West Side of Lake Küssnacht from Haltikon to Meggen

Saturday February 24, 2024 -- There were no plans for hiking on Saturday, as the forecast was for cloudy everywhere. But the weather in our region often surprises us, as the skies over Lake Zug and Mount Rigi suddenly opened up, and we could even see all the way to the Bernese Alps again.

So another spur-of-the-moment decision and we were off to the Küssnacht Arm of Lake Luzern again, to walk another short section of Regional Trail no.98: "Waldstätterweg", one of the few sections we still had to cover in order to reach our goal of walking around the entire lake. This was a good choice for us because it only took us 45 minutes from our building to the start of our hike at the historical chapel at Haltikon.

This was a short walk for us, just over two hours and only 8 kilometers, but we didn't want to risk walking more, as the weather changes quickly.

It was an easy pleasant walk with lots of good views into the Alps of Canton Nidwalden on the south side of the lake, and all the way to the Brienzer Rothorn which is at the gateway of the Bernese Oberland. We had started shortly after 11 a.m., and were back home by 2:45 p.m.

Our excursion started at the bus stop next to the little St. Katharina Chapel in Haltikon. The hamlet of Haltikon was first mentioned in documents of 1284, and it is assumed that there was a chapel here since at leas 1485. This particular chapel was built in 1636. 

These are the original Baroque Altars from 1636. The interior of the chapel was fully restored from 1971 to 1973 and put under federal and cantonal monument protection. 

One of the special features of this chapel is the impressive wood-paneled ceiling, which was renovated to its original status. 

Farm houses in Haltikon. 

Farm houses in Haltikon. 

We started just after 11 a.m. at the chapel in Haltikon, then joined Trail no.98: "Waldstätterweg" (which is a themed trail around the entire Lake Luzern) till Meggen, where we caught a train to Luzern at 13:39 and were home by 2:45 p.m. 

Heading off to join the "Waldstätterweg" Trail. That is Mount Rigi in the background, on the opposite side of the Küssnacht arm of Lake Lucerne. 

We had more sunshine and blue skies here than expected. 

Being observed by deer this time. (A deer farm. This breed of deer are called "Fallow Deer")

Our first view of the Nidwalden Alps on the south side of Lake Lucerne (in the center is Klewenalp, on the right is Mount Buochserhorn). The clouds were low, but we were glad to see some of the mountains at all.

This short stretch of the trail -- before reaching the Merlischachen Forest -- we had done once before in January 2022, having intended at that time to walk all the way to Meggen as we did today, but even though we started with great visibility at that time, we cut the hike short because the fog moved in and it got quite cold and we had no view of the Alps. (Those photos are HERE, some are quite nice).  

Another look in the direction of Klewenalp and Mount Bürgenstock. 

Following Trail no.98, our goal for this day is Meggen (on the lake) which has a train station. 

According to a panorama placard of the Alps at this spot, those mountains in the center are the Melchtal Alps. Where the circle is, one should be able to see the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau peaks. 

The final look at Mount Rigi and the town of Küssnacht, as we now head into the Merlischachen forest. 

On Trail no.98: "Waldstätterweg". We are headed toward Wagenmoos and then Meggen. The rest of the trail to Luzern will have to wait for another day. 

In this region are several marshes and flatmoors. It was very pleasant to walk through. This one was called Schlittenried. 

Right about noon, we found the perfect spot for our picnic lunch. 

This is Wagenmoos, an amphibian spawing region of national importance. 

Our trail took us around the Wagenmoos pond 

Back now on the Küssnacht Lake side, another look at Mount Rigi

This view is right past the Hertenstein Horn to the main part of Lake Luzern, with Mount Niederbauen in the far back. Not quite two weeks earlier I had done a hike at the foot of Mount Rigi on the left, passing around the Horn (those photos are HERE). 

Heading downhill now toward Meggen. 

A look back at the house we just passed. 

Directly across the lake at the foot of Mount Rigi is the town of Greppen, where I ended my three-hour hike on February 13th (with a much better view of the Nidwalden Alps at the time!)

