The "Swiss Path" from Seelisberg to Isleten

(This post published on December 31, 2023)

Friday January 3, 2014 -- Perfect day for hiking... no snow at this altitude and mild temperatures. This 11-km piece we did is part of what is called "The Swiss Path" which was created in 1991 to celebrate the 700th anniversary of the Swiss confederation. 

To get to our starting point at Seelisberg we had to go by boat from Brunnen to Treib and then by cogwheel train. From there we walked down to a town called Bauen on the lake which has a tropical microclimate, and is so tucked away at the base of the mountains that they built a special tunnel to give the residents auto access to the rest of the country. Until the year 1956 the village was only accessible on foot or by boat. The road took 7 years to built, 30 men working on it, all the work done by hand.

From Bauen we walked along the old walking trail to the nearest bus stop at Isenthal. This footpath, passing through several tunnels, is one of the most important historical footpaths in Canton Uri.

The 6-minute boat ride from Brunnen to Treib is the fastest way for us to access Mount Seelisberg!

In the lakeside station of the Treib-Seelisberg funicular

Starting on the way up Mount Seelisberg with the funicular. In the background is Brunnen, where we previously set off by boat. 

Starting on our walk southward at 11:15 a.m., we pass the community church in the village of Seelisberg. 

A look back at the church as we continue down the road. 

An approximately 11-km trail from Seelisberg to Isleten bus stop via the village of Bauen, which is accessible by road only since 1956, but has no bus service. (The only public transport there is boat). We started at 11:15, and got to Bauen at 13:20, and to the bus in Isleten at about 2:30 p.m. (?)

At the first look-out point, view south toward Flüelen and Mount Bristen. The photo is dark, but the lighting is neat!

From the second look-out point, a look back toward Brunnen and the Mythen mountains

And now some better lighting for the view south, as we cross a wide open pasture. Bauen is not visible below, but where we caught the bus at Isleten is the small peninsula into the lake ahead. 

Along the way we passed a cute little castle called Schlösschen Beroldingen, originally built in the 15th Century, although the current build is from 1671.

Some farm houses and barns along the way. 

Across the lake is the village of Sisikon and the Riemenstalden Valley behind it. The "Swiss Path" also follows the entire lakeshore on the other side of this lake. 

Another look at the south end of the lake, and the cliff on the right which we walked along (through a tunnel) to the peninsula at Isleten

Heading down the long set of steps through the forest toward lake level. 

Arriving in Bauen above the village church. 

The current church was finished in 1812, but the first churches and chapels in Bauen were from 1360 and 1585 although the latter was destroyed by a land slide. After that, no churches were built for 170 years. 

So many palm trees here in this specially mild microclimate!

A look at the rest of the lakeshore walk which we are starting on (a 30-minute walk from here). This is a long tunnel blasted into the cliff, and was the first access by road from the south side, which took 7 years to build from 1949 to 1956. 

Heading off along the cliffs, a look back at Bauen, and where we walked down from. 

Walking through the tunnel trail along the lake. This was the original and first road built to connect Bauen to the rest of the Reuss Valley. 30 men worked on it from 1949 to 1956, all the work done by hand! It is now a walking trail, part of the "Swiss Path" and one of the most important historical footpaths in Canton Uri.

Looking out of one of the "windows" in the cliff! 

A close-up look at the magnificent Mount Bristen, further up the Reuss Valley. It's now 2:15 p.m.  

Back in October of 2013 we took a boat ride on Lake Uri from Flüelen to Brunnen. This is what the village of Bauen looks like from the boat, in autumn. 

Also from the boat ride on Lake Uri in October 2013, you can see the "windows" blasted into the cliff wall, behind which is the tunnel which was the original road built from 1949 to 1956, but is now a footpath to the village of Bauen. Deeper in the mountain is the newer tunnel road, built in 1969. 

