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Published: September 9th 2016
Sea of Green
View of the upper Kiental basking in late-afternoon sunlightHaving hiked all the way from Engelberg to Mürren (almost 80km in all) along the Via Alpina during the previous week, I was naturally disappointed - though hardly surprised - to be confronted by threatening skies on Saturday morning (23rd July), which left me with little choice but to cancel my planned hike along the next stage of the Via Alpina over the Sefinenfurgge pass to Griesalp.
While I would have had no hesitation in crossing either of the two previous passes on the trail (the Kleine Scheidegg and Grosse Scheidegg) in such weather, the fact that the Sefinenfurgge sits at an altitude of 2611m - around six hundred metres higher than the two previous passes - was enough to convince me that even if I could cross the pass safely in poor weather, I would most certainly not be able to do it ENJOYABLY. And there was no guaranteeing that I could have made it across safely anyway, given the serious warning in my guidebook about the steepness of the descent on the other side of the pass. I certainly didn't fancy hiking for four hours to reach the pass, only to then be forced to choose between a
Playing the waiting game
View of the Thunersee from the train station in Spiez potentially-dangerous descent to Griesalp or an equally-lengthy retreat back to Mürren.
So after going for a final scenic walk around Lauterbrunnen and making the most of the internet access offered at a cafe on the main street, I set about the task of getting to Griesalp by public transport - which despite being no more than twenty kilometres away entailed having to take three trains and a bus to get there! Starting with a train to Interlaken, followed by another train to Spiez (on the shores of the Thunersee) and then a third train to the small town of Reichenbach in der Kandertal, I then waited around for the postbus to Griesalp - which promised to be no ordinary bus journey...
Using specially-modified mini-buses, the fifty minute trip from Reichenbach to Griesalp (which runs four times a day) is considered to be the steepest bus route in Europe. It would also have to be one of the most scenic - though this clearly fails to attract large volumes of tourists, given that I was one of just three people on the bus as we pulled away from the train station in Reichenbach and almost immediately began climbing up
Ready for Action
The specially-modified postbus used on the Reichenbach to Griesalp route the side of the Kandertal (Kander Valley). The peace and serenity of the journey was soon to be shattered however, when we arrived in the town of Kiental (the largest settlement in the valley of the same name) to find a group of thirty or so presumably inebriated young men boisterously awaiting a ride up the valley! Presumably the bus company had known of this in advance though - which would explain why a second (empty) bus had followed us up from the station in Reichenbach. Of course Murphy's Law would dictate that most of them hopped on board my bus anyway...
Thankfully though even their cacophonous noise soon faded into the background as we proceeded further up the Kiental before emerging beside the Tschingelsee, where a landslide a few years ago dammed the river to form a shallow lake, which has since been split into separate channels due to the large volumes of sediment and rocks being washed down from above. It was here that the valley seemed to come to an abrupt end, with steeply-forested slopes seemingly enclosing the lake on all sides. Only as we reached the far end of the Tschingelsee did it become apparent
Not your average road sign
Warning sign at the entrance to the Griesschlucht - the steepest bus route in Europe that there was a narrow gap in the walls of the valley - the Griesschlucht - and it would be up through this gap that we would proceed to the small village of Griesalp above.
Only after stopping to check that everything was in order, sounding the incredibly loud and unmistakable three-tone horn a couple of times - to make sure no motorists were coming down through the Griesschlucht towards us - and presumably changing into the lowest gear possible, did the bus driver proceed... at which point we entered a different world. Steep, narrow and winding in equal measure, the road up through the Griesschlucht rises 250 metres in just 1 kilometre (at a 28% gradient) with switchbacks stacked up one on top of the other; the hairpin turns rarely separated by more than fifty metres of straight road.
But it isn't so much the road that makes the Griesschlucht so special, as the incredible scenery through which it passes. No sooner had we entered the gorge than the driver was stopping to offer us a view of a dramatic waterfall thundering down the hillside nearby; and from there it seemed as though every switchback in the
Close enough to feel the spray
View of Dundebach Falls from the postbus road revealed another roaring waterfall. The most spectacular cascade of all - the Dundebach Falls - was so close to the road we would have no doubt felt the spray if there had been any windows on the bus to open. Needless to say, by this time even the rowdy group of drunken young men up the front of the bus had become noticeably hushed!
Slowly we inched our way onwards and upwards through the Griesschlucht, the bus driver repeatedly sounding his horn to warn off any drivers at the top of the gorge who might have been thinking of coming down in the opposite direction - since it seemed pretty clear that at no point within the gorge was there a section of road wide enough for two vehicles to pass each other! In fact at one point near the top of the climb there was barely enough space for the bus alone to get through - it would be no exaggeration to say that if there had been any windows to open on the bus, people on BOTH sides of the bus would have been able to touch the rock as the bus squeezed it's way through
Close enough to touch the sides
The narrowest of narrow sections on the road through the Griesschlucht into the final series of switchbacks!
