Hike high above the Engelberg Valley, and descent in a small Cable Car

Sunday August 13, 2023 -- In Cantons Nidwalden, Obwalden and Uri, there are dozens of small cable-cars owned and operated by private persons, mainly mountain farmers who need these cable-cars to transport cargo (and sometimes even cows!). With subsidies from the Government, they can get the cable-cars certified for public use, which is very convenient for us as they give us the opportunity to reach high elevations (for a very small fee) from where we can hike in regions we might not be able to access.

It is our goal to have tried out each one of these cable-ways which are available to us. There are only a few we haven't tried yet, and one of these is a small cable-way popular with paragliders, located in the Engelberg Valley near Grafenort. To get to the summit station of this cable car we first mapped out a 2½-hour hike higher up on the hillside, which then required a descent of over 700 meters just to reach the station, from where the cable-car took us another 600 meters to valley bottom.

It was a hillside we hadn't walked yet, and although the upper pastures, as always, are very pretty -- especially when the cows are grazing --, in retrospect we should have deferred this hike to a cooler Fall day, as in this current hot period we have been having, it wasn't cool enough even at that altitude. The upper section was mostly on a wide road, and the descent was steep and often on an overgrown trail. And with my luck, the farmers were busy with their leaf-blowers (or hay blowers, in their case), this time DIRECTLY along the only path we were able to take.

To get to the start of the hike at the Gummenalp restaurant in Wirzweli, we had to take two additional cable cars as well. So it was a day of cable cars! We started as early as possible, as in these hot days there are thunderstorms every afternoon. We completed the hike by 2:30 p.m., just as the clouds were moving in.

The first cable car ride is from Dallenwil near Stans in the Engelberg Valley to the mountain village of Wirzweli. It's actually a 20-minute walk from the train station to the cable car station, but what some people don't know is you can call the cable car station for a free pick-up at the train station in their van! (The driver has to hurry back to sell tickets!). We got picked up at 8:30, having traveled just over an hour from home to get here. 

Then once you are up in the mountain village of Wirzweli, it's another 10 minutes to walk to the next cable-car, which takes you up to the restaurant called Gummenalp

Cute little house on the way to the Gummenalp cablecar

When you get to the station, you use the phone there to call up to the operator, who then starts the motor, and collects the fee once you get to the top. These small cable cars are not expense to ride, this one cost 6 CHF per person for a ride!

The Gummenalp cable-car

At the top station, we watch as the little cable car heads down again. In the background (and to the north) is Mount Stanserhorn. 

We started our hike here at Gummenalp at 9:20, in the direction of Storeggpass, although we didn't go that far. 

The Gummenalp Restaurant gets busy near lunch time! Especially today, as it's a Sunday. But right now we are pretty alone here. Time to use the bathroom before heading out on our walk. 

Inside the restaurant are a couple of old photos showing previous owners of the Gummenalp farm. This is what the original cable-car looked like! (We have ridden several similar ones. They've not all been modernized like this one!)

To the west of this ridge is Mount Pilatus, where I had hiked a few days earlier. (Those photos are HERE). The summit of Mount Matthorn is difficult to distinguish from the Pilatus Ridge.

And to the east on the other side of the Engelberg Valley is a small mountain called Wellenberg, and behind it the fabulous Walenstock peaks, unfortunately not clearly visible because of the morning sun. There is a popular trail there that we have also walked, called the "Walenpfad"

The main part of our hike from Gummenalp to Bielen was 2 hours 30 minutes, but with 10 minutes in Wirzweli and 20 minutes to walk to Grafenort, we still managed a 3-hour hike this morning! (And over 10 kilometers). 

Heading south high up above the Engelberg Valley. 

Some fabulous peaks directly to the south

Heading south now toward the alpine pastures at the arrow, from where we then headed downhill. Unfortunately, there is a wide road all the way there, but it ended up not being too bad to walk there. 

A look behind us at Mount Stanserhorn

Some cows fighting over a bench, where in fact, I would have liked to take a break in the shade!

Continuing uphill along the mountain road, with a look at the farms below us. All the farms have names, this one is Egghütte. 

The many small details along the way keep the walk from getting boring. This farm is called Langbodenhütte. 

Some very young and curious cows. 

The next set of buildings we will reach is called Schellenfluehütte. There is actually a trail called the "Nidwaldner Höhenweg" along the entire ridge on our right, a trail I would love to walk along, but it is too far in one stretch between where we can get on and off the trail. 

Very pretty here, the farm called Schellenfluehütte. In the background is Mount Titlis, the dominant mountain of the town of Engelberg, and a popular tourist destination. 

As we approach the turning point of our hike at the farm called Chälenhütte, here's a look back from where we came. 

This is the farm called Chälenhütte. There was no one here although a couple of lop-eared bunnies seemed to have free range of the property. We took a break here on a bench in front of the building. 

