In slow steps we were going back to normality. As the number of new infections was getting close to zero and the daily life had had its restart, I thought it the right time to go even further than usual. :) During the lockdown I had a lot of time to research some hikes and I noticed that in the Alpstein, not only the Säntis can be scaled, but also a few other peaks. One of them, the Schäfler, I wanted to visit today. The idea was to combine it with three very popular spots of the Alpstein, as I was hoping that they would still be without too many people. It took me about two hours to reach my starting point in Wasserauen and to avoid the rush hour this time, I opted for a new tactic. Instead of going after the rush hour, I hopped on the train before and had to say that that worked out pretty good. :) Except for one little part of the journey, I had the compartment always to myself and so it was no problem to keep the distance to the other travelers. Interestingly, I almost saw nobody with a face mask, even though it was recommended by the railway operator. Arriving in Wasserauen at 8.45, I was surprised by the amount of people that already were there or were pouring in at the very moment. It seemed as everyone had the same idea as I had. :) Well, now that I was there, I wanted to make the best of the day and started to hike towards my first goal, the famous Äscher guesthouse. Getting a couple hundred meters to warm up my legs, the trail soon led into the woods and immediately started to go upwards. Once again it was steep, but today I took it easy and with the scent of some freshly cut grass wafting through the air, the ascent was pleasant enough. The slope eventually decreased when I left the forest behind and before long the first views of the Alpstein unfolded ahead of me. Ebenalp could already be seen in the distance and crossing an alp with loads of cows, it came closer pretty fast.
After seeing the crowds in Wasserauen, it was no surprise that I also met many people on the trail and that didn’t change when I took the turnoff towards the Äscher. Mostly walking along an impressive mountain wall, the trail luckily wasn’t as steep as before and when the path turned around a corner some time later on, the guesthouse suddenly appeared on a little plateau below a huge cliff. The view opened up as well and the Altmann, the second highest mountain in the Alpstein, made his first appearance. As I didn’t want to drink or eat in the Äscher, I sat down on a nearby rock and took a short break to appreciate that lovely place. The Äscher was once featured on the front page of a National Geographic’s book called “Places of a Lifetime” and since then basically was overrun by tourists from all over the world. Having heard from friends how crazy that place could be in high season, it was maybe the only positive thing about Corona, that one could enjoy such places for a while without stepping another hundred people on their toes. :)
After the mandatory photo session, I headed upwards again for a couple minutes, just to come across another popular place of the Alpstein. The Wildkirchli is a tiny church in a grotto and apparently people go there to worship since more or less 400 years! Passing the little chapel, a path led through a pretty big cave and according to a sign, it was the way the pilgrims took in the early days to get to the Wildkirchli. It was another beautiful sight but I moved on without stopping for too long. From the cave the trail led further upwards and soon I had reached the Ebenalp, which also serves as the terminus of the Wasserauen cable car. Only a few people could be seen sitting on the terrace of the restaurant there, it seemed as most of the other hikers hadn’t planned to go higher up than the Äscher or the Seealpsee. Well, that suited me just right and for a while I enjoyed the silence and the stunning Alpstein scenery. :)
As I didn’t exactly know if there still would be snow on the Schäfler, I was happy to see the way to the summit from afar already and at once noticed that it was mostly free of snow. Following a ridge for some time, clouds started to gather in the sky and I was a bit surprised as there were quite a few more than predicted.
Never mind though and I continued my way to the peak along a rather steep ascending slope once I left the ridge behind me. Fortunately, it didn’t take too long and I had reached the top of the Schäfler with its restaurant. That one was still closed however and so I sat down in the grass next to the peak to enjoy the magnificent views over the Alpstein while eating my lunch. Unfortunately, the clouds had intensified even more in the meantime and it not only made the picture taking a hassle, but they also made sure that I couldn't see the peak of the Säntis. That was a pity, but as a positive human being, I cherished the fact that there were even less people to be seen than on Ebenalp. :)
Picking up the trail again after an hour long break, I decided to follow the path towards the Altenalp. Some iron stairs had to be overcome right after I had left the peak, followed by a short scramble over a couple rocks, but as there were enough poles and a rope to hold on to, it wasn’t too difficult. The way from now on led mostly downwards and with a constant view of the surrounding mountains, it was simply another gorgeous part of today’s hike. Even the Seealpsee came into view a bit later on and when I had to conquer some patches of snow shortly afterwards, my sense of adventure was satisfied as well. :) Reaching a tiny saddle after a while, I decided to continue towards the Mesmer Alp and the views in that part just remained as beautiful as ever.
From above I could see that there still was a lot of snow around the Mesmer Alp and I wasn’t entirely sure if I would be able to descend through there. But I wanted to take a closer look anyway and soon enough had reached the Alp. From there a trail also led up to the Säntis, but today it didn’t look very appealing. There was still way too much snow and no actual route could be seen, but at least the peak showed itself for a minute through a gap in the clouds. :)
The way I wanted to take today, was down towards the Seealpsee and right at the foot of the Mesmer Alp a huge patch of snow awaited me. Quite a few footsteps could be seen in the snow already and I thought that when others could walk on there, I could too. :) And so I entered the snowfield and soon noticed that it wasn’t a problem at all. The snow was pretty soft, but nevertheless had quite a good grip and therefore even the steepest part at the end of the patch was easy to descend. A steep descending slope ensued after the snowfield and only at the bottom of the valley the path eventually leveled off to make way for a bigger dirt road that brought me directly to the Seealpsee.
Having been there once before, I opted to walk around the right side of the lake, which I haven’t done the last time. It led me along the shore for the best part and when I found a nice spot in the grass, I couldn’t resist taking another longer break to admire that little gem of the Alpstein. The Seealpsee is one of the most popular places there, as it can be reached pretty easily and so it was no surprise to see loads of other people hanging out at the water's edge.
Joining the throng of descending people once I had rested enough, the way down to Wasserauen was basically only one thing: steep. Remembering the last time though, I was happy that I didn’t have to ascend but could walk downhill today. :) Following the concrete road all the way to the railway station I hopped onto the next train to head home. As I was somewhat late, I missed the rush hour in the evening as well and it was just the perfect ending of another excellent day hike. :)
Highlights of the day: the Äscher, the path between the Schäfler and the Mesmer Alp and the break at the Seealpsee :)
This hike is for you if:
- you’re looking for panoramic views over the Alpstein
- you want to combine some of the most popular places of the Alpstein into one day hike
- you’re looking for a beautiful hike that can be shortened with a cable car ride
- you want to eat or drink something in one of the most famous mountain guesthouses in Switzerland
This hike is not for you if:
- you’re looking for solitude
- you mind some scrambling along the way
- it’s your first hike in a mountainous area
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