From Lüderenalp to Langnau along one of the Crests of the Napf Region

Sunday September 27, 2026 -- As we had done such a long hike the day before, we again wanted something a little easier, less uphill, but also with a view of the mountains.

The Emmental region is always a nice area with pastoral landscapes, views of the Bernese Alps, and rolling hills. Especially the Napf Region--which consists of several valleys and crests snaking out in all directions--affords lots of opportunities for pleasant walks, such as the one we did fairly recently in May of this year (photos HERE). Furthermore, there is a convenient bus line that will take us right up on the Napf Ridge to the Lüderenalp Hotel (weekends only), from where we can then walk back down along these crests, all in less than a three-hour walk.

We have done three such hikes in the past, and decided to do another one on this day. In particular we wanted to see, once again, the "longest bench in Europe made out of one single tree trunk, i.e 38 meters" at the Lüderenalp (see this photo from our June 2017 hike) but unfortunately they removed it and replaced it with a pond . But we did get some nice views of the Alps, the trail was not difficult (although quite a bit of paved mountain roads), and at times the air temperature was quite warm! 

But a highlight of the day is that along the way down to Langnau we observed two matches of an unusual Swiss sport/game called "Hornussen", which looked like a weird combination of golf, hammer throw, and baseball, with dozens of people holding large paddles (that look like sign posts) and standing around in a large field ready to intercept the oncoming metal ball. Interesting, but just one of a handful of weird traditional "sports" here (although the only person actually in motion was the guy hitting the "ball"). 

Traveling through the rolling hills of the Entlebuch and Emmental regions between Luzern and Langnau. 

Up ahead is the large steeple of the church in Escholzmatt, where we recently started a short hike over the mountain up ahead, on  August 30, 2026.

Leaving home at just after 8 a.m., we reached Langnau (in the Emmental) at 9:50, and had to wait 20 minutes for the bus here. As the bus runs only on weekends via the Lüderenalp over the pass and down to "Wasen im Emmental" (a ride we did in the other direction also recently in May 2026), they brought in a second bus, so that we didn't have to stand on the 25-minutes ride to the "pass". 

Riding the bus up the valley called Gohlgraben, passing several Emmental farms. (Especially interesting are the small "Spycher" buildings. 

More farms as we pass through the pastoral landscape. 

As there were many people wanting to ride up to the Lüderenalp (and continuing down the other side), they engaged another bus driver, who didn't seem too happy to do this (she thought there was enough room for the rest of us to stand in the first bus). In any case, the road becomes one-lane here, and other vehicles are not supposed to use the road during the times the bus runs here, thus the very many warning signs on the side!

Heading up toward the Lüderenalp, we see the crest on the other side of the Gohlengraben Valley where we will be walking along later. 

And now the first views of the Bernese Alps as we get closer to the hotel. 

The first bus continues from here down the north side of the Lüderealp range (toward the town of Wasen im Emmental). We get off here to start our hike southwards. Here is one of those warning signs, that cars have to wait here during these "windows" when the bus comes up the road. Nevertheless, at about 10:30, a car had come down toward the bus, and had to back up quite a ways up the road to a point where the bus could pass. 

A lovely house up here near at the Lüderenalp "Pass". 

We walked through the restaurant and out to their view terrace where we had been before in June 2017, looking for the "longest bench in Europe made from one tree trunk --> photo HERE", but they have replaced it with this pond. Still, it's a nice view, with the Eiger-Mönch-Jungfrau trio directly to the south. 

Our planned hike for the day is to walk back to Langnau where we had boarded the bus, an easy walk along one of the many crests here, very little uphill, and less than three hours. (10½ kilometers). We started our hike at 10:50. 

The lovely landscape of the Emmental (Napf Region) looking south to the Bernese Alps. 

Our 10-km walk along one of the many crests that fan out from the highest peak called the Napf, in the Emmental region. We started at 10:45 at Lüderenalp, and got to Langnau at 3:15 p.m. 

A lot of the hike was on wider roads such as this one, either small paved roads or farm roads. 

Typical house for this region, with the large roofs.

Soon we will be doing winter hikes without the lovely colour provided by the geraniums!

There was this cute couple with a little boy enjoying a stroll along the same trail (there were surprisingly more people than we expected), and we "leap-frogged" with them a few times!

More views of the highest peaks in the Bernese Alps: Wetterhorn, Schrekhorn, Finsteraarhorn, Mönch, Eiger, Jungfrau. 

And to our west, we also get a really nice view of the Jura Range. 

Our trail continues to the right of the farmhouse below, which had a small "honesty shop" which we checked out. 

The couple with the small boy arrived here at the same time. They said to their boy "It's too early for ice cream" and I answered, "Not for this big child!". 

More views of the farms we passed and the Alps to the south. 

Close-up view of the highest peaks in the Bernese Alps. 

More of the rolling hills to the west at the farm called Ober Rämis

As it was now 11:40, we were keeping an eye out for a convenient bench for our lunch break (preferably in the shade, as the sun was quite warm by now), and the only bench nearby was already occupied. So we kept our eye out for that tree on the hill up ahead, as sometimes there are benches under such trees. 

As it turns out, no bench, but we took a detour up there anyway and sat on the grass in the shade of the tree, with great views for our lunch break. 

This was our lunch spot under the tree on the hill.... with a view!

