Stoos Crest Trail from Klingenstock to Fronalpstock

Friday July 14, 2023 -- After a week with lots of rain and heavy thunderstorms, today was a very nice day, and even though Urs had to work, I could not let the opportunity pass to go into the mountains on my own.

Close to here are the Schwyzer Alps, and in particular there is a popular crest hike which for some reason tourists from all over come to do, although I find it rather challenging (and it is interesting to watch how the inexperienced hikers look exhausted shortly after starting on the hike). It is called the Stoos Crest Trail, and is accessed by chair lifts on the east or west side of the 4-km trail (or on foot, if you like!) from the mountain resort village of Stoos, which in its turn is accessed from the Muotathal (Muota Valley) by the steepest funicular in the world, another marvel of Swiss Engineering (completed 2017).

Back in August 2016, Urs and I had hiked this trail starting at the Fronalpstock peak on the West side, and I had wanted to walk it again in the opposite direction from last time. Since he didn't want to walk this same trail again (there are too many people on this trail for his taste), this was a good day to do it.

I started early and rode only the chairlift up to the east side of the crest (Klingenstock), opting to walk back down to Stoos instead of taking the other chairlift once I reached the west side of the crest at Mount Fronalpstock. The trail consists of several ascents and descents, many on specially built steps, and today it was a bit slippery due to all the rain. But we had great visibility and the panorama views of the entire central region here (Lake Luzern, Rigi, Pilatus, the Schwyzer and Glarus and Uri Alps) were spectacular. Having started early, and it being a Friday, there were probably fewer people than usual, and I was mostly always able to keep a distance from hikers ahead and behind, so I could enjoy the view without the incessant chatter that some people seem to find necessary when they spend time in this beautiful scenery. 

Here is the Stoos Funicular, the steepest funicular in the world, descending for its first run of the day. 

VIDEO:

The Stoos Funicular coming down for the first run of the day

The cylinders on this vehicle are fascinating. They turn as the train ascends, so that the people standing on each platform remain horizontal at all times. This means that once the vehicle has reached the 47-degree incline, the people in the back cylinder are looking over the heads of the next one.

The resort village of Stoos. From here I have to walk 20 minutes (about one kilometer) to the Klingenstock chair lift. 

Here is the Klingenstock chair lift; the summit station on Mount Klingenstock is at the arrow. It costs 20 Fr. to ride up! Since I was pretty early, there weren't many people going up yet. But it gets busy!

The Klingenstock chair lift. 

This is the view to the North from the summit, across the Stoos high plateau, down to the city of Schywz and the two Mythen mountains. 

This trail has a special name: "Gratweg Stoos" = "Stoos Crest Trail". The suggested time to Fronalpstock is 1 hour 55 minutes. 

Most hikers will go up with one chair lift and down with the other, which is what we did when we hiked here in 2016 (those photos HERE), but I chose to continue hiking back down to the village of Stoos. Apparently this crest trail is considered one of the finest high trails in Switzerland with views of 10 lakes and loads of mountains. No wonder the tourists want to walk here. 

Looking west along the ridge to the restaurant at Fronalpstock. The trail is more strenuous than it looks, especially for a 2-hour hike. I started here at 9:40. 

A zoomed view of the ridge and the mountains of Central Switzerland, especially Mount Pilatus in the very back. 

A close-up look at all the people on the trail already, even though the chair lift only started running at 9 a.m., and it is now 9:45. Here you can see that the trail ascends and descends over many small peaks. For the first hour, all the people were going in the same direction.

I came here to beat the heat, and it was actually quite cool with a pretty strong wind blowing over the ridge! 

Lovely meadow flowers on the steep hillsides, with a magnificent backdrop. The lake in the back is Lake Uri, which is actually part of Lake Lucerne (Vierwaldstättersee). 

You can see the ridge trail behind me

A good look at the long ridge trail and how it undulates

The Stoos Crest Trail. 

That's a pretty interesting place for a picnic table!

I did take a quick detour down to the picnic table to see the view from there. The valley below, by the way, is called the Riemenstalden Valley, and you can access this valley by bus from Sisikon on the lake. 

