Martinsloch and Tschingelhorn Peaks in Elm, Canton Glarus

Sunday October 16th -- The village of Elm in Canton Glarus is known to be a recreational area, popular for skiing in winter, and mountain carts / trottinettes in summer. The village is located at the back of the Sernf Valley, from where a trail leads over the Panix Pass, once an important trade route between Canton Glarus and Italy, and one of the many passes which the Russian General Suvorov crossed with his troops in October of 1799 in his retreat from Napoleon's troops (where he suffered disastrous losses in an early snowfall).

Elm is also the location of the renowned "Martinsloch" (Martin's Hole), a hole in the Tschingelhorn Massif (part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Sardona Tectonic Arena) where on two days each year the sun shines directly through the hole onto the church in Elm. (People come from far and wide to witness this, although we have not yet seen it).

We had only ever been once to Elm in 2014, on an ugly February day after we had done a tour of the nearby kosher bakery in Engi, and at that time we only sat at the bus stop, waiting for the next bus out of the valley.

We figured it was time to try again, and this time we were luckier, having perfect blue skies and warm weather, even though the forecast was for lots of thin high clouds. We walked along Regional Trail no.817: "Elm Höhenweg" -- also part of National Trail no.1: "Via Alpina" -- with two exceptions: Instead of taking the cable car down, we walked the 550 meters down to Elm (for a total 4-hour and 14-km hike) and we also detoured off the main trail to a higher mountain trail which was more interesting for us. All along the route we had a great view of the Tschingelhorn peaks and the Sernf Valley. 

Heading up the Sernf Valley by bus toward Elm, at the back of the valley

We were hoping to see forests with fall colours, and were not disappointed

Typical house in the area of Elm

Heading up to the starting point of our hike (Obererbs), the final bus stop along a winding road up the hill to a restaurant, particularly busy during the ski season

Description of the Elm High Trail

Starting in Obererbs (final bus stop), we mostly following the themed trail, but deviated to an even higher mountain trail along Bischofalp. This gave us a much better view of the valley

The dominant mountain here is called Hausstock (3158m). At this point it looks like we have some cloudy skies.

A quick detour to look down into the valley below Mt. Hausstock before heading on our hike. 

Mt. Hausstock

It's already T-shirt weather! No jackets needed. From here we headed out along the "Elm High Trail", starting at about 11:30 a.m.

Up ahead you can see the trail, which continues through the forest on the right. We decided to head up a little higher above the tree line, by first heading into the side valley

A look down into the Sernf Valley. At the upper right we get the first glimpse of the Tschingelhorn peaks and the Martinsloch (Martins Hole)

The horizontal line which denotes the Glarus Thrust is easily noticed because of the snow that sits on the ledge. Nowhere else in the world is this phenomenon so easily viewed

We came along the trail at the right, but decided to deviate further uphill at this point. The regular trail continues as a wide gravel path, so finding a mountain trail is more interesting for us. 

Heading on a loop higher up the mountain is more interesting for us. 

This is a wildlife observation tower. We didn't see any wildlife, though. 

A good look at the valley heading up to the Panix Pass. Imagine horses and soldiers plodding their way up there. Snow came early in October 1799 and many soldiers and animals froze or starved on their way over the pass

The landscape is all brown, but the trail is comfortable. 

Mt. Hausstock.

We passed through a farm called Aempächli Oberstafel, but I couldn't get a good photo. Here is a screenshot from the webcam there on the day of our hike, at 14:00 when we passed through there. 

A look across the valley a the Tschingelhorn peaks. As the afternoon sun moves westward, we get to see them in different light

Another look at Martinsloch and the Glarus Thrust Line. By the way, the hole is 19 meters high, we found out later at the museum in Elm. 

Back on the "Elm High Trail" we now head down toward the cable car station at Aempachli

Instead of taking the cable car, we are descending to the valley bottom on foot. It was a good trail and easy going. 

Close-up look at the fall colours in the forest at the foot of the mountain. 

These old wooden structures were erected to prevent avalanche snow from sliding to the valley bottom. The forest has now grown up on the hillside, so the old structures aren't really needed any more. The trail goes right through here!

Walking along Trail no.1 "Via Alpina". To this point it's about 2.5 hours from where we started at Ober Erbs (although we had longer, because of the detour), and another 45 minutes to descend to Elm. 

A stunning view down to the valley bottom and the Tschingelhorn Peaks across the way. There is a cable car to an upper pasture below the Tschingelhorns, and we plan to ride that one day. 

A really good close-up look at Martinsloch. Two days per year the sun shines directly through this hole onto the church building in Elm on the valley bottom. 

An easy descent along a wide road. This family is enjoying riding the trottinettes. 

The mountain carts came whizzing by!

VIDEO:

A lot of fun riding the mountain carts down the 

vehicle-free road to Elm

Lovely autumn afternoon

And now we get to Elm at shortly after 4 p.m.. Having just missed the 4 p.m. bus out of the valley, we had about half an hour to walk around the village a bit. 

The protestant church in Elm was built in 1495, and this is where the sun shines directly on this church through the Martinsloch, on two days each year. 

Twice a year in Spring and Fall, the sun shines for about 2-1/2 minutes through Martin's hole on the church in Elm. If the air is foggy, the sunshine appears as a 5-km beam of light between the hole and the church. Legend has it that a shepherd named Martin threw his staff at a giant who wanted to steal his sheep, but the staff missed the giant and fell onto the Tschingelhorns, creating the "Martin's Hole"

The Tschingelhorns and Martin's Hole are nicely illuminated now in the late afternoon sunshine. 

Some pretty houses in Elm, next to the church. The museum was to the right of this, we had a quick look inside. 

Historical buildings in Elm

This building is called the Suvorov House. General Suvorov overnighted here before heading up to the Panix Pass on Oct. 6th, 1799. The house was built in the 1670's.

The Suvorov House. General Suvorov overnighted here before heading up to the Panix Pass on Oct. 6th, 1799. The house was built in the 1670's.

This building is called "Grosshaus" (Large House), and the lower part of the house dates from the 16th Century. 

Final look at the stunning Tschingelhorn peaks, a fantastic display of tectonic thrust. (Folding of the Earth's crust millions of years ago)

This ended up being a 14-km, 4-hour hike, but quite easy, as there was only a small amount of uphill on the detour we took into the side valley. 

Location of Elm on the map of Switzerland (near Glarus)