Sunday, June 5, 2011

Niderbauen Chulm (1923m)

My sister Saša visited us in Zürich for a few days and I promised her a Swiss alpine experience... the weather was unpredictable so we didn't aim very high in case we had to make a swift retreat in the face of impending thunderstorms. We picked the route from a guidebook we bought earlier in the day... our limited knowledge of German led us to believe it would be a pretty hike and based on the map it would be very scenic.... it was amazing! The route went up to some cliffs and *through* the rock onto some beautiful alpine meadows. Amazing.

Here's the map - the route is Wald-Weid (gondola) then on the trail past p. 1524 upwards over the scree to the via ferrata through the rock face and onto the Niderbaum Chulm ridge. You can continue south onto a super scenic ridge to Oberbauenstock, but not when thunderstorms are expected.... we descended from Stn. Niederbauen (Saša wanted the full Swiss alpine experience with gondolas on both ends) - this route uses all forms of Swiss public transportation - tram, train, boat, funicular, bus, gondola.

planning & safety meeting
 

On the ferry from Brunnen - I believe the craggy peak in the background is our destination...


The Mythen behind the town of Brunnen
Ok, in case you can't tell what's going on here - this is a vending-machine-style gondola... no operator, you just push a button and go
not a bad place to be a farmer



kitsch #1

this little momma cow on the left charged at us while her little calves frolicked in the grass

the trail eventually got pretty steep
and even a bit exposed
until we ended up in a tunnel

through the rock face


our point of approach from above: Brunnen, Seelisberg and Seelisee - the little gondola was off to the right


kitsch #2 - looking south toward the main alpine ridge

the storm brew