Over the Wildmaadfurggli Pass from Freiberg Kärpf to Elm

Saturday September 9, 2023 -- Another hot day in this early fall heat wave, a good weather forecast though with lots of sunshine everywhere, so we traveled to Canton Glarus (to the East from here) to do a 4+ hour hike which I have long wanted to do, in Europe's oldest Wilderness Refuge: The Freiberg Kärpf. This wildlife sanctuary exists since 1548 and at 106 km² is also one of the largest wildlife sanctuaries in Switzerland. The region is bounded by both the Linth and the Sernft valleys. 

We had last been in this region in July 2018 (those photos HERE) at which time we actually saw some chamois, but this time we saw no game at all. 

This time we hiked from the Garichti reservoir lake across a pass called Wildmaadfurggeli to the valley where lies the popular summer resort town of Elm, at the foot of the Tschingelhorn mountains and the famous "Martinsloch" (Martin's Hole) in the Sardona Tectonic Arena. We had planned to start our hike early so that we could ascend in the shade of the mountain, as we had a good two-hour hike to the pass. 

The day started promising, but very soon, as so often seems to happen, the clouds moved to in front of the sun, and accumulated as long as we were up at the top. On the descent toward the Empächli cable-car station on the Elm side, we had the full sunshine again and a seemingly never-ending descent. Nevertheless, we were glad we weren't doing the uphill section on this side!  As we had anticipated, there were very many people at the Elm side of our hike, because the final section is a trail set up specially for children, and the mountain carts here are very popular. We descended with the gondola cable car as soon as we got there, and had something to drink in the valley while waiting for the bus. 

Fun side note: There is a hotel at the Garichti Dam and I was amused at an advertisement that they would be serving game in the months of September and October! Considering this is a wilderness refuge, I found that rather ironic!

As our train heads down the Linth Valley toward Schwanden (where we catch a bus to the cable car station in the Niederen Valley), the very distinctive silhouette of Mount Tödi shines in the early morning light. 

Because there were so many people on the bus, we were worried we'd have to wait a long time for the transport up to Mettmen Alp. But we were among the first, and the cable car held 20 people. The ride was also very short. So we were, in fact, at the start of our hike earlier than anticipated!

At the top of the cable car line at 9:15, looking north down the Niederen Valley toward the town of Glarus. 

The reservoir lake called Garichtisee has two dams: This one on the north side, and the one we walked along on the East side. These dams are special, as they are built entirely of stone, and not concrete. 

A look down Garichtisee to the south, in the early morning light. This whole area is a game reserve. We are going to ascend the mountain on the shady side, on the left. 

Between the dams is a lovely information booth with descriptions of the typical animals found here on the reserve. The taxidermy is well-done. They even had a hazel grouse, like the bird we saw in the forest two days earlier

Ämpächli (or Empächli) is where we are headed: 2¼ hours to the pass at Wildmaadfurggli, and the rest to the cable car station at Empächli. We didn't want to walk the additional hour to Elm, as we did that the last time we were here, and this would be our first time riding the Empächli cable car. 

Our hike from the cable-car station at Mettmenalp (Garichtisee) via Wildmaadfurggli to the cable car station at Empächli takes somewhat over four hours. It wasn't a difficult hike, but the descent was quite long. 

Heading south along the eastern dam. We started at 9:40.

A look down the eastern dam before we head up the mountainside

As we headed up the mountainside, mostly in the shade, the view of the lake kept changing. A bit concerning were the clouds low on the Glärnisch mountains on the opposite side of the Linth valley. 

A bit of sunshine before heading back into the shade! The hillside here is called Widerstein

The Widerstein hillside was a jumble of fantastic boulders. There were people coming up here to do rock climbing, and it's obvious why!

After Widerstein, we had a nice level section. Behind me is the main moutain here, the Gross Kärpf, from which the reserve gets its name: Freiberg Kärpf

More fantastic views of the lake as we head along the mountainside. 

106 square kilometers of wilderness reserve here.... 

Final look at the lake as we head further into the valley. By the way, we were all alone on this side of the mountain. 

Tackling the final stretch now to the pass, it's a steep uphill section. 

Crossing the Wildmaadfurggli pass at noon. That's 2 hours and 20 minutes, just the right time as suggested on the map!

The highest point of our hike, Wildmaadfurgglli, 2294 meters a.s.l. From here it should be another 1¾ hours to descend to Empächli. But we are ready for our picnic lunch break!

