Our Third Time on the Quinten Lakeside Trail, starting in Walenstadtberg

Sunday February 1, 2026 -- Uncertain weather everywhere and we still don't want to do a winter hike in the mountains (good thing too, as it turns out there were masses of skiers in the mountains this day!). Furthermore, webcams showed us that there was patchy snow till very lower elevations, so also not ideal for low-elevation walks (well, for us anyway). 

Original plan was another trip into the Ticino where there is usually sunshine and no snow, but a spur-of-the-moment decision took us in the direction of Lake Walensee, as we decided to do a short walk on the north side of the lake, where the micro-climate warms the steep flanks of the Churfirsten mountains, and there is often no snow there in winter. 

We didn't need to do a very long walk, so we chose to once again do the Quinten Lakeside Trail, but instead of starting at the train station in Walenstadt, we took the bus all the way to the end station at the Walenstadtberg clinic (total 2-hour trip from home), and started from there, with only a downhill stretch before us to the lake level. The second half of the hike along the lake is the most spectacular, with great views of the lake and surrounding mountains. The end of the walk is at the lakeside village of Quinten (lots of vineyards here due to the warmer climate), accessible only on foot or by boat. So our excursion ended with the ferry-boat ride to Unterterzen, where all the skiers from Mt.Flumserberg packed into the train back toward Zurich.  

Heading by train along the south shore of Lake Walensee, we see across the lake to the North the approximate starting point of our hike at the Walenstadtberg Clinic. From there the trail headed down and off to the left. Only at the top, near the clinic, there was some snow. But this hillside gets a lot of sunshine in winter, and there is little snow here. 

Taking the bus through the town of Walenstadt. Carnival decorations are displayed in most locations now, as Carnival celebrations start soon.

This is the view from the sunny terrace at the Walenstadtberg Clinic (it is the final stop on the bus run from Walenstadt) where we started our hike at 10:45 (a two-hour trip from home). The view is to the southeast up the Seez Valley. 

The first part of the walk is along the paved road, so the little bit of snow up here was not an issue. Across the valley directly to the south are the flanks of Mt.Flumserberg, a popular ski area (plenty of snow on the upper sections, but lower down is in shadow during the winter). 

This is the large ski area at the top of Mt. Flumserberg. The horn-shaped peak is called Sächsmoor, and on the left you can just make out the summit station of the Leist ski lift. We walked around both of those peaks on a fantastic hike in JUNE 2022.

Another view into the Seez Valley as we continue down the road to that little hamlet just below us (Walenstadtberg), from where we then head westward (to the right) into the forest and down to the lake (which is below on the right). 

Starting at 10:45 at the Walenstadtberg Clinic, we headed down toward Walenstadtberg, after which we joined the official "Quinten Lakeside Trail". From there were several clearings where we got views to the peaks of the Churfirsten above us, then zigzag down to the lakeside through the forest, and ending in Quinten at 2 p.m., from where we took the ferry-boat across the lake, back to the train station in Unterterzen. Altogether an 8-km hike, but just enough for this Sunday afternoon. We stopped several times along the way.

Above us to the north are the steep cliffs of the Churfirsten mountains, where there seems to be fog on the summits. 

Short-cut on a very nice and dry forest trail after we pass through Walenstadtberg. 

This was the only section of trail which was wet and muddy, but it was a "side" trail. 

First view of the east end of Lake Walensee, and the town of Walenstadt below. 

After walking 30 minutes from the clinic, we joined trail no.934: "Quinten Seeweg", i.e. "Quinten Lakeside Trail". 

Description of the "Quinten Lakeside Trail". 

The peaks above us. 

There are a few such farm houses up here. 

At this farm were several tables and benches. The farmers probably serve refreshments here in summer. 

The fascinating peaks of the Churfirsten mountains. 

Now we get a better view of Lake Walensee, and our trail to the forest. 

This was quite a nice trail through the forest down toward the lakeshore. 

We love bridges!

First forest flowers! We often see these on February walks. 

At 12:40 we reached the lakeside. From here on it's pretty level all the way parallel to the lake and a couple of meters up.

We spent about 15 minutes near the lakeshore here on a nearby bench. 

On the far east side of the lake is a mountain that looks like a person lying on their back!

Across the lake is the town of Unterterzen, where we will be heading by ferry-boat later. 

This is a very nice trail parallel to the lake now heading westward, about 30 meters above the lake level 

There were several vineyards on this hillside. 

We weren't expecting to see these cows hiding here!

Here we are just above the boat dock called Au, where the ferry which crosses the lake also stops, from Quinten on its way to Unterterzen (on the right across the lake in the photo)

The warm micro-climate here is great for growning grapes (and there are also kiwi orchards here)

This was a nice stretch of cliffs between Au and Quinten

The stretch along the cliffs from Au to Quinten. 

The water along the shoreline is a beautiful turquoise color, and very clear. 

This is the end of our hike, Quinten on the lake. From here you can continue walking the western part of the trail along the lake, or take the ferry back to the railway-line on the south bank of the lake. We got here with about 15 minutes to spare for the ferry-boat. 

A quick detour to the village church before heading to the dock to await the ferry. 

These are the lakefront houses of Quinten at the boat dock. 

At 14:10 I spot the ferry-boat heading toward Quinten from Murg on the south side of the lake. 

This is the little ferry-boat that you can take across the lake to the train station, in this case at Unterterzen. It costs about 8 Fr. for a crossing of the lake. I was surprised that a group of about 10 people got off here, and there were already several people on the boat when we got on!

A look back at the cliff-side trail which we walked, and the village of Quinten, as our boat makes its way to the dock at Au. (Only one person got off, and no one got on there). 

This view as we head across the lake now shows how this one tiny village on the lake can only be accessed by boat or on foot, as it is impossible to create a road along that shoreline!

It was too warm inside, so I rode at the open front of the boat. The flag is the Canton Flag for St.Gallen (As we are currently in St.Gallen!)

Docking at Unterterzen!

A look back at the Churfirsten mountains on the North side of Lake Walensee, from the dock at Unterterzen. 

What our hike looks like on Google Satellite Maps. We started at the Walenstadtberg Clinic at about 10:45 and reached Quinten at 2 p.m. Then we caught the 14:13 Ferry across to Unterterzen for the trip home, a total of about two hours of travel time from Quinten.  

As the train heads westward along Lake Walensee, we can see the cliffs across the lake where we walked and the village of Quinten on the left. 

View southward along Lake Zurich toward the Glarus Alps on the final train stretch home. 

These are all the hikes we have done around Lake Walensee and the Churfirsten mountains. The stretch between Quinten and Walenstadt we have done three times now (twice earlier both in December 2015). On the other side of the lake, from Quinten westward, we have walked that stretch 

Location of Lake Walensee within Switzerland