The 1000-Step Trail (1000-er Stägli) to the top of Born, a small Jura Island near Olten

Sunday May 8, 2022 -- An overcast weekend, but we didn't want to spend both days indoors, so we went on a hike that was mostly through the forest, and where it didn't matter that we had little "view" and minimal sunshine.

But to make it interesting, we decided on a hike we have wanted to do a for a while, up a small mountain near Olten (an "island" in the Jura hills) called Born, whose summit is accessed by a unique trail made of 1150 consecutive steps, covering an altitude of 250 meters. 

Good thing it was all in the lush green forest, as the day without sunshine was still pretty humid, and even in the forest shade it was a hot climb. It took us 35 minutes to climb the 1150 stairs, from where we then descended along the forested ridge trail to the Aar River and into the city of Olten. Along the way there were a couple of clearings with a view down to the castle in Aarburg, near where the hike had started.

A really nice surprise was a detour to a short loop trail in the cleft of some of the Jura rock here, descending into a cave-like hollow created by the boulders. There were iron re-bar steps and handholds, as well as a ladder we had to climb. The trail was slippery from recent rains, but it was a detour we would not have wanted to miss! (We got the hint from a friend).  

Interesting facts about this set of stairs, called "Tuusigerstägli" in local dialect (= "Thousand Steps", although there are in fact 1150): The stairway was originally laid in 1904 to service Switzerland's first "pumped storage hydro power station", where the water from the Aar River below was pumped up into a holding basin at the top of the hill (that basin was created in 1896). The stairway started to fall into disrepair in 1960, and rebuilt in 1986 by a group of avid volunteers. 

Crossing the Aar River by bus from Aarburg to the base of Mt.Born, where the hike starts. The small "mountain" we walked down is the one on the left. It forms a sort of island separate from the nearby Jura Range, although it is part of that geology. 

Starting near the freeway, you climb 1150 steps and cover 250 altitude. At the top of the stairway a detour to the caves, then return to the highest point of "Mt." Born = 718m. The descent to Olten was all through the forest along the crest trail. It seemed to never end. 

"1000-er Stägli" is the nickname for this trail, i.e. "The Thousand-Step Trail". But really there are 1150 steps. 

The stairway ascends through lush green forest

The 1000-step milestone!

The trail is popular. Most of the other people passed us along the way! Also, toward the end, the stairway was pretty steep

VIDEO:

Climbing the 1150 steps to Born (Can be watched in YouTube)

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Bravo! We made it to the top in 35 minutes. 

A little detour to the cave called "Heideloch". They have created a really nice little loop through the cleft, with rebar steps and handholds. After recent rains, it was very slippery. 

Entering into the black hole! It took a while for our eyes to adjust

It was fun going through the cave! There was an opening on the far end, so we didn't have to backtrack.

The other side of the Heidenhöhle (Heiden Cave)

"Traversing the cave is at your own risk!". We could have backtracked through the cave, but there was a path around the cliffs to get back to the main trail, where we continued to the top of the hill called Born. 

Lovely forest trails at the base of the cliffs where we passed through 

We had our picnic lunch on "Sonia's Little Bench" next to the reservoir (the one that was created in 1896) but which is now converted into a biotope.

A very, very big beech tree!

The highest point on this "island hill":  718m

A look across Aarburg and the central Swiss region. On a clear day you can also see the Alps from here. 

A close-up view of the magnificent Aarburg Castle (now a juvenile detention center). Can only be viewed by public guided tour. 

And even more close-up of the castle church and old-town Aarburg

Lots of interesting funghi in the forest

Another look at the Aar River from above, as we descend toward Olten

Just resting

Down at river level, a look at the old wooden covered bridge over the Aar River (1803, although there has been a bridge here for 700 years, destroyed and rebuilt several times). The newer wood was to repair damage caused by a fire in 2018, from a carelessly thrown cigarette!!!! (Seriously, throwing away a cigarette on a wooden bridge?)

VIDEO:

This is from a news report in 2018, about the fire on the bridge:

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Old Town Olten

Old Town Olten

Crossing the old wooden bridge on our way to the train station. 

We have done a couple of other hikes in the Olten-Aarburg area

Location in Switzerland in relation to where we live. 

A Section of the Railway Adventure Trail between Erstfeld and Amsteg

Sunday May 1st -- It seemed like a good day to walk a section of the Railway Adventure Trail in the Reuss Valley in Canton Uri from Göschenen northwards to Amsteg, but we had a bit of bad luck: Overcast and cold when we got there, contrary to the weather report; also, the trail was still closed for another week as they take down some of the bridges in winter (large danger of avalanches).

So we returned the way we had come and decided to do a different section along the Railway Adventure Trail starting in Erstfeld instead and walking southward to Amsteg. Unfortunately, we still had no sunshine. And the peak of the magnificent Mt. Bristen always ahead of us was in the clouds. I have long wanted to walk this stretch, but for sure I thought it would be with a better view.

It wasn't a difficult hike. The cows are always a treat. There were some interesting landmarks along the way, like the Jagtmatt Chapel (first Baroque church built in Canton Uri), the oldest still occupied house in Canton Uri (a wooden house was built into the original stone walls), the 12th-Century Meier Tower built for the "Silenen Nobles", and information about the railway line here. Plus we have now added another section to our goal of walking the whole National Trail no.2: Trans Swiss Trail (and the Suvarov Trail, and the Via Gottardo Trail!)

