Over the Vorder Jochli Pass from Isenthal Valley to Emmetten

Monday October 28, 2024 -- Today starts a week or two of the most fabulous late autumn weather: Mild temperatures, little snow, clear air for superb views into the far distance. Provided you can find cable cars still running at this time of year, it is a great time to get up into the mountains. (If there is fog, then you have to find a way to get up higher than 1200 meters or so).

On this Monday there was no fog, and I did a hike on my own again which we had talked about doing all summer, but the mountainside which we needed to descend on the Lake Lucerne side was quite steep (which Urs has trouble with) and there were livestock guardian dogs in the area (which makes Urs nervous).

This hike is once again in our beloved Uri Alps, starting in the mountain hamlet of Gitschenen where the cable-car runs all year round, and ascending 450 meters to one of several mountain passes (this one was called Vorder Jochli, one we had not crossed to date) and descending via a large alpine pasture called Färnital, with views of Lake Lucerne. (All the mountain passes accessed from Gitschenen are on the Canton border of Uri and Nidwalden)

The uphill hike went quickly, but I was much too warm, so I changed into shorts soon after starting, and even on the very shady north side descent, was still very comfortable wearing them. A little more sunshine on the north side would have been preferable, but it was a great trail which I really loved. It ended up being a 4-hour hike ending at the cable car at Stockhütte (descending to Emmetten) and I wasn't even one bit tired.

(We had just had the winter time change the day before, and because evening comes more quickly now, it would be better to start earlier, to take advantage of as much daylight as possible. But that takes some getting used to!)

It was just four weeks ago that we did this same trip with our friends from California, taking the train south along Lake Uri, and then heading north again with a bus into the Isenthal Valley, along that steep winding road. 

A look to the east side of Lake Uri as the bus heads up into the Isenthal Valley. Above the cliff on the other side is the Oberaxen Farm, where we also took our friends that day four weeks ago. (Photos HERE)

Heading up the Isenthal Valley. This time I am going to the final bus stop at the St.Jakob-Gitschenen cablecar station. 

Heading up with the Gitschenen cablecar, as the other one passes on it way down. There were about 8 people in the cablecar, and I was lucky to get onto the first run (although the wait isn't that long, it's only about a 5-minute ride). At this point, it's shortly before 11 a.m. 

As we head up with the cablecar, we can see further down the valley to the Furggelen Farm, where we took our friends on the special cable car ride (see the great photos HERE). 

Shadow of the cablecar cabin on the mountainside below. 

It is a tradition to "advertise" the birth of babies with cute wooden cutouts like this one. Apparently two babies named Merlin and Fridolin were born here in September! (Very unusual old names...)

Having gotten to the top station at 11 a.m., I watched as the cablecar headed down again... that is, the rest of the people from our bus had to be brought up from the bottom station!

This is in front of the restaurant next to the cablecar station. 

Heading off on my hike shortly after 11 a.m. My uphill goal is the Vorder Jochli Pass at the arrow on the right, a 90-minute hike with 475 meters of elevation gain. 

Starting at 11 a.m. at the summit station of the St.Jakob (Isenthal) cableway, I got to the pass at 1 p.m., and ultimately to the cablecar station at Stockhütte at 3:40 p.m. This was almost a 4-hour hike!

The cows are happy that the weather is so mild and they can still be out in the pastures. 

Heading toward the Vorder Jochli Pass

Another view down the Isenthal Valley. At the very back are the peaks called the Glärnisch, part of the Glarus Alps. The rest of these mountains are part of the Uri Alps.  

It's getting really warm doing this uphill section!

My in-between goal is the cross on the left. We sat there the last time we were here, on a hike DOWN this same trail in August of 2022, and I was looking forward to having my lunch on that bench!

On the way up, a look behind me to the summit station of the cablecar where I started my hike, and the beautiful Uri Alps to the south. 

The cross is coming into view!

Almost there..... I had to hope no one was using the bench, because a couple of hikers had passed me on the same trail.... 

Lucky for me, the other hikers found a picnic table nearby, as there is a farm building here, used by the mountain farmers in summer. I got here at 11:50. By this time it was so warm, that I changed into my shorts here, before continuing on the second part of the ascent. 

I spent a little over 20 minutes on the bench, eating my sandwich and loving the view of the Uri Alps. I would have stayed longer, but a couple of older hikers just came over the edge and really wanted to join me on the bench, which I don't like, so I said they could have it. It was time to move on anyway.  

The two people who felt there was enough room on my bench for three people!

A good place for a photo, looking down at the Ober Bolgen Farm where the bench at the cross are located. 

Still higher up. 

And now I have reached a wide open upper pasture where there is a pass in each direction: Hinter Jochli to the West, where we descended from in August 2022, and Vorder Jochli to the east, where I am headed. A final look to the south, where I ascended from, on the Canton Uri side. 

The sign tells me I only have 15 minutes from here to the Vorder Jochli Pass, much easier than reaching the Hinter Jochli to the west, which we actually crossed twice already, once in each direction (the other time was from this point here, back in October of 2015). 