A look behind me at one of the peaks that I descended

Here is a look down over the village of Stoos to the two Mythen peaks. 

Another look at the trail behind....

And another look up ahead. 

First glimpse of one of the other arms of Lake Lucerne in the background, past Seelisberg

This is about the half-way point now. After here, there were more and more people coming toward us from the other side, probably also having started some time after 9 a.m. 

Such pretty flowers everywhere

The best meadows

Since Urs is not here to photograph me, I have to try a few self-timed photos with my tripod. The mountains in the background are the Uri Alps

The Stoos Crest Trail to the east. 

It is actually a very nice trail, not gravelly or full of rocks, wide enough to pass other people easily. 

Another look over the village of Stoos

Here was a narrow "bridge-like" section with a slope on both sides, but not dangerous in any way. 

Now a look at the final hill we have to climb, after first going all the way down to the farmhouse below. It was actually only a 200-meter ascent, but after all the up-and-down to this point, it was a tough climb. 

Those two were having a loud conversation about sailing, so I had to slow down to get some distance between us. 

Now starts the final climb. There are still 50 minutes to go!

On weekends, or maybe later in the day, there are many many more people than this on the trail!

Not quite there yet, but this is a look back at the last mountain we descended. I still think this is not something for your typical tourist to do on a trip to Switzerland. (From here, I'm on the first slope you descend. Shortly after starting up that hill (their first ascent), people passing me asked if they still had far to go!)

Panorama view of Lake Uri and the Uri Alps. Below is the town of Sisikon at the entrance to the Riemenstalden Valley. 

Looking east. The main peak in the center is the Glärnisch, and past that is the Linth Valley. (Canton Glarus) 

Near the top now, we get this fantastic view across Seelisberg to the main part of Lake Lucerne, with Mt.Pilatus at the very back and Mt.Bürgenstock in front of it, creating a small passage to Luzern on the lake at the back. At the base of Mt.Seelisberg, directly across the lake below is a small clearing. This is the Rütli Meadow, where the Swiss Confederacy was established by the meeting of representatives of the three original cantons in 1291. 

Panorama view, where you can also see the mountain range which is part of the Rigi on the right. 

And now even Lake Zug comes into view. 

I have decided to walk down to Stoos, another 90 minutes, instead of taking the chair lift. I got here about noon, about 2-1/2 hours after I started. There is a restaurant here, and the self-serve area was packed with people. 

The Fronalpstock chair lift back down to Stoos

Heading down the mountain now, we can see the towns of Morschach below, and Brunnen directly on the lake, where the Muota River enters Lake Vierwaldstättersee. 

Heading down the trail back to Stoos

The city of Schwyz at the foot of the Mythen mountains. Schwyz is the capital city of Canton Schwyz. 

The main rise at the back is called the Wildspitz (also known as the Rossberg), and it is here that the massive Goldau landslide of 1806 took place. The entire village was destroyed, 450+ people died. It is considered one of the greatest natural disasters of the Alps. 

Is it trying to hide?

A look down at the middle station of the Fronalpstock chair lift (two separate sections)

Way down below is the road into the Muota Valley, where the valley station of the Stoos Funicular is located. (Toward the right)

I would have had to rush to catch the 13:40 funicular, so I decided to take it easy and spend a bit of time enjoying the view from this bench. The next departure was 30 minutes later, and I reached that one just fine. 

Down below is the upper station of the Stoos funicular. The 13:10 train is just leaving the station. (There is a run every half hour, unless there are lots of people, then they run more often)

Crossing below the Fronalpstock chair lifts. 

The little recreational village of Stoos. This is also a popular winter recreational area, with lots of downhill as well as cross-country skiing opportunities. 

I got to the station at 2 p.m., and there was a train just arriving, so they must have done an in-between run, as otherwise the 13:40 train would already have been waiting (for the 14:10 departure) 

The crest hike and my descent to Stoos as seen on Google Satellite Maps

We have done very many hikes in this region. It is close to where we live, easily accessed with a variety of buses, trains and cableways, and we love the mountains here. 

Location of Stoos and Lake Uri in Switzerland, near where we live.