Nearly down at Lake level. Across the lake is the Hertenstein Horn where I walked on February 13th. 

Our trail took us past the church in Meggen (heading down on the left), but we didn't stop to look inside this time, as we only had a few minutes extra to get to the train station. In the back is Mount Pilatus. 

And here we are at the end of our 2-hour walk crossing the bridge over the railway tracks to get to the station. As usual, we got to the station just 3 minutes before the train arrived. 

The interesting thing about this trail is that we started in Canton Schwyz, but crossed the border into Canton Luzern at the Wagenmoos pond. Then returned to Canton Schwyz for a short piece, before ending our hike in Canton Luzern. 

All the hikes we have done around the Küssnacht arm of Lake Lucerne. The other lake (upper left) is Lake Zug. 

Hauenstein Pass near Olten and a visit to Frohburg Fortress Ruins

Friday February 23, 2024 -- Still taking advantage of any nice weather, I went looking for a place for an easy walk in the sunshine, which this time was a forecast for more in the western part of the country. As I was going to be walking alone, I chose an easy (although not very exciting) section of the "National Trail no.7: Via Gottardo" on the stretch between Olten and Luzern, namely from Brittnau/Wikon to Dagmersellen in the Wiggertal, which was going to be a 9-km (2½-hour) stretch, plenty long enough for a rather uninteresting walk. But at least I would have three hours in the sun.

As it turns out, shortly after I started on my walk at 10 a.m., clouds covered the sun, and without the warmth of the sun, I wasn't interested in completing the stretch. So I caught the next train north after just an hour (4 km), not knowing exactly what I was going to do, except to try to find a place with sunshine!

In Olten there were blue skies, so I figured I'd tackle another less-interesting stretch of the Via Gottardo (one we would not otherwise have done), from the Hauenstein Pass back down into the city of Olten. This would have been another 1½ hours of walking (to make the full 2½ hours I had originally planned on) and an additional approx. 5 kilometers. But when I got to the pass, I changed plans again, and decided to go look at the ruins of the Frohburg fortress, which we had passed on a previous hike in 2018 but not had gone to look at.

So the second hike I did ended up being 7½ kilometers and 2¼ hours of additional walking, for a total of almost 12 km and 3½ hours! The fortress ruins were definitely worth seeing (ancestral seat of the Counts of Frohburg from the 11th to 14th Centuries), although a better view of the Alps would have been preferred... and it ended up becoming overcast as well. But I saw a young stag walk across my trail, which was a lovely surprise!

The first plan for this day, i.e. a 9-km stretch from Brittnau/Wikon train station and along National Trail no.7: Via Gottardo, started with the sighting of a castle on the hill, once one of the largest medieval defence structures of the Luzern area. I started at the Brittnau/Wikon train station at 10:09.

The Wikon Castle was once one of the largest medieval defence structures in Canton Luzern, consisting of four castles side by side. Currently only the one tower remains of the 14th (?) Century complex, and someone thought it would be cool to build all the ugly 20th-Century cement structures around it. Most recently it functioned as a Benedictine Monastery, and apparently is now used as a refugee facility for Ukrainian refugees. 

Now that is quite a fantastic roof!

The Via Gottardo trail passes directly below the castle on the north side. 

Proof that I'm walking on National Trail no.7: Via Gottardo from Wikon to Reiden. 

The trail passed right by the church in Reiden, so of course I walked right in the first open door to look at the inside, and even though it was Friday morning, there seemed to be a service in progress... many heads turned my way, so I closed the door quite quickly!

From the church I headed through the town directly to the train station (the nearest one to the south of where I started) and just managed to catch the next train (11:07) heading north. By this time I had walked 4 km / one hour. This Gasthaus and Restaurant is called "Schwanen", or "The Swan". 

As is typical for most inns in Switzerland, the sign reflects the name of the enterprise

The 4-km section I walked on the Via Gottardo Trail, starting at the Brittnau/Wikon station at 10:10. The plan was to walk about 10 km to the train station in Dagmersellen, but the clouds covered the sun and it got cold, so I hopped the next train and headed north again. 