To the west is the Hinter Jochli Pass, which we crossed once in October 2015 from this side, and in August 2022 from the other side. It takes longer from here to the Hinter Jochli Pass, than to the one I am headed to. 

And off I go for the final 15 minutes to the Vorder Jochli Pass

I got to the pass at about 1 p.m., just under two hours from when I started. With my lunch break at the bench, that's almost exactly the average suggested time of 90 minutes. On the other side of the pass is Canton Nidwalden. 

From the pass you can see firstly Mt. Niederbauen on the right, then the two Mythen Peaks (which are in Canton Schwyz), Lake Lucerne below, and on the north side of the lake is the Rigi Range. My ultimate goal is the Stockhütte cable car at the arrow, from were you can descend to the bus stop at Emmetten. 

From the Vorder Jochli Pass, the view to the East, all the way to the Silberen (largest Karst region in Switzerland) and the Glärnisch peaks in Canton Glarus. 

To the northeast, past the summit of Mt. Niederbauen (on whose summit we have not yet been, although we have walked the trail beneath that summit), a close-up of the two Mythen Peaks in Canton Schwyz. 

I have to be on a photo once in a while! Self-timed photo with a small tripod.... 

Looking down at the next section of my hike, a descent into what is called the Färnital (Färni Valley), an upper pasture where there were guardian dogs and sheep this summer. They are no longer here. At this point there is still some sunshine on the lower part of the pasture, but it was mostly gone by the time I got there. This is a north side, and at this time of year, much in shadow. 

As I start on my descent into the Färnital, this is what the north side of the mountain looks like!

After a 20-minute break at the pass, I started my descent at 1:20 p.m. After accomplishing the steepest part, I look back up to where I crossed the pass. It took 20 minutes to get here. 

A single small spot with sunshine, before I continue on the long descent (and ultimately another uphill section before reaching Stockhütte at the arrow). The sign reads 1 hour 55 minutes to Stockhütte from here, and by the time I got there at 15:40 (exactly 1 hour and 50 minutes from here), it was all in shadow. In retrospect I should have started an hour earlier, then I still would have had sunshine there. 

On the other side of the lake at the foot of the Rigi Range is the town of Gersau. 

From here I head back onto the trail in the shadows, for a long downhill section. Ultimately I have to walk back up to the road in the clearing, and then through the forest to Stockhütte on the right. By the time I got there, most of those sections were also in the shadow of the mountains. 

These are our favourite kinds of hiking trails, along mountainsides like this. It would have been fun to try this in summer. 

My favourite kind of hiking trail.

Beautiful colours in the forests above a valley called the Kohltal, which we also walked down once when we started a hike in Stockhütte, back in September of 2023. 

Heading down the final stretch to the main trail now, I can see that the Färnital (above the cliffs) now has sunshine, whereas when I was there, this was all in shadow!

Beautiful cliffs. 

A final look at the cliffs before reaching the main trail, the one from Niederbauen to Stockhütte, which we have also walked before. 

Back on the "main" trail here, part of Trail no.88: "Nidwalden High Trail", which we walked from Niederbauen to Stockhütte in July of 2019 (a great hike, see photos HERE). From here I have another hour to walk to Stockhütte, and a big portion was uphill again. But since this is now in the shadow of the mountain, it wasn't too strenuous. 

A bench familiar to us, as we have walked past here several times, and taken a similar photo to this one. 

By the time I reached the wider forest trail and nearing the cable-car station at Stockhütte, there were quite a few people on this trail. I assume they were all walking the popular and rather easy trail from Klewenalp to here. (Cablecars on both sides, and then they take the bus back to their parked cars at the Beckenried-Klewenalp cable-car station). 

A final look at the upper valley called Färnital, where I walked down from, now completely in shadow. It's 3:35 p.m. now, and once again I wished I had started an hour earlier. (The time change means evening comes more quickly, so one should start earlier to make most of the daylight). 

There seem to be a lot of places with lots of sunshine! The Stockhütte restaurant is just around the corner, also in shadow, and the gondola cablecar descends from there to Emmetten. 

I got onto the gondola at about 3:45 p.m. for the 10-minute ride, and this is the view from the gondola. (Starting on Nov.4th, this gondola cable-way is only operating on weekends, so this was a good week to do this hike). 

Lovely view over Lake Lucerne (Vierwaldstättersee) and Mount Rigi in the late afternoon light. 

Leaving the gondola at 15:56, just in time to make it to the 16:01 bus nearby. (The schedule suggests leaving summit station at 15:51 to catch this connection, but that would not have been enough time). 

On the bus ride to the train station in Stans (heading home via Lucerne, I was home in about 90 minutes from Stockhütte). There were a lot of people on the bus, but most of them got off in Beckenried, as I suspected, as they would have parked their cars there. 

Location of Isenthal and Emmetten within Switzerland. There are so many beautiful places so close to where I live.