Magnificent views of Mt.Säntis on a Toggenburg Hike from Brunnadern to Wattwil

Saturday November 16, 2024 -- Possibly the last nice day we will have for the next long while (north of the Alps in any case) and we wanted to make this outing a really good one!

I had been monitoring the webcams for the Toggenburg region in eastern Switzerland for a few days, and it seemed to be fog-free there with good visibility of the Churfirsten mountains, so we planned a three-hour hike there, with not too much ascent or descent. The webcam was from a restaurant called Köbelisberg, so we mapped a route that took us past there because we knew the view was great! 

In December of 2023 (photos HERE), I did a similar hike in the same region, starting in St.Peterzell in the Necker Valley and walking to Wattwil, and at that time I had similar mild weather and superb views of Mt.Säntis. This time we started in Brunnadern and ended in Wattwil, and the walk exceeded our highest expectations! Even though we started in the shade of the mountain, the rest of the time we had sunshine, soft trails or forest roads, and the most impressive views of the snow-covered mountains. It was an absolutely fabulous outing.

We might have stopped at the restaurant for a coffee, if there hadn't been so many people with families up there, and we also wanted to get to the train station before the sun set. In retrospect, this again would have been a walk best started an hour earlier, but we were worried it might be too much shade yet if we started at 10:15 instead of 11:15. (But since we had shade for the first uphill section anyway, it would not at all have made a difference). 

Instead of walking along the main road, we took a detour from the train station in Brunnadern to the Necker River and crossed here on this little wooden covered bridge. This bridge was built in 1784 and is the oldest bridge over the entire Necker River. We started here at 11:20.

This is the Necker River, the main river through the Toggenburg region. We are headed up into the hills ahead of us, first having to hike up a shady (with ground frost) clearing such as the one on the photo. (We ascended more to the left). 

Ah, the farm cat enjoying the sunshine as much as we are!

A typical Toggenburg farm. They were selling homemade goat's cheeses and smoked sausages, as well as eggs, jams and sirups, but we didn't buy anything. 

From the other side of the river, a look at the center of the village of Brunnadern. We did not go to have a look at the village church this time. According to information on the Internet, it is a Baroque (1764) Evangelical church under monument protection. 

Coming toward us on the wide road were the cutest goats! The farmer had one on a leash, and the others followed obediently... until a dog behind the fence started barking. Those not on a leash tried to run away!

VIDEO:

A neighbour's dog started barking and scared the goats, 

who started running away, but the lady managed to get them back 

on the path to the barn.

Our first view of Mt. Säntis before heading up the shady side of the hill. 

This three-hour hike was not difficult, even walking uphill was pretty easy. The trails were soft and pleasant almost the whole way. We started at about 11:15 in Brunnadern, and got to Wattwil train station at 3:25 p.m. with just a few minutes to spare for the 15:32 train. We were back home two hours later. 

Heading up the mountain now with a look back at the village of Brunnadern and the Necker River. The grass on the hillside was covered in frost. But we only had to walk about 15 minutes until we were back in the sunshine. 

Heading uphill on the shady side of the mountain, but we only had to walk about 15 minutes in the shade. 

More Toggenburg houses on our way up the mountain. 

Down in the valley bottom, a look back at Brunnadern. 

Some sections of our trail were on forest paths like this, nice and soft. 

And now we get that nice view of the Alpstein Massif, which we were able to admire for almost our entire three-hour hike. 

To the northeast is another hill whose crest we walked in May of 2020, ending at the train station in Brunnadern. 

This beautiful view accompanied us on the entire walk to Wattwil. 

Along a forest road, we got this view to the north over the entire village of Brunnadern. In the center you can see the wooden bridge we crossed, and the farmhouse with the goats. The train station is on the left, where we started our hike.  

A train of the Süd-Ost Railway is just crossing the viaduct north of the village of Brunnadern, headed into town. We walked under this viaduct at the end of our May 2020 hike. 

At 12:30 we found the ideal bench for our picnic lunch!

From our lunch bench we watched a kestrel hunting for mice in the pastures. 

Continuing on our uphill stretch, more views of the Alpstein Massif to the east. Coming into view now are also the seven peaks of the Churfirsten mountains. 

A zoomed view of the north side of the Churfirsten mountains. 

We are totally enjoying this beautiful landscape and the very mild weather this mid-November day. 

Close-up details of the Alpstein massif. The village in the center is called Hemberg, one we have not yet visited and needs to be part of a future hike in this region!

A zoomed view of the communication tower on the summit of Mt.Säntis. You can also make out one of the masts of the cable-way. 

Down below we can see exactly where our lunch bench was!

A few people passed us coming from the Wattwil side. 