NOTE: We walked a similar stretch in August 2019, but parallel and higher up the mountainside. That was a beautiful day and these photos HERE show the Reuss Valley between Erstfeld and Amsteg from above. 

This is the what the Jagtmatt Chapel looks like from the other side of the Reuss River. We approached it from the left, from the train station in Erstfeld, and continued up-river. Mt. Bristen is the peak in the back, the peak we didn't see on this day's hike. 

The Jagdmattkapelle (Jagdmatt Chapel) is the first point of interest you reach when you start on the trail near Erstfeld. This is the first early-Baroque Church built in Canton Uri (mid 1600's). Apparently, there is a bat colony living in the upper level!

Some features of the early-Baroque Church called Jagdmattkapelle

To the North the skies were blue, but where we are headed to the South, it actually looks like rain

A very nice house along the way

A rather "short" hike for us, just over 8 km and 2.5 hours. But it was long enough on this day.

Following the Reuss River. Mount Bristen in the back is a spectacular peak, which simply got lost in the bad weather this day. 

Up above the low clouds and over the ridge is Lake Seewlisee. Urs would like to do this uphill hike some time....

As part of the "Bahnerlebnisweg" (Railway Adventure Trail), there are many such information placards about the history of the railway in the Reuss Valley.

Since 2017 there is the 57-km long Basis Tunnel from Erstfeld to Biasca, straight through beneath the Alps , but until then, the railway line had to climb to the 15-km tunnel entrance at Göschenen, using cogwheels (this line is still in use). During the time of steam engines, 50 kg of coal had to be shoveled PER MINUTE.

The magnificent Mt. Bristen ahead of us, covered in clouds

A look back to the North, down the Reuss Valley, to Erstfeld where we started. 

We found this great privately-owned bench where we enjoyed our picnic lunch. The owners were in their garden nearby, and said it was no problem for us to sit here, that's what it was for!

This wall is to prevent the river -- which comes down from the mountain above -- from flooding when the rains are strong and the snow is melting!

An interesting lane lined by dry-stone walls

This building has been neglected for a while...

Ahead of us is the community of Silenen-Dägerlohn. Behind the church and to the left is the base station of one of our favourite farmer's cable cars (Kilcherbergbahn), which we have ridden many times and given us access to the mountainside on the left. 

To the left of the church is an ivy-covered house which we discovered is oldest still inhabited house in Canton Uri. 

This is the oldest still-inhabited house in Canton Uri. The stone walls are one-meter thick. In the 16th/17th Centuries, a wooden house was built INTO the existing stone house. 

This is the wooden house that was built into the stone house in the 16th or 17th Century, and is the oldest still-inhabited house in Canton Uri

All along the way, the little curious cows always came to watch us walk past!

Next stop: The church in Dägerlohn (Silenen) which also looked to be Baroque, so I was looking forward to seeing the inside. 

A note next to the door informs us that the church is closed till October due to roof renovations. But the door was pretty!

The trail is part of four themed trails: Trans-Swiss Trail, Via Gottardo, Via Suvorov, and the Railway Adventure Trail. 

Looks like a good place to store your machinery!

Another look North down the Reuss Valley, this time just as we have left the village of Silenen. By now the clouds were clearing, but I was now dressed too warmly for that!

More cows along the way, they came racing over from the barn at the back!

VIDEO:

More cows all excited to watch us go by! 

They are probably simply excited to be out of the barn finally.

Passing under the Gotthard railway line. We did stay and watch two trains pss

The "Tower of the Noblemen of Silenen" (Meierturm), built in the 12th Century, is actually accessible to the public, but for some reason it was locked this day. At least the tower chapel was open and it had some nice murals. 

The original "Fourteen Holy Helpers" Chapel was built in 1081. After a fire in 1666 it was rebuilt and the painted murals added

Paintings inside the chapel date from after the fire in 1666

Further down the road is the old "Haus der Sust" (where travelers and their animals were accommodated on their travels in the middle ages), renovated in 1939 leaving much of the original construction. It is under national protection.

This house fascinated us. It was recently resurfaced with small wooden shingles, all by hand!

Further along is the former fortress "Zwing Uri", assumed to have been built in about the year 1200, and occupied till the 14th Century. It was strategically placed to guard the Gotthard Passage. We planned to have a coffee break here.

There was not a lot of the tower left, just a 3-meter high "ring" of stones, which we had to climb to get to the top. 

The Zwing-Uri fortress, or what is left of it. 

Continuing on the trail toward Amsteg, we came across a sign which shows that this location is part of another regional trail: No.43, the St.James Trail Graubünden

The St.James Trail passes over this passerelle over the railway line and into the Maderaner Valley

We were impressed by the stone walls built to support the gardens on this pretty chalet

Final stretch to the bus stop in Amsteg

What the 8-km walk looks like on Google Satellite Maps

An easily-accessible region for us, that is why we have done a lot of hikes here in the Uri Alps! The small cable cars offer us easy access into the mountains. 

The Erstfeld-Amsteg Region on a Swiss Map

This is what Mt.Bristen looks like, as seen from Lake Uri further to the North