Elsigen-Adelboden High Trail in the Engstligen Valley

Saturday September 21, 2024 -- With the promise of another beautiful day, we set off into the Bernese Alps for a change, with several options in mind, but we decided to head in the direction of Adelboden (we have only been there twice) in the Frutigen Valley, taking a cable-car which we haven't tried out yet, to an alpine pasture called Elsigen Alp. From there, an option would be to cross a pass called the Golitchepass and walk down to Kandersteg, but having injured my knee a couple of weeks earlier, we weren't up to a long, steep descent.

So we chose a relatively easy hike along a high trail to the back of the valley, and took a detour into a sort of cauldron with three waterfalls from high vertical cliffs, before heading down to the main road at the valley bottom at Adelboden. Most of the first part of the hike was along a wide dirt road, and it became quite warm to walk there, and then, as is so often the case, when the trail finally got interesting, the clouds moved in quickly to cover the sun. But the view of the Engstligen Valley and Adelboden below was quite good for this day, and the waterfalls spectacular, so another successful outing for us. 

We didn't walk the extra 20 minutes into the town of Adelboden, because we had done a tour of that town at the end of one of our hikes in the summer of 2022. We preferred just to catch the next bus out of the valley at 3:30 p.m. 

On the way from Bern toward Thun, the weather is looking great and we get a nice look at the Gantrisch Range (Nature Park)

In the town of Frutigen, we change onto a bus headed up the Engstligen Valley to Adelboden. This here is the Municipal Administration building in Frutigen, I thought it looked cool!

On the road below this chapel (Achseten) we had to get off the main bus, and wait for a small van (operated by the cable-car operator) to pick us up to take us to the cable car station, higher on the hill. Urs wanted to make sure to get there early, but we had to wait in the cold shade on the road side for at least 25 minutes, waiting for people from two other buses. I had hoped to go inside the church to stay warm, but it was locked. We got here at 9:35, and were picked up only at 10 a.m.!

At 10:05, the bus heads up the mountain. The bus stop was in the shade on the left. I had waited at the far end of the bridge, and moved along with the sunshine toward the bus stop!

The view down the Engstligen Valley as we head up the eastern hillside to the hamlet called Elsigbach, to the base station of the cable car, about 250 meters higher than the road. 

This is a new cable-car we have not yet ridden on! The Elsigalp cable car at Elsigbach. It was a pretty quick 5-minute ride up. 

At 10:45 we watched the cable car descend again from the top station, and then headed off to the alpine pastures to decided in which direction we wanted to walk (three options). 

Originally we had planned to walk back to Frutigen, but that part of the mountain was in shadow and descent would have been as much as to Kandersteg. So we chose to walk to Adelboden along the newly-created high trail called "Elsigen/Adelboden High Trail". 

The large alpine pasture called Elsigen Alp. We could have walked up to the pass on the left (Golitsche Pass) and walked down to Kandersteg on the other side, but my knee hurt from a recent injury and I didn't want to descend that far, so we did a high trail heading to the right past that building. 

This is a fairly new building (1985), the restaurant here at Elsigen Alp. 

And then we passed this equally lovely building

We came upon this small lake, which looks like it offers some fun for families in summer. 

This cute bird is called a Grey Wagtail, and lives near streams and clear water. 

A look back across the small lake before we turn the corner into the Engstligen Valley

This walk we did was about 3½ hours including the detour to the waterfalls. We didn't go right into the center of Adelboden, as we have seen the town before. We caught the bus on the main road back out of the valley at 15:30, after starting at 10:45 at Elsigen Alp. 

Through a short forested section and around the bend, we get the first look at Adelboden and the Hahnenmoos Pass. 

Local Trail no.333 is not yet uploaded on our hiking program. It seems to be a new themed trail called "Höhenweg Elsigenalp-Adelboden" (Elsigenalp-Adelboden High Trail). 

A wide easy trail most likely made for people vacationing in Adelboden!

A close look at Adelboden below and the Hahnenmoos Pass in the center, from where the road descends to Lenk in the Simmental Valley. In September of 2022 we spent a couple of days in the Lenk Region, and one of the hikes we did was up to Mt. Tierberg from the Lenk side, down that crest (red line) and to a cable car station on this side called Sillerebühl (those photos are HERE).

On the Elsigen-Adelboden High Trail. 

On the Elsigen-Adelboden High Trail. 

A look behind us down the Engstligen Valley. At the very far right is Mt. Niesen. 

Many farm houses up here on this mountainside. 

At noon we found the perfect bench to have our picnic lunch. 

Across the valley, this is the view from our lunch bench. Studying our maps, we figured this peak is called the Gsür. 