A quick look behind me where we also just walked. This farm was called Waldschwilerberg. 

Rounding the base of Mt.Köbelisberg, we get the first view of the mountains in the central part of Switzerland to the southwest, past Lake Zurich. 

The peak of the Greater Mythen is always recognizable (and on the zoomed view you can even make out the restaurant at its summit), and behind it the also distinctive trio of Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau of Bernese Alps renown. 

We are loving all the soft trails on this day (and not too many of them were wet or muddy).

Heading to the Köbelisberg restaurant now, we haven't decided yet if we will stop for a coffee. It's 2 p.m. now. It was about a 2-hour walk to get here. 

There were very many people at the restaurant, enjoying the sunny terrace, and lots of children at the very nice playground here. Really great for families, but we decided not to stop here after all, as there were too many people. (There is parking just a 45-minute walk further down the north side of the mountain). 

Urs did well for his first three-hour hike in several weeks!

This fantastic view from the Köbelisberg mountain restaurant is what we came here for!

A very close-up look at four of the seven Churfirsten peaks, with the Chäserrugg on the left, then the tallest of the peaks, Mt.Hinterrugg, from where we descended on a recent fabulous hike in September of this year (photos HERE). 

As the sun heads more toward the west, we see more and more details in the fantastic Alpstein Massif. The snow makes it much more special as well. 

The view extends all the way to the Mt. Speer on the right, and Mt. Spitzmeilen in the center, in the Sardona region. 

Time to start making our way down into the town of Wattwil, about another hour from here. 

This first section down through the forest was on a steep trail full of fallen leaves, so we had to tread carefully. 

Even as we descended, we continued to have superb views of the snow-covered mountains. In fact, as the setting sun made more details appear, the view actually became better and better. 

Another close look at the summit of Mt. Säntis as the sun casts more shadows into the crevasses. 

More rolling hills, green pastures, and the Churfirsten mountains in the background. 

The trails all along this three-hour stretch were really great. 

Magnificent. I couldn't get over how fantastic this panorama hike turned out to be.  

Now less steep, the trail follows dirt roads, making walking easier. 

Lovely to see the cows still out in the pastures. 

Maybe the final view of Mt. Säntis as we get to lower elevations?

In Switzerland the cows have to have access to the outdoors even when they are in the barns for the winter. This is at a farm called Büel. There were workers on the roof, preparing to install solar panels on this entire surface. 

Looking behind us past the Büel farmhouse: Up at the top you can see the Köbelisberg restaurant where we descended from. 

Nice sunlight on what remains of the leaves on this tree. Down below, parts of the town of Wattwil are already in shadow of the western hills. 

Arriving on the outskirts of Wattwil at about 3:10 p.m., we pass the Evangelical Church. I had time to look inside, but it was pretty modern, spacious and airy, with no artwork. But the clock tower is pretty. 

On the final stretch, we are now in the Thur Valley and walking next to the Thur River to the bridge that will take us directly to the train station.

Far to the west of the town perches the Wattwil Fortress, which we have yet to visit!

Arriving at the Wattwil train station at 15:25, we managed to get here again with just five minutes to spare for the 15:32 train which we really wanted to take home now, as the sun is just setting here and it will get cold in no time! (We would have had to wait 30 minutes for the next train).

These are the hikes we have done in the region of the Necker Valley and the Thur Valley in the Toggenburg Region. This day we started in Brunnadern and walked to Wattwil. A year earlier I walked from St. Peterzell to Wattwil. 

On the way home, the train passes through the town of Rapperswil on Lake Zurich. This is a look behind us to the beautiful Rapperswil castle as the train crosses the isthmus separating Lake Zurich from the Obersee. 

Because of construction going on on the railway line between Zurich and Zug, we could not take the regular route via Thalwil, so we opted for an unusual route: The line between lake Zurich and ArthGoldau, via Biberbrugg. This view to the west is again of Mt. Säntis, but because of the fading light, it looks like there is no snow there!

At the Biberbrugg train station we get this great view of the Glärnisch mountains in Canton Glarus to the south. 

As the train heads west via the upper moors of Rothenthurm, we can now make out the Uri Alps which we are so fond of! Our route now took an interesting turn, as we had to change to a bus in the village of Rothenthurm, and make the rest of the journey back to Zug by bus via Lake Aegeri!!! It took us two hours to get home this day, about 20 minutes longer than it would take under normal conditions. We were home by 5:30 p.m. 

View of the Uri Alps from across Lake Aegeri at 4:45 p.m. The sun has set long ago! The mountain on the right is Mt.Zug, but the east side (we know it best on its west side!)

Location of the Toggenburg region within Switzerland.