But then just when I was wondering if this wonderous bus drive would ever end, we popped out through another narrow gap in the rock and suddenly found ourselves in the tiny little settlement of Griesalp. Even the word 'settlement' seems an exaggeration for Griesalp though - it's basically nothing more than a few hotels arranged around a square, with a few guesthouses and farmhouses scattered about the surrounding hillside. Clearly if I was looking for solitude - and having been being caught up amongst the tourist throngs of Grindelwald and Latuerbrunnen for the past four days, the thought was certainly appealing - I had found it!
Arriving at my hostel, the Naturfreundhaus Gorneren - which like the Naturfreundhaus I had stayed at in Grindelwald was a charming example of a traditional wooden Swiss chalet, full of creaking floorboards and low ceilings - I was greeted by the effervescent caretaker Heinz, who took great interest in my trip and was delighted that I had found the bus ride up through the Griesschlucht so enchanting. "You should tell all your friends in Australia that they should come here" he told me sincerely; "we
Friends of Nature
The Naturfreundhaus Gorneren, my home for the weekend in Gresialp could do with some more tourists". When I said that I was surprised such an incredible natural spectacle was not more well-known, he replied "Not even Swiss people know about this place - most of them would never have heard about this valley". As bad as this may be for local tourism, I couldn't help but be secretly glad that was the case...
Staring out at the low-lying blanket of cloud which almost completely obscured the far side of the valley - and had encroached to within a couple of hundred metres of Griesalp itself - I couldn't help but feel justified in my decision not to attempt the crossing of the Sefinenfurgge from Mürren, since almost the entire descent from the pass (not to mention the ascent on the other side) would have had to be completed in the midst of these clouds. And if I needed any further convincing it soon came when I was re-united with a young British / Canadian couple staying at the hostel whom I had first met whilst taking shelter from the thunderstorm that hit whilst we were crossing the Kleine Scheidegg two days earlier; and whom I had then bumped into
Valley of Waterfalls
View from the Naturfreundhaus again at the hostel in Lauterbrunnen that same night, as they were weighing up whether or not to cross the Sefinenfurgge themselves the following day (Friday).
Thankfully they had been able to take advantage of the slightly better weather on Friday (which I had spent walking from Lauterbrunnen up to Mürren and back on my 'rest day' - so as to shorten what would otherwise be an incredibly arduous climb with 1800m of ascent to reach the pass from Lauterbrunnen) but despite having completed the trek the day before, they were clearly still feeling the (ill) effects. "Yeah we made it" they said, without any great enthusiasm; "but you were right - it completely destroyed us. We haven't moved all day today". It had taken them thirteen hours to walk all the way from Lauterbrunnen to Griesalp (though I had suggested they take the gondola and mountain railway as far as Mürren, which would have shortened it to around ten hours). Clearly my decision to take the postbus had been the right one!
And when the weather miraculously cleared up late in the afternoon, I couldn't resist taking a walk back to the top of the gorge to
Road Less Travelled
The upper Kiental next morning re-trace the bus' route through the vice-like cliffs of the upper gorge. The clear skies also allowed me to get my first decent view of the upper Kiental, and I could immediately see why the gorge would have so much water flowing through it. Imagine taking a simple funnel and slicing it in half vertically - the top half representing the mountains arranged in a rough semi-circle around the head of the valley, filtering every drop of rainwater, snowmelt and glacial meltwater towards the spout... which in turn would represent the Griesschlucht. Now fill the spout with a lush carpet of trees (no doubt a result of the constant supply of moisture) and build a road that defies gravity by zig-zagging it's way up the inside of the spout, and you begin to get some idea of the dramatic nature of the place!
Waking up to a mostly clear sky on Sunday morning, I lingered over the views of the upper Kiental whilst indulging in a delicious breakfast of bircher muesli, with the Blüemlisalphütte clearly visible on a ridge-top just below the summit of the Blüemlisalphorn, at an altitude of 2834m - 60 metres above the Hohtürli pass that
Wild Waters
Dundebach Falls up close I had been planning to cross on the way to Kandersteg the next day; and a full 1400 metres above Griesalp. Despite the clear morning weather though, I had all but given up hope of reaching the pass or the hut the following day given the dire weather forecast. But at least I knew where to go in the event that the forecast turned out to be wrong!
