Map

Thumbnail for the map of the Schweizmobil 'Unesco Rundgang' (SS 545) snowshoe hiking trail. Opens link to interactive web map.
Source1

Elevation Profile

Elevation profile of the Schweizmobil 'Unesco Rundgang' (SS 545) snowshoe hiking trail.
Source1: Bundesamt fĂŒr Landestopografie; Drawn with schweizmobilplus.c

Useful Links

Route Source
Bus Stop
Parking
Weather
Cable Car

Short Description

The so called Sardona Tectonic Arena mountain range in the Glarus/Grisons alps being an Unesco world heritage site is what gives this particular snowshoe trail its particular name (“Unesco Circuit”).

What makes this area special, or worthy of being a world heritage site, is how clearly the line between older Permo-Triassic and newer Jurassic rock layers can be seen in the Glarus Thrust.

Christian Heine (https://imaggeo.egu.eu/user/chhei/) – https://imaggeo.egu.eu/view/13545/

In winter, though, for example during a snowshoe hike, well… it’s mostly white. So I might have reserved that name for a summer tour. Still a beautiful region and tour though.

Notes

  • The cable car tickets are about 40 CHF per person.

Impressions

This winter had been unusually warm, which meant most snowshoe trails were not covered in deep enough (or any) snow, including all the ones I should photograph for Schweizmobil.

One exception is the Unesco Rundweg trail, being located at an altitude of over 2000 meters.

The perfect choice then, for this supposedly sunny Monday off.

The alps, shrouded in clouds, as seen from near Nagens, the start of our route.

Well, the weather did not keep the promise the forecast made, but while the shade made the wind chill bite a bit harder, the overcast alps rising above the fog, clouds pierced by the occasional ray of sunlight, made for absolutely stunning views along the way.

Top of the route, the Sardona Arena, admittedly a bit monochrome.

The clouds did eventually dissolve, granting us some brief moments in the sun, here and there.

Another view of the alps, this time minus some of the fog, replaced with late afternoon rays of light.

The trail following and crisscrossing prepared ski pistes in this busy winter sport area was as technically easy as you would expect, while the incline and height difference does pose some requirements to the hiker’s constitution. It’s a short tour though, with plenty of opportunities to abort along the way, so definitely nothing to shy away from.

Probably one of the best options for warm winters, if you don’t mind hiking in a busy ski area. To be fair, that will be the case for all high altitude trails, at least the official and “safe” ones.

Would you like to share your own experiences with this hike? 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.

NEWSLETTER

Don’t miss a hike 🙂

Basic Data

Date of Hike:2023-01-23
Participants:Roman, T
Technical Difficulty:T1: Easy

Stats

Km5.5
Net Hours (Est.)3.3
Net Hours (Act.)2.5
Ascent (m)400
Descent (m)400
Max. Alt. (m)2444
Loop?Yes
Cable Car?Yes
Share this on Social Media

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *