but nothing that could not be accomplished with normal shoes and a hiking pole.
We had lunch at the Halsegg with a beautiful view of the Mythen and other alpine panoramas. We were not the only ones who decided to hike on this beautiful day. Many groups were also crossing over the ridge here and enjoyed the sun. We had a quick discussion if we want to prolong the hike and reach the summit of Wildspitz, the highest peak along the ridge. We decided against it and that we would descend together.
The descend on the other side of the ridge had much more snow cover. The path leads mainly through forested areas, and due to the fact that this side of the mountain is facing north, much less sunlight and warmth reach the ground here. This was not an issue though. Without sunlight, the snow was still firm in the afternoon. It was never really steep going down but felt long. According to my watch, we covered almost 10km from the Halsegg down to Unterägeri. At some point, the snow started to become soft, then the path became a road and the snow disappeared completely. Here we entered what appeared to be postcard country. Swiss landscapes with farms houses here and there and snow-covered mountain tops just behind us. A Truly beautiful Landscape.
Shortly thereafter we reached Unterägeri bus station, where we said our goodbyes. Some of us had to take the Bus back to Sattel while the rest of us took the Bus to Zug Train station. Thank you to all that participated and big thanks for sharing your photos and videos! I hope to see you again soon
Further Resources
Map of the route https://out.ac/zh3Ug
Webcam from the nearby Wildspitz https://wildspitz.roundshot.com/
My Strava Recordings