From here we are now heaading down to Bielen, a steep 90-minute descent, as it turns out. (We started at the Gummenbahn). 

A look at the long road we traversed, and the Schellenflue farm. We started our descent at 10:50.

A look behind me at the Chälenhütte farmhouse, and the lovely ridge to the west, which actually forms the border of Canton Nidwalden (this side) and Canton Obwalden

This first section of our descent was actually the nicest part of the hike. 

A close-up look at the summit of Mount Titlis

At this point on the trail, our map shows only the main (official) trail. In the direction of Oberalp and Diegisbalm, where there are two more of those farmer's cable cars (which we have also ridden before, those photos are HERE), there is only an unused trail marked on the map. It looks like this might be a new trail prepared as part of an adventure called the "Buiräbähnli Safari", a themed trail created by Engelberg Tourism, along which you can visit several of these special cable cars. 

Some very nice mushrooms, even if they are poisonous!

You can see from here how steep the descent is going to be!

More interesting fungi in the meadows!

Heading down the steep hillside

Butterflies and frogs!

We're always glad when there is a level section when we are descending!

This never ceases to amaze us, how these steep hillsides get harvested of mountain hay, an often rather dangerous occupation. It's 11:50 right now, and it looks like the farmer is headed in for lunch. 

A look at Wellenberg (small mountain below), Mount Brisen in the very back (a mountain we summitted almost exactly a year ago to the day, those photos are HERE), and the steep harvested hillsides on the left. 

More steep downhill....

You can really see how steep the trail was from this photo!

Usually we get watched by cows, or maybe sheep and goats, but this was a new and unusual audience!

Some of these llamas looked like they would be quite uncomfortable in their long shaggy coats. A shearing would be necessary!

Usually it's a large detour around the cows.... we don't know much about llamas. 

Always welcome, streams and waterfalls and a nice shady spot to rest. 

We finally get a glimpse of the farm at Bielen, where the cable car station is. 

Close-up look at the Bielen Farm with the cable-car station on the right.

And starting way back even before the llama farm, we could hear the loud noise of the leaf blowers, even though it is Sunday and lunch time. In most cases even the farmers give it a break from noon till 1 p.m., but not these ones. Unfortunately for me, that there below is the trail we have to pass to get to the cable car station.

Another pretty waterfall along the way. 

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The waterfall, an extension of the creek we had crossed earlier further up.

I ran at top speed from here to the Bielen farm, to get away from the noise of the leaf-blowers, as not only were there two of them, but they were running on full power. 

It was a cute set-up at the Bielen Farm. A little shop with refreshments offered out of a small cupboard next to the cable-car shed. We also found a nice spot in the shade for our picnic lunch (1 p.m.) and chatted a bit with the cable-car owner/operator. 

There were lots of people up here waiting for their turn to take off with their paragliders!

VIDEO:

Each one gets a turn to take off with their parachutes! Some who are learning don't quite make it the first time...

We spent only 20 minutes up here, decided we preferred to get down to the valley bottom and catch the next train home. But here's the fellow who runs the cable car, and another load of enthusiasts with their parachutes. 

The view down the Engelberg Valley as we descend another almost 600 meters to the valley bottom. The river is called the Engerberger Aa. 

Base station of the Bielen cable-way. The cabin holds four people, and it seemed to be running quite frequently this day!

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More paraglider enthusiasts heading up the mountain. It's a really "neat" situation, as one can park right next to the cable car station, head up with the equipment, and land nearby for a short walk back to the car. 

We now have a 20-minute walk to the next train station at Grafenort. Here's a look back as the next cabin makes its way down to the "station". 

It's a 2-km walk along the "Engelberger Aa" River to the train stop at Grafenort. We were early so spent some time on a bench by the river. This doesn't happen often, as most times we get to the train stops with only minutes to spare. 

Crossing the "Engelberger Aa" River to the train stop at Grafenort. 

This historical building called the "Herrenhaus" belongs to the Benedictine Monastery at Engelberg, and was built in 1690 as a "vacation" residence for the monks. 

A look up the hill on the opposite side of the valley to the summit of Mount Brisen

Here comes our train from Engelberg, to take us to Luzern. It is now 2:20 p.m 

What our hike looks like on Google Satellite Maps. This includes a 1-km stretch between the Wirzweli and Gummenalp cable-cars, plus 2 km from the base station of the Bielen Cable-way to the Grafenort stop on the railway line. 

The many small cableways in the Engelberg Valley give us access to higher regions we could normally not access. The hillside we hiked this day was one we had not done before. 

The predicted storm clouds are moving in across the summit of Mount Pilatus now. This happens quickly in the mountains. Just a couple of hours earlier, it was nothing but clear skies.

Location of the Engelberg Valley in Switzerland