on the trail // above stoos

One of the best things about this summer is that we’ve really settled into a weekend hiking routine. Motivated by summer visitors and easy (and cheap) mountain access thanks to our car and UBS’s current mountain railway deal, we’ve been out on the trail nearly every weekend exploring a new part of Switzerland.

One recent weekend, we drove down to Schwyz, took the funicular up to Stoos and from there, a chairlift to the top of Fronalpstock (1922 m) overlooking Lake Luzern. From there, we hiked up and down along the ridge line before heading back down to Stoos.

Here was our route, highlighted in blue:

(The full map can be found here, along with more detailed information on the hiking routes.)

It was Martin’s first big hike with Reese in the backpack and, other than some tired knees from lots of downhill towards the end of the hike, it was a success. The route was filled with a steady stream of hikers (as are most routes in Switzerland considering ease of mountain-top accessibility), but it still made for a wonderful afternoon out in the Alps.

At the end of the hike, we stopped in Stoos for a light lunch on the quiet terrace of the Caschu Alp Hotel before heading back down the funicular home.

notes for next time
Considering the trail and mountain path, I would have found trekking poles useful, though certainly not required. Also, for those sensitive to bug bites, insect repellant is a good idea as I got some obnoxious fly bites along the hike.

travel information
The drive to the Schwyz – Stoos funicular is less than 1 hour from Zurich, with a short 8 minute standing ride up to Stoos. As of this post, standard fare round-trip is ca. CHF 20 (CHF 10 with UBS discount through October). For more information, see the official website, which also includes the map above.