Hiking in Switzerland – Gabrielle and Urs: August 2014

(This post was created on September 21, 2023)

Thursday and Friday August 7 and 8, 2014 -- The forecast was for two days of "relative" good weather, so we tried another 2-day hike with an overnight in a mountain hostel (Swiss Alpine Hostel Windgällenhütte). Just in case, though, we took umbrellas along, which turned out to be useful, as it rained lightly along the way.

This was my first time in the Maderaner Valley in Canton Uri (a side valley of the Reuss Valley, accessed by bus from Amsteg, and not at all very far from home), but Urs has been here often, and it's one of his favourite valleys. There are several different trails up to the hostel, but we chose the one that took us past the lovely Golzeren Lake, a 20-minute walk from the convenient cable car station. We had to hike up 600 meters altitude to the hostel and got there at 3:30 p.m., an approximately 3-hour hike after our late start at shortly after noon. It was good timing, as it then started to pour, and we had fog after that for most of the evening until the sun went down. But then the clearing of the night skies promised a good day the morrow.

The next day dawned lovely, and we made our way back down to the valley along a longer route which first took us further into the valley, before making our way back to the cable-car station and bus stop along the Chärstelen River. The back of this valley is rather "wild" and has lots of waterfalls and glaciers. It was a spectacular hike, and we need to come back to do this again some time.

In all over the two days, it was a 6-hour, 16 km hike, which many people actually do as a one-day hike! But it was a nice experience for us.

The excursion starts from Amsteg below, with a bus ride into the lovely side valley along a narrow, winding road. Down below is the railway bridge. At this point the sun was shining and we had hopes for good weather.

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It's an impressive bus ride up the winding road into the Maderaner Valley! Approaching cars have a few places where they can move to the side, but sometimes they have to back up when they encounter the bus.

The final stop of the bus is at the Bristen Valley Station of the Bristen-Golzeren cable-way. This is a view down on the Chärstelen River as we ascend to the upper Golzeren Alp. Down below where the bus is, is where we will end up on the second day after walking out of the valley.

A description from our interactive hiking map explains how wild and beautiful this "hidden " valley is.

Unfortunately the clouds are low on the north side of the valley, so we can't see the peak of the Chli Windgällen, but the meadow flowers sure are pretty. We started our walk from the summit station at 12:15

An interesting thing about this valley, or Canton Uri in general: There are many caves with quartz crystals, and the locals who have permission to harvest the crystals set up such boxes along the trails with crystals of different pricing, and you pay into the little cash box. It's all on honesty principle.

It takes about 20 minutes to walk from the summit cable-car station eastward to Golzeren Lake. This little hamlet is called Seewen. There are two restaurants here.

Approaching the lake. We are going to walk around the south side (on the right) before heading up the mountainside on the left.

A look back across Golzeren Lake as we head around the south and east side. One good thing about the not-so-great weather is that there are hardly any other people up here this day!

It's a lovely walk around the lake

Heading up the mountain now on a pretty neat trail through the forest. It was pretty steep and a strenuous climb, though.

A view down on Lake Golzeren and the small "valley" toward the cable car station, and further back: The Reuss Valley where we came up from. It's really too bad about the weather.

But we came prepared, and our umbrellas proved useful when it started to drizzle. It's 3 p.m. now and we have been walking for just under 3 hours. It's apparently not "cool" to hike in the mountains with umbrellas, but we don't care!

Ah, only 25 minutes now till we get to our goal of the Windgällen Hostel where we are going to spend the night.

The final uphill section. The fog is still sitting low on the mountains. What a shame. Shortly after we got to the hostel (about 3:45 p.m.) it started to rain heavily. Nothing to do but sit inside and chat with a few other hikers, and wait for dinner.

Checking for a view once in a while. This is 6:30 p.m.!

And now, at 8 p.m., the clouds are starting to clear, finally!

A bit of a view of the hillside behind the hostel.

And way at the back of the Maderaner Valley we finally get a look at the magnificent Hüfi Glacier. There is another hostel on the ridge overlooking the glacier. One day we will hike up there.

8:15 p.m. and the skies are clearing. A promise of good weather for the next day, hopefully.

The "Maderaner High Trail" (Regional Trail no. 590) is a 16-km trail that takes about 6 hours to walk. Many people do this in a single day. But we decided to spend the night in the Windgällen Hostel, and continue on the walk into the valley the next day, starting early. The fastest route from the summit of the Golzeren cable-car to the hostel is about 2¼ hours. The second section back to the valley station of the cable car is about 3½ hours.

The next morning at 7:30 a.m., the sun is illuminating the summit of Mount Bristen, which we finally can see!

A close-up look at the lovely Mount Bristen

The little cows come around to say good morning!

After breakfast at the hostel and filling up on what is called "Hiking Tea" (Marschtee, something offered by all the Swiss Alpine Hostels as part of the overnighting), we head out on the second day of our hike at 9 a.m.

A last look at the Windgällen hostel as we head back down the mountain. But the peaks on the north side of the valley are still covered in clouds.

We pass through a cluster of barns and farmhouses called Stäfel. Across the valley is a side valley called the Brunni Valley, where you can walk all the way up to a pass into the Surselva region, and another hostel called the Cavardirashütte.

A look down the Maderaner Valley

And now the clouds have finally lifted on the peaks on the north side.

This back section of the valley was replete with waterfalls and streams which we had to cross

And some of the bridges looked pretty shaky, having had damage from winter avalanches

Getting closer now to the valley bottom

One of many spectacular waterfalls on the south side of the valley.

At the back of the valley you can just see the bottom of the tongue of the Hüfi Glacier. Hidden back there is a lake called Hüfi Lake, with no official trails heading there, but Urs and an Uncle did hike there many years ago. On the ridge above the green area above the waterfall is the Hüfi Hostel

Admiring the lovely Maderaner Valley

More waterfalls...

And yet MORE waterfalls!

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One of many waterfalls we had to cross

Information about the Stäuber Lammerbach Waterfall which descends out of the Brunni Valley: It is made up of three separate falls, for a total of 164 meters.

Stäuber Lammerbach Waterfall, which descends from the Brunni Valley on the south side of the Maderaner Valley

The Maderaner Mountain Hotel was built in 1864 and is still in operation, with 65 "nostalgic" rooms and a lovely garden terrace. It was a popular destination a century ago, built for the British upper class who came here (in the middle of nowhere!) for R&R.

We had a break in the garden terrace of the old hotel, for something to drink. We got here at 11:45 a.m.

From the hotel the trail continues to a hamlet called Balmenschachen. These cows feel at home everywhere!

Imagine having these girls on your front lawn.

From Balmenschachen we headed down to the river and followed the river the rest of the way, about 4½ km and just over an hour. The tree in the river is pretty cool!

Looking up the Maderaner Valley

In Lägni, another hamlet along the way, is another Gasthaus and restaurant.

Rushing water in the Chärstelen River

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Rushing waters of the Chärstelen River

Nearing our destination now, as the houses in Bristen near the cable-car station come into view

The little 8-person cable car is busy all day bringing people up and down this popular mountain! We got back to the cable car station at just after 2 p.m, that's about 5 hours after starting our walk at the hostel.