We left the main trail to walk around one of the many small lakes up here. This was the only sunshine we had. The clouds moved in quickly after that. 

A very nice landscape up here! I find this barren, rocky landscape quite lovely, especially when there are lakes. 

Looking down at some more lakes from a higher vantage point. We stayed up here for almost an hour (had a nap) waiting for sunshine which never materialized. The official trail continues on the right, and down that narrow passage. (Urs went back to the main trail, I did a cross-country trek from here...)

Heading down the narrow gap on the Elm side of the moutain. 

Lovely mountain trail, continues over the saddle behind me. 

There are two options to descend to Empächli, here on this side, or over the saddle (which is where we went). There is a lake on the other side. Many people who vacation here do a round trip hike to the lake, ascending on one side of this ridge, and descending on the other. We encountered many hikers on this side. 

Crossing the saddle. The lake below is called Chüebodensee and is a popular hiking destination. We passed by there, but didn't stop, as there was a large group of people taking a break there. 

On the saddle above the small lake called Chüebodensee. 

Heading down now. This whole hillside is called Chüeboden. 

Our trail down the mountain in the direction of Elm. It's a long way!

Ahead of us we can see the Tschingel Horns. This is the most prominent display of how the earth's crust flipped at some point. The entire mountain range on othe other side of the Sernft Valley is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Sardona Tectonic Arena.

A closer look at the Tschingel Horns and the famous "Martinsloch" (Martin's Hole). To the left of the hole is a pass called Segnes Pass, and there is a lodge up there where you can overnight!

Down below on that pasture is where the trail finally gets level. Also, that's where the cows are now. They spent the summer up near the lake, but have been brought down to lower elevations. 

Making our way around the cows that like to lounge on the trail!

The final stretch to the cable-car station is set up with interesting stations where kids can get involved (panning for gold, testing sounds and sights etc.). The story is about two giants names Sardona and Martin (referencing the nearby mountains) who are involved here. The upside-down house was a result of a prank played by one of the giants. 

The story goes that the giant named Sardona was strongest of the giants, and no one wanted to tangle with him. But the giant named Martin played a prank, angering the other giant, who turned everything upside-down looking for him: Every rock, the house on the trail, and even the mountain on the other side of the valley! 

We had to buy our cable-car tickets here at the restaurant. There were lots of people here, especially on the terrace, so we didn't want to stay. We got here at 3:15 p.m. 

What this part of Elm is popular for are the mountain carts, that's why there are so many people up here on the weekend. Every cable car had a cart hanging on it, from the ones brought back at the bottom of the hill. 

We had to hurry for my picture, because they were preparing to hang another cart!

A nice house here at this end of the valley. 

We had about 30 minutes to wait for the 4 p.m. bus and it was hot here at the road, so we went to the first restaurant near the bus stop and had our regular beer/Sprite mixture as we relaxed in the shade. The fountain next to the main entrance was pretty cool. (We were home by shortly after 6 p.m.)

A very lovely house which we passed in the bus from the cable car station heading toward the village of Elm. 

This is the famous church in Elm. Twice a year the sun shines directly through the Martin's hole into the Church's sanctuary. 

In the afternoon sunshine we get a much clearer view of the Tschingel Horns 

A good view of Martinsloch from the bus. The line below the peak is the evidence that the Earth's crust once flipped, as the rock on top is older than the one below it. This region is a UNESCO Heritage Site because it is one of the few places on Earth where the average man can get close enough to see this phenomenon. 

The light blue trail is the one we did this day, from Lake Garichti to the cable car station near Elm. On October 16th last year, we did a very lovely hike from the very back of the valley ending at Elm (we opted to walk down at that time, instead of taking the cable car). Those photos are HERE

Location of the Freiberg Kärpf in Switzerland

As a side note: On August 29 of this year, during the period of heavy rains, there was a landslide in the community of Schwanden, which brought down six houses and made the road into the Niederen Valley impassable. The Freiberg Kärpf is still accessible, as the bus has been diverted OVER the mountain, using forestry roads and otherwise narrow roads. With the bus standing room only (most other people using the Park-&-Ride) this was quite a harrowing experience! It took 45 minutes to get from Schwanden to the cable car station, instead of the usual 20 minutes. Amazing how they found an alternate route for this. 

The bus had to take a detour over the mountain along forestry roads to get to the cable-car station in the Niederen Valley. The normal road was damaged in the slide of August 29. 

Short video from the Internet (Austrian newsroom ORF) with photos of the damaged hillside. The slide destroyed six homes, and the road into the Niederen Valley.