Finally, a more interesting section of trail! But we soon had to join the dirt road again. 

Adelboden/Oey is our goal (bus stop along the road, before Adelboden) via Bonderalp. 

Cool hot tub! Everything you need to heat up the water all on one portable trailer attachment!

More dirt road (at least it wasn't paved).

Finally we left the dirt road for the smaller mountain trails (some uphill here) with a look behind us at the mountainside we walked along. It was a little over 3 kilometers along the winding road, and at times even a bit too warm!

And then at 12:40, when the trail got interesting, the clouds moved in quickly and covered the sun. This happens a lot on our hikes!

We are crossing a large alpine pasture called Bonder Alp. Below on the left is a restaurant. 

What a beautiful backdrop! From here we cross the road and start on the downhill section. 

Past that forest is a kind of  "cauldron" where there are pastures and a river formed by waterfalls coming down the steep cliffs. We wanted a bit of "excitement" so we headed that way. 

First a bit of a descent past this farmhouse, which we discovered was selling ice-cream!

The sign on the tree says we can buy home-made ice-cream here so that's what Urs did! You could also prepare some instant coffee, and they had picnic tables where you could sit and enjoy a break. You paid into a small wooden box with a lid.

The people at the farmhouse were offering rental accommodation in what they called a "Tiny House". We peeked in, and it was VERY tiny! A single double-bed fit fully in there, nothing else, and I can't even imagine two people sleeping in there!

Off we go, continuing on our way now, Urs with his ice cream!

We took a small risk on an "unofficial" trail through the forest, which are sometimes hard to find, and sometimes quite overgrown. But more of a challenge than the vehicle roads. 

This is the time of year where all kinds of mushrooms (fungi) flourish in the forests!

The first look at these beautiful cliffs with the first of what later turned out to be several waterfalls! They are called the Bunder Falls. And the mountains are called the Lohner Massif. 

This lone house is built with a typical wedge behind it, to protect from avalanches. 

The inscription reads that this beautiful house was built in 1996

It looks like there is a plateau higher up above these cliffs, where the waterfall is coming from. This would be about 500 meters higher up from here!

Crossing the streams

Our little detour trail takes us to the foot of the largest of the waterfalls

Here at 2:15 in the afternoon, we were still in the shadow of the mountain, as it is so steep that the sun hasn't passed the peaks yet. 

Fantastic waterfall

Heading back out of the "cauldron" again. 

Every time I turned around, the backdrop looked better!

The next set of peaks behind that upper plateau are now visible. Also, can you see me on the photos?

At that line of trees is a stream, and we rejoin the Elsigen-Adelboden High Trail there, for the rest of the descent to the main road in the valley. 

A final look back at the beautiful cliffs and waterfalls. Fantastic!

We again heard the sound of cowbells and knew this meant cows were on the move. And for sure, there were some cows higher up being led to newer pastures. 

VIDEO:

Cow procession, going to a new pasture

From here our original goal of Oey bus stop is 40 minutes, but if we hurried, we could get an earlier bus at Margelibrügg, which we did end up doing. Going into the town of Adelboden would take 20 minutes longer and meant going uphill again from the main road. 

A look behind us.

Final stretch downhill on a narrow forest path next to the river. 

A stealthy observer!

We made it to the bus stop on the main road at 15:29, just one minute before the bus arrived! By this time we were quite hot from having rushed here! The trip home from here was exactly three hours!

The light pink trail is the hike we did this day, from the summit of the Elsigen Alp cable car (after a special van-bus ride from the Church at the road), to the Bunder Waterfalls, and back down to the road. In winter of 2015 we did a winter loop hike starting in Adelboden. 

Passing the Achseten church again on the bus ride back down the valley to Frutigen. This is where the cable car operator picked us up at 10 a.m. when the hillside was still in shadow. 

Frutigen lies at the junction of the Engstlgen and Kander Valleys, and as the bus approaches Frutigen we get a glimpse of the mountains in the Kander Valley. 

A close-up of the peaks (with new snow) shows vertical stripes, evidence of earth's crust being pushed up 90 degrees. 

From Frutigen you head toward Spiez by train, and this is a favourite view of mine, of the Blüemlisalp Massif to the south. 

On the north side of Lake Thun is the Justiz Valley and Mount Niederhorn, which was one of our choices for a hike this day. Now that the clouds have moved in, it looks like we would not have had a great view to the north. The main reason for a hike up there would have been a spectacular view of the Bernese Alps to the south. (We were up there once in winter, those photos are HERE). 

Always this nice view at the train enters the train station in Bern

Location of the Engstligen Valley and Adelboden in Switzerland