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Impromptu Hike Report / Impressions
We had originally planned to hike up Mount Hirzli to bask in the sun and enjoy the view of a sea of fog in all directions, but unfortunately we were let down by three key pieces of misinformation:
1. The road leading up to the start of the hike is not publicly accessible, as opposed to what google maps and map.search think (the latter of which usually has this information).
This was semi-expected and wouldn’t have been a problem, except…
2. The cable car was closed for revision, as opposed to the information on their website which had them open for business.
3. The fog covering up to 700 meters above sea level (thanks, Swiss Meteo). More on that later.
Due to our usual late start, we didn’t have time to do the longer version of the hike from the bottom, so we decided to start at least a small impromptu hike somewhere closeby and settled on walking along the north shore of Walensee.
I was hoping to get to around 900 meters above sea level before the sun set, so we could get that view after all.
Along the way, we passed a cool pedestrian tunnel, a maginificent fort (kidding), Saw the Seerenbachfälle (waterfalls) up close, which admittedly is a bit less spectacular in Autumn due to lower water levels, saw some self service coffee stations accepting around a dozen different modes of payment (but not crypto), an insect hotel with an attached worry-box where you can write down your troubles and “get rid of them”, and beautiful views of Walensee under the fog, as well as the autumn forest above *in* said fog.
We did get up to 920 meters in altitude before sunset, unfortunately that only meant we could see the rock face above us lit in the evening sun. We were still in the fog, and getting to the necessary altitude would have meant arriving after sunset and decending the steep and slippery forest trail in the dark, so we turned around. A slightly disappointing climax to an otherwise surprisingly charming and rich improvised hiking tour.
Do you have any questions? Something to add? Feel free to leave a comment below 🙂
Route Report / Gallery
Full size images without watermarks are available for licensing to interested parties. Check romans.pictures for a selection of my favorites, or contact me for details.
Starting point. 
View along the way. 
On this road, traffic is permitted for five minutes every half hour in alternating directions. Jenny enjoying the view. 
The view. 
Majestic castle Strahlegg. 
Majestic Caste Strahlegg. 
View along the way. 
View along the way. 
Seerenbachfälle Waterfalls. Admittedly more impressive in summer. 
Seerenbachfälle Waterfalls. Admittedly more impressive in summer. 
Seerenbachfälle Waterfalls. Admittedly more impressive in summer. 
The view from the falls didn’t disappoint though. 
View along the way. 
Slightly smaller waterfalls. 
A self service, honor system coffee, drinks, and sweets station accepting about a dozen different methods of payment (none of which crypto). 
An insect and bat hotel with an attached worry box, where the troubled hiker may “get rid” of whatever weighs on them by writing it down and depositing it in the box. 
View along the way. 
View along the way. View along the way. 
View along the way. 
View along the way. 
View along the way. 
A glimpse of the sun we coveted. This was about as close as we got. 
Because despite hopes to the contrary, the fog soup still looked like this at 920 m.a.s.l. 
Probably about 20 or 40 more meters would have done it, but those were too far off on this trail and the sun had set by now. 
So back down we went. 
And walked back to the car in the dark, back on safe and easy roads (and with headlights.)
NEWSLETTER
Don’t miss a hike 🙂
Basic Data
| Date of Hike: | 2021-11-20 |
| Participants: | Roman, Jenny |
| (Max) Techn. Difficulty: | T2: Mountain Trail |
Stats
| Km | 14.4 |
| Net Hours (Est.) | 4.3 |
| Net Hours (Act.) | 3.75 |
| Ascent (m) | 667 |
| Descent (m) | 667 |
| Max. Alt. (m) | 921 |
| Loop? | Yes |
| Cable Car? | No |