Determined to make the most of my brief window of nice weather, I headed up and over the crest of a ridge just behind the village to get a fuller view of the mountains crowding the head of the valley, with the Gspaltenhorn dominating one side and the Blüemlisalp the other; while a glacier occupied the saddle between the two. From there I headed back past the Naturfreundhaus towards the yawning chasm of the lower valley containing the Tschingelsee, with waterfalls plunging down the slopes on the far side of the valley to contribute their waters to those of the Griesschlucht.
A steep, twisting trail led down through the forest to the valley floor, where I followed the road back alongside the Tschingelsee to the start of the Wyldwasserweg (Wild
Suspended between green and grey
Looking down the Kiental shortly after leaving Griesalp Water Way) - the aptly-named hiking trail that climbs up through the Griesschlucht, allowing me to get a closer look at the churning cauldron of water funneling through the gorge without having to dodge cars (or postbuses) along the road. Just as I had experienced on the bus the day before, at seemingly every turn I was confronted by another turbulent cascade trying to break free from the confines of the gorge; and the thunderous roar of water colliding with rock that accompanied my every step was something I won't soon forget!
Unfortunately no sooner had I made it back up to the top of the gorge than the nasty weather of the previous day returned, so I was left with little choice but to return to the Naturfreundhaus and ponder my options for the next day - and it was at this point, whilst studying my hiking map, that I discovered an alternative trail leading from Griesalp to Kandersteg that contours around the mountainous ridge separating the two valleys rather than crossing over it. Known as the Nordrampeweg, the trail would lead me on a 'belvedere' (balcony) course halfway up the sides of both valleys - ie high
About as good as the views got
View of Frutigen in the Kandertal, seen from the Nordrampeweg enough to offer decent views, but low enough to avoid the clouds - with the only downside being that this alternative trail would be almost twice as long as the Via Alpina option (27km instead of 15km). But with only negligible changes in altitude on the Nordrampeweg - as opposed to a gruelling 1400m climb followed by a 1600m descent on the Via Alpina - my mind was already made up: the Nordrampeweg it would be.
Of course this meant that I would now be skipping my third stage (out of six stages that I had originally intended to complete) on the Via Alpina, which I naturally found quite disappointing; but not for the first time (though thankfully for the last) I had to remind myself that the whole point of my trip was to enjoy myself, rather than trying to prove anything to myself or anyone else. If I had have gotten nice weather I have no doubt that I would have successfully crossed the Surenenpass earlier in the trip as well as the Sefinenfurgge and Hohtürli on either side of the Kiental - and I very much hope that sometime in the future I will do just
Splashdown
Waterfall plunging down the cliffs outside Kandersteg that - but under the circumstances I made the right decision in each case. And once I had successfully followed the Nordrampeweg to Kandersteg and then crossed the Gemmipass to Leukerbad I would in fact have walked all but 15km (out of almost 135km in total) of the way from Engelberg to Leukerbad, just along a slightly different route to that which I had originally intended. And I would have enjoyed every minute of it!
Or at least I would have... if the weather hadn't turned out to be absolutely shithouse the next day! Far from avoiding the clouds, I ended up walking straight through them on a number of occasions - and that was despite never reaching a height of more than 1500 metres above sea level! But visibility wasn't my only problem - the ground underfoot was so wet that in places I could do nothing more than slog away through the mud, whilst cursing the resident cows who had made such a mess of what was supposed to have been a hiking trail! And no, the mess wasn't all mud...
For hour after hour I trudged on, catching only fleeting glimpses of the Kiental before
Beautiful Amphitheatre
My first view of the Oschinensee the clouds lifted slightly as I turned south into the Kandertal; though even then there was little sign of the mountains that should have been towering impressively above me. It was a clear sign of how dull I had found the experience to be that I arrived in Kandersteg after just seven hours - for I'd had precious little reason to stop anywhere along the way! Nevertheless, I'd made it to my next overnight stop without having to resort to taking public transport - though what I wouldn't have given for the chance to ride that postbus through the Griesschlucht again...!
Thankfully the weather had vastly improved by Tuesday morning, so having missed out on the hike up and over the Hohtürli along the Via Alpina the previous day, I was determined to at least make it up to see what was regarded as the highlight not only of that stage of the Via Alpina but indeed one of the scenic highlights of any trail through the Alps - the Oschinensee lake. Re-tracing my route alongside the Kander River from the previous afternoon, I took a slight detour to check out an impressive waterfall dropping down from the cliffs
I've got the whole world in my hands
The view from my 'throne' overlooking the Oschinensee behind Kandersteg, which a small group of people were scrambling up and around on a Via Ferrata course.