(Additional notes made at that time in Endomondo: "3 hours to Isleten where we had missed the last bus for another 3 hours by just 10 minutes. So we hitchhiked and got a ride to Fluelen ".  Also, a bus schedule for that time shows that the bus would have left at 13:07, and the next would have left at 16:17. So it looks like the time on all my photos is off by an hour). 

Lots of Free Cookie Samples at the Kambly Cookie Factory in Trubschachen

(This post published on December 15, 2025 -- Since this first trip, we have been at the Kambly Cookie store many times, especially when we ended a hike nearby!)

Sunday November 3, 2013 -- My Aunt Ruth had told us about the Kambly Cookie Factory in Trubschachen (Canton Bern), where they sell the "less than perfect" cookies (and also crackers) in larger packs for less than it costs to buy the perfect cookies in the shops. The fun part about this factory shop is that you can taste as many of the cookies as you like! But you cannot take any samples with you, and you cannot even take the cookies into the adjoining café (where you can buy pastries with your coffee). 

Because I had never been to a place where you can sample cookies for free, I ate too many, and went home with a stomach ache! We also bought a few bags of the ones we liked best! 

There is even a "special" train called the "Kambly Train" decorated with cookies, which travels between Luzern and the town of Langnau in the Emmental, stopping at the factory in Trubschachen along the way.

We board the Kambly Train in Luzern

The Kambly train at the Trubschachen train station.

It's quite a walk from the train stop past the factory buildings to the factory store!

What fun! You can taste as many cookies as you want! You just can't take them out of the store. 

Urs is quite happy to be here at the cookie store as well!

After tasting the cookies, we started to collect bags of the ones we like the best!

The cookies are sold in 500g bags for about 10 Fr.. each. These are second-grade cookies, but taste just as good as the perfect ones!

Oh no, this cookie box needs a refill!

Decoration inside the shop. 

Many shelves of sweet and salty biscuits. (There are also pretzel sticks, puff-pastry sticks, goldfish and other salty crackers). 

Kids love it too!

Kids can sign up to decorate their own gingerbread houses! You can also watch the personnel created specialty chocolates. 

A few more chocolate-covered cookies before we head to the cash to pay for our purchases. I ended up with a belly-ache on the way home.... 

This is what we came home with! A variety of our favourite cookies, plus a bag of savoury puff pastry sticks with olive filling!

Stroll through Kaiseraugst and the Roman Colony Augusta Raurica

(This post published on December 26, 2025. No notes taken at the time).

Sunday October 27, 2013 -- On this Sunday afternoon we didn't want to do a big hike, so traveled in the direction of Basel in the Northeast corner of Switzerland to have a walk around the site of the Roman Colony of Augusta Raurica, one of the most important Roman sites in Switzerland and the oldest known colony on the Rhine.

Information from the website: https://www.augustaraurica.ch/en/archaeology/city-history

"The capital of the colony Augusta Raurica was constructed around 15 BC. Within 200 years the town developed into a regional metropolis and flourishing trade centre with some 15,000 inhabitants. This was possible not least because of its location on the intersection between the River Rhine and the north-south axis linking the Rhineland with Italy and the west-east route from Gaul to the Danube and Raetia."

Here are a few photos of the archeological site, and from the walk we did around the town of Kaiseraugst with a short stretch along the Rhine River there. 

Heading into the town of Kaiseraugst, we pass a remaining piece of the original Roman fortress wall. 

Walking past the town's church. 

Pretty Houses

Lovely window decorations

This is the St.Gallus Catholic church. Information from Wikipedia: "It stands on the foundations of a church considered one of the oldest Christian places of worship in Switzerland. Below the church, a baptistery dating from the 4th or 5th century is built into the bank of the Rhine. The church tower dates from the 14th century, while the Baroque interior was completely redesigned between 1736 and 1750."    

Along the river there is an open-air museum where we had a look inside at what used to be the Roman Rhine Baths. (More information HERE)

A map shows all the archeological sites of the old Roman city, built in 15 BC and flourishing 200 years later.  

Starting at the train station, we first walked into the actual town of Kaiseraugst, then along the river past one excavation which included the Roman baths, then we walked to the Amphitheater (which wasn't really impressive, and then ended at the large Roman Theater and Temple on the hill, and that was more impressive. We took a little over two hours to do this loop.

Heading south now through the site of the various Roman structures, we pass the ruins of what is called the Grienmatt Sanctuary, which might have been a place of pilgrimage for the sick. See also HERE on the Website. 

We then passed the outer walls of the Amphitheater, the southernmost point of the loop walk around the site. 

Back at the main Roman Theater about 25 minutes later, this structure was much more interesting!

Directly across from the theater are the steps up to the temple. 

This is what is left of the Temple on Schönbühl Hill. "In the late 3rd century the temple became a ‘stone quarry’: parts of it were removed and reused elsewhere. That is why only the core of the temple podium has survived. The recesses on the sides show where the columns used to be." 

Roman Theater seen from Schönbühl Hill

Panorama view of the Roman Theater. 

What our little walk around Kaiseraugst and the remains of the Roman Colony Augusta Raurica looks like on Google Satellite Maps. 

Foggy Hike along the Schächen Valley High Trail, from Biel-Kinzig to Eggbergen.

(This post published December 15, 2025. NOTE: The owners of the Alpstubli Selez retired after 2020 and the little restaurant is no longer in operation.)

Wednesday October 9, 2013 -- Urs wanted to take me on one of his favourite hikes in Canton Uri near Flüelen and Altdorf, which requires a cable car ride to a high trail (part of the Schächentaler High Trail) to Biel/Kinzig, and from there you walk about 2½ hours (8-9 km) to Eggbergen where you take another cable car down to Flüelen. 

On the way is a favourite restaurant, a little mountain inn called Alpstubli Selez which serves the best macaroni and cheese, Swiss Style (with Schabziger cheese sauce) and fabulous grilled pork steaks!

Unfortunately we had fog the whole way (can't win them all!) but enjoyed the walk most of the way. Along the way was a small shelter with a fountain and a supply of sirups where you could have a drink (called the Sirup Bar). This was run by a private individual who stopped doing this in 2014, unfortunately. It was a fun feature.

First we took the cable-car from Bürglen (Brügg) to Biel-Kinzig summit station, from where there is a short uphill walk, and then a fairly level and wide road heading westward. Along the way you pass this little hut called "The Sirup Bar". We got here at 12:20 after about a 40-minute walk from the cable-car station. 

A local resident keeps the hut, built around a water trough, stocked with syrups and cups, and you can help yourself for free. (Side note: A year after we were here, the gentleman stopped doing this, which is a shame, because this was such a cool feature). 

We didn't get much of a view, as the fog didn't lift here at all. 

We got to the Alpstubli Selez at about 1 p.m. The fog hasn't let up at all. Usually you can sit outside to enjoy a meal and the fantastic view, but we were glad to be able to go inside on this day!

Once we got to the Alpstubli Selez, we could sit inside in the warmth of their "living room". We were served the best mountain macaroni (Aelplermagronen) with the even better grilled pork steaks 

Ironically, our place-mats showed us the view which we should have had on this hike!

At shortly after 2 p.m., it was time to continue on our hike toward Eggbergen. This little barn is part of the Selez alpine farm. 

After a long walk to the summit and then down through forested areas, we reached the first farms in Eggbergen at about 3 p.m. It's always nice to visit with the cows!

That's a huge bell which she is wearing!

Alpine pastures as we head down toward the cable-car station in Eggbergen. 

By 3:30 p.m. we were on the cable-car back down to the Reuss Valley at Flüelen. 

Before heading home, we walked around the alleys in the town of Flüelen. 

This is the very south end of the Uri arm of Lake Luzern. Even the foggy weather won't prevent people from enjoying a boat ride on the lake!

A dominant landmark in the town of Flüelen. 

Biel-Kinzing summit station to Eggbergen via Alpe Selez (approx. 8 km, 2.5 hours)