More close-up views of the highest of the Bernese Peaks. In particular, Mt. Finsteraarhorn (the single peak to the right of center) is the highest peak in the Bernese Alps, at 4274 meters. 

Continuing along the trail after our lunch break. 

We then approached two farms called Oberegg and Hinteregg, where we could already hear a few "bangs", which Urs immediately interpreted as the sound made by a metal ball hitting a paddle in a traditional Swiss sport called "Hornussen", which is very specific to this region. 

A look back a the lovely Emmental farmhouse and beautiful garden at Hinteregg. 

And shortly afterwards we reached the farm where, sure enough, there was a game of "Hornussen" going on (plus various food stands, where Urs got himself a Bratwurst). I watched this for a while, where there is a ball that needs to be smacked (like golf), but the smacker (more like the Hammer-Throw) has to fit into the ramp first, which they have to keep cleaning out. 

The strongest guy on the team has to hit the ball as far as he can, by swinging a kind of wire with something hard on the end. 

And the best part of all, a whole lot of people stand way out in the field with large paddles, waiting to spot the metal ball as it comes flying, and they have to smack the ball with the paddles, even sometimes throwing them in the air to do so. 

And the best part of all, a whole lot of people stand way out in the field with large paddles, waiting to spot the metal ball as it comes flying, and they have to smack the ball with the paddles, even sometimes throwing them in the air to do so. 

Look how excited they all are to be playing this "sport"!!!

VIDEO:

An idea of how the game of Hornussen is played.

One member strikes the "ball" as far as he can, and the "outfielders" 

intercept it with their paddles, sometimes throwing the paddles into the air to do so.

The lighting on the mountains changes as the afternoon wears on. 

Passing through a lovely forested section (a detour off the "official" trail), we found the perfect bench for another long break in the shade, with more of the fabulous views. 

Views from our bench in the forest. 

Continuing on along the very pleasant forest road. 

And now we could hear more of the "smacking" noises, and knew we were coming closer to another "Hornussen" match. Sure enough, we could see the lines of people standing in the pasture, the ones with the "paddles" to smack the flying balls. 

First we passed through another small hamlet called Langenegg, with lovely wooden structures such as this little Spycher. 

And another gorgeous, probably very old, wooden farmhouse. 

We made a detour to one of the farms as they had advertised a farm shop. Urs often buys cold drinks along the way, if they are offered in the shops. 

These are called Honesty Shops that offer products made on neighbouring farms, and the owners trust that you will pay for what you take out of the shop. 

When we left the shop, we were greeting by the cutest, cleanest, softest and most affectionate farm cat, and I really wanted to take her home!

Now our trail will take us right down to the parking lot on the right, to get a close-up view of the "exciting action" on the Hornussen Field!

Evenly spaced out. There are even kids playing, they stand closer to the front and will probably never get to hit one of the flying balls.... 

These are the equivalent of baseball's "outfielders", waiting for a fly-ball which they will stop with their long-armed paddles. The distance between the team-mates seems to be measured exactly. Looks exciting..... (Someone even brought a lawn-chair!)

Just before reaching the town of Langnau (end of our hike), we enjoyed a lovely trail through a forested section, nice and cool on this hot day, and with several such bridges as well. 

Final stretch into the town of Langnau. 

Walking down the main street in Langnau, with two church towers ahead of us, indicating two buildings we have to check out before reaching the train station. It is now 15:08, and we still have plenty of time till the 15:37 train to Luzern. 

A cute house off the main road, and right across from the Catholic Church. 

The first church we reached in the heart of town is the Protestant (Evangelical) church. (In German called "Reformierte Kirche"). Until the Reformation in mid 16th Century, the Catholic church in this region was located in Trub. It wasn't until 1900 that a Catholic Mass was held in the Hotel Hirschen in Langnau, and ultimately they got their own building in 1932. 

This is the most unique interior decor we have seen in our church viewings to date. As the church was built only in 1932, it has more modern artwork, including the rather pretty bronze altar. Even the organ looks very modern. 

Not far down the road was the Evangelical church. It looks more like what one would expect an original Catholic church building to look, but this was built specifically for the large Anabaptist population (Radical Reformation) in 1673, on the site of at least three former churches. 

Details inside the Evangelical church. After the Reformation in the Mid-16th Century, Catholic churches were "retrofitted" with lots of wood details, or as in this case, an original build from 1673 due to the fast-growing Anabaptist population. 

Across from the Protestant Church is the town's museum. 

And next to the museum is the Gasthof Bären. (In every town there seems to be a Gasthof Bären = "Bear", Gasthof Hirschen = "Stag", and Gasthof Ochsen = "Ox"). 

"Urs" means "Bear", so I have to have a photo of him next to the "Gasthof Bären". 

A lovely building just a short distance from the train station. This is actually an office building that includes the offices of the Bernese Daily Newspaper (Berner Zeitung). 

It's now 15:32, and our 15:37 ride back to Luzern is already waiting on Platform 3. (Usually this train comes from Bern, but due to construction, it was only running as far as Langnau, which was lucky for us). From here it's a two-hour trip home. 

These are all the hikes we have done in the Napf region. Both of the 2017 hikes (once via the summit of Napf) we ended at Lüderenalp, and the 2023 and 2026 hikes we started at Lüderenalp. 

Location of the Napf Region within Switzerland.