Upon leaving Kandersteg the trail followed a gravel strewn river bank flowing down from the Oschinensee and the Blüemlisalp massif beyond, before switch-backing steeply up through a small patch of forest whilst offering occasional views of the town nestled scenically in the bowl of it's valley far below, backed by the same cliffs that I had passed earlier. Onwards and upwards the trail led (gaining over 400 metres in just a few kilometres) before eventually cresting a ridge and revealing for the first time the spectacular amphitheatre of the Oschinensee - with it's shimmering turquoise-coloured surface backed by the sheer cliffs of the Blüemlisalp on it's eastern side; the summit of which could occasionally be seen towering almost 2000 metres above. And with the usual assortment of bell-clad cows and camera-wielding tourists jostling for position on the grassy banks fronting the lake - not to mention the standard hotel/restaurant overlooking the water - it really was the quintessential Swiss alpine scene!
Snapping up a beautifully-carved three-seat wooden bench that had just been vacated, I assumed my throne and proceeded to
Rushing River
Leaving Kandersteg alongside the Kander River sit back like a king contentedly surveying my domain - an experience that was made all the more pleasurable when I was joined by an older Swiss-English couple whom I ended up sitting and chatting with for what must have been an hour or more; all three of us more than happy to bask in the sunshine (and the views) as countless families wandered by and groups of kids splashed excitedly in the cool waters.
Eventually though I grew restless and set off to explore the trails around either side of the Oschinensee - the steep cliffs at the back of the lake preventing a full circuit from being possible - with the trail that would have provided my descent route along the Via Alpina passing (both in front of and behind) a pair of waterfalls high above the lakeshore. But then just as I made it back down the steep trail to the edge of the lake for what would have been a refreshing swim, the clouds of the previous day suddenly re-appeared, closing in around the lake in a way that suggested it might be a good idea to follow the rest of the crowd's lead in
Beautiful Valley
View of Kandersteg and the upper Kandertal from the gruelling climb to Sunnbüel high-tailing it out of there and back down to the cover of Kandersteg as quickly as possible!
Although the Via Alpina continued on it's south-westerly trajectory from Kandersteg to the town of Adelboden (and beyond), the final leg of my two-week through-hike would take me in a different direction - heading almost directly south from Kandersteg to the thermal resort town of Leukerbad, in the canton of Valais. Unlike my previous pass crossings that had involved longer, more gradual climbs and descents, this one would start and end by scaling much shorter but steeper slopes - though the overall change in altitude would be much the same at around 1000 metres - between which I would be traversing a relatively flat plateau at an altitude of over 2000m.
Setting out early from the International Scout Centre on the southern outskirts of Kandersteg, there was no mistaking the fact that I was in for one hell of a testing climb, given the way the mountains closed in around the head of the valley to effectively cut it off from the Rhone Valley to the south. It is through these mountains that the original Lötschberg rail tunnel (whose trains carry
Incomparable Wilderness
View of the Gasterntal from high above all south-bound motor vehicles) burrows 14km before emerging near Goppenstein on the other side; while the newer Lötschberg base tunnel goes underground long before it reaches Kandersteg, extending for 34km all the way through to Visp in the Rhone Valley. For anyone wanting to go up and over the plateau there were only two options - to take the cable car up from Kandersteg to Sunnbüel, walk to the Gemmipass and then take another cable car down the other side to Leukerbad; or to simply walk the whole way. Naturally I chose the latter.
Sure enough, after following the Kander River upstream for about a kilometre and then beginning the steep climb up through the forest, I had barely made it ten minutes up the track when I had to stop to catch my breath, suck down a litre or so of water, and change from my long pants and t-shirt into shorts and singlet - and all this despite the fact that the sun had yet to penetrate the valley floor! It's fair to say the odd curse word was uttered as I struggled my way up the countless switchbacks, before finally reaching a small meadow where the
Sky High Stunner
Reflections in the Daubensee first of the sun's rays had yet to burn off the dew on the ground; and I was able to stop and rest before resuming the climb.
Thankfully the relentless climb offered fantastic views looking directly back down the Kandertal, until eventually the gradient of the trail eased as it passed underneath the Sunnbüel cable car line and contoured it's way around the mountainside, offering a truly spectacular view down into the neighbouring Gasterntal - a virtually uninhabited side valley walled in by imposing mountains and virtually cut off from the outside world. To say that I was captivated by the view would be an understatement, and my wish to someday come back and complete the stages of the Via Alpina that I had missed out on (over the Sefinenfurgge and Hohtürli) was immediately revised to include a hike through this outstandingly scenic valley as well.