By the time I reached Olten (a 15-minute train ride), I had decided to take the bus to the Hauenstein Pass, but had to wait 25 minutes here. So I got something for lunch and went to look at the wooden covered bridge (built in 1803) over the Aare River. 

Heading up to the Hauenstein Pass from Olten, a 15-minute bus ride. At first I thought I might walk to the summit of that cliff (called Geissfluh) but I ended up not going there. The castle ruins which I went to see were right on the far side of that cliff. 

Although Olten and the village of Hauenstein where I got off the bus are in Canton Solothurn, only a few meters to the north is the Hauenstein Pass, which is the passage from Canton Solothurn to Canton Basel-Land. 

Starting in Hauenstein shortly after noon, I walked over the pass for a short piece in Canton Baselland, before crossing back to Canton Solothurn. I ended in Trimbach and caught a bus back to the Olten train station. I didn't feel like walking all the way there. The ruins are in that circled area. 

Every farm has a cat!

The trail passed right through the farm called Reisen

These newborn calves are just the cutest!

Further up ahead along the trail I spotted a deer! This is a young buck of the type of deer called "Hirsch", which is a larger species than the regular red deer we often see in the forests. 

VIDEO:

Watching the young stag walk across my hiking trail.

Looking westward to the Hauenstein Pass (on the left). This whole mountain range is part of the Jura foothills. 

And here I am looking eastward to a peak called the Flueberg

A little to the north is the village called Wiesen (back in Canton Solothurn here), a village where we started one of our hikes in March 2022, those photos are HERE. 

Just to the south now is a large "rock", part of the Frohburg Castle site. 

The view from my lunch bench at 1 p.m. The fortress ruins are hidded by the trees on that hill ahead. 

I arrived at the site of the ruins at 1:20 p.m. I saw immediately it would be exciting to walk up to that look-out platform!

First a quick walk around the site with the many remaining pieces of the castle. 

The placard indicates that some remaining parts of the castle were built as early as the 11th Century, with some older wooden sections (no longer existing) from even earlier than that!

Heading up to the top of the hill on the north side! The buildings originally built up here are the youngest of the complex, from the early 14th Century!

A look eastward to the Gösgen nuclear power plant (produces 8 billion KW of electricity per year). What a juxtaposition to the 11th century round structure on the left!

Panorama view across the complex. This was once the ancestral headquarters of the Counts of Frohburg, a noble family attested from the 11th Century, but who died out in 1367. They founded the cities of Zofingen and Aarburg, but sold most of their holdings to the Counts of Habsburg in the 14th Century. (Information from Wikipedia). 

Another set of stairs to the south

View south past the city of Olten all the way to the Alps. On a clearer day, you would have a very nice view of the mountains. 

Carefully making my way down again. 

Another look at the left-over walls of the castle.. 

Making my way down from the mountain. We prefer these kinds of trails, but at this time of year these trails are often quite muddy (it had rained the day before) and sometimes it is preferable to walk on the wider paved or forest roads. 

This farm is called Marenacker. 

Down below is that part of Olten called "Trimbach", where I passed through with the bus on the way to the Hauenstein Pass (toward the right). 

Looking past Trimbach to the city of Olten. By now it has become quite overcast. 

As I cross the railway line (which passes beneath the Hauenstein Pass on the way to Basel), I look up the valley where I traveled earlier by bus. 

A final historical building before getting to the bus stop: This is a Trinity chapel, probably built by the Counts of Frohburg (first mentioned in 1469 although the current building is from 1604) and serving as an important stop to pray before heading out on the challenging crossing of the Hauenstein Pass. The chapel was locked. I got here at 2:30 p.m.  

We have done a few hikes in the region of the Hauenstein Pass. The pink trail is the one I did this day. It ended up being over 7 km. (In addition to the 4 km I had walked before noon). The orange and red trails are part of the Jura Crest Trail, another national trail (no.5)

Another look at the wooden bridge of Olten as the bus crosses the bridge over the Aare River (In March of 2018, the bridge suffered much damage from a fire caused by a discarded cigarette). 

Location of the Hauenstein Pass and the Wigger Valley in Switzerland.