Shortly afterwards the trail emerged from the forest, skirted the base of some cliffs and then rounded a bend to reveal the broad valley of the Spittalmatte plateau stretching out between high ridges, at an altitude of around 2000 metres. Crossing this plateau the trail soon got busier as I was joined
High on Life
Standing in front of the Daubensee, just below the Gemmipass by people who had taken the cable car up from Kandersteg, while the clouds that had until now been confined to the surrounding peaks also began to crowd the valley. With little reason to stop I pressed on up another short climb to reach the Hotel Schwarenbach - curiously located halfway along the plateau, at least an hour's walk from the cable cars at either end - after which the trail continued to climb, until eventually I crested a low rise and was confronted by the elongated expanse of the Daubensee occupying a deep basin between rugged peaks, it's sheet-metal grey surface looking more forbidding than inviting; the whole scene made all the more eerie by the thick plumes of cloud rising up from the Gemmipass immediately beyond the lake.
After finding myself the perfect picnic spot perched atop a large boulder overlooking the Daubensee, I whiled away a good half-hour taking in the views - and filling up on pastries - whilst trying to determine (without success) whether the clouds were dissipating or getting thicker over the pass. Inevitably though I would have to find out for myself, so I set off alongside the lake before tackling the
Vertiginous Viewpoint
Viewing platform at the Berghotel Wildstrubel final short climb to the Gemmipass, crowned by the Berghotel Wildstrubel where I had booked a room for the night so as to soak in the views from what would be the final pass of my trip. And what a view it was! From the viewing platform suspended above the cliffs of the Gemmipass at 2322m, the town of Leukerbad could be seen almost a vertical kilometre below at 1402m, and behind that the Rhone Valley a further 700 metres lower; though unfortunately the mountains beyond the Rhone Valley - many of which rise well beyond 4000m - were obscured by clouds.
With plenty of time left in the day - and the promise of a free cable car ride back up from Leukerbad to the pass, which was included in the cost of my accommodation - I couldn't resist the opportunity to tackle the incredibly steep but brilliantly-designed trail down from the Gemmipass to Leukerbad - a historic route that has been used for centuries to allow people to cross from Valais to the Berner Oberland and vice versa. With the trail switch-backing it's way down near-vertical cliffs, it was hard to know where to look, but needless
Unique Trail
Scaling the cliffs of the Gemmipass on the historic trail to Leukerbad to say there wasn't a single step along the way that wasn't met with awe-inspiring views.
But with the stormclouds by now closing in and thunder crackling regularly overhead, I couldn't afford to linger too long on such an exposed trail; and in the end I had just managed to make it to the bottom of the cliffs before the downpour that had been threatening for over an hour finally arrived. Of course the combination of strong winds, driving rain and nearby lightning activity didn't make the ride back up to the pass on the cable car particularly comfortable, but at least I knew I wasn't going to be forced to hike back up the trail - or otherwise be left grounded in Leukerbad - if the weather worsened and the cable car operators had to shut down for the day!
And with the crowds that had gathered to bask in the views from the berghotel during the day long gone by the time I arrived back atop the pass, I could look finally forward to a quiet, relaxing evening - as opposed to the raucous meal-times I had endured at the scout centre in Kandersteg when the
End of the Road
View of Leukerbad from the Gemmipass dining hall would be filled to capacity every morning and night with over-active teenagers all trying to make themselves heard over the top of everyone else - before retiring to my private room for the night... or so I thought, until I found myself sharing the dining room with no less than SIXTY young ice hockey players who were also staying at the berghotel on some sort of training camp! Needless to say, I politely enquired after dinner as to what time the kids might be expected to attend breakfast in the morning - and then set my alarm for an hour later than I had originally intended in order to avoid them altogether!
Not only did this result in my morning being an altogether more peaceful affair - I had the entire breakfast buffet, bircher muesli and all, to myself - but it also meant that by the time I arose from my slumber the clouds had been burnt off from the surrounding peaks, so that I was able to enjoy the most incredible panorama of 4000-metre-plus peaks spread out before me to the south. From the Dom (4545m) to the Weisshorn (4506m) and the Dent Blanche (4357m),
A view worth waking up to!
View of the Valaisian Alps from the Gemmipass all the great peaks of the Valaisian Alps could be seen; including both the most famous Swiss mountain of all, the Matterhorn (4478m); and far off in the distance - almost 70km away, on the border between Switzerland and Italy - the highest peak in Switzerland, the Dufourspitze (4634m). And lying somewhere out of sight amongst that tangle of ice-and-snow encrusted giants was the town of Zermatt - where I would be spending my final weekend in Switzerland in just a couple of days. My anticipation was already starting to build...
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