This past weekend, I took a truly, incredibly Swiss hike. The only way it could've been more Swiss was if it involved fondue and Alphorns. Not only was it along something called the Swiss Path, but the hike itself started at Rütli, which is the meadow where Switzerland was born over 700 years ago. Apparently, in this meadow, an agreement was signed by the founding Kantons to form what would ultimately become the Confoederatio Helvetica (CH).
To start the hike, you have to take a boat to Rütli. The weather was absolutely perfect on Saturday; it was one of those golden autumn days that are really rather rare over here. The Vierwaldstättersee is supposed to be the most beautiful lake in Switzerland, and you can see why it might be called that.
After you arrive in Rütli, you climb a little to the actual meadow where the treaty was signed. At first, I was pretty sure I was not in the right place, given the large number of people, some of them wearing very inappropriate footwear, and some rather infirm, going up the path. However, I lost most of them after the meadow, when the real path began.
I climbed the hill for an hour or so through the woods. Sometimes there were some great views over the lake, especially as I climbed higher. It was pretty clear that there had been some storms recently, as the path was a little precarious. In fact, there were trees down across some of the path that required creativity to circumnavigate, especially given the drop off on one side.
Eventually I reached the village of Seelisberg, and then the highest point of the hike, at Marienhöhe. From this point, there were great views up and down the lake, which made it the perfect place to have my picnic.
From there, the path descended back to the lake. There were some high clouds that had a very unique shape, but mostly it was just amazing and sunny.
The route ended in Bauen, which is famous for its relatively mild climate. My Italian friend informs me that I am not allowed to call it tropical, although, I think that as a Minnesotan, almost anything is tropical to me. Anyways, palm trees and other more warm-weather plants thrive in Bauen, which is an indication of its warmer microclimate.
Thankfully, I arrived in Bauen just on time for the boat connection- otherwise I would've had to wait 2 hours for the next one!
I was really happy to have got out on this hike- I was a little nervous that there would be no more nice weekend days this fall. Thankfully I was wrong!
To start the hike, you have to take a boat to Rütli. The weather was absolutely perfect on Saturday; it was one of those golden autumn days that are really rather rare over here. The Vierwaldstättersee is supposed to be the most beautiful lake in Switzerland, and you can see why it might be called that.
After you arrive in Rütli, you climb a little to the actual meadow where the treaty was signed. At first, I was pretty sure I was not in the right place, given the large number of people, some of them wearing very inappropriate footwear, and some rather infirm, going up the path. However, I lost most of them after the meadow, when the real path began.
I climbed the hill for an hour or so through the woods. Sometimes there were some great views over the lake, especially as I climbed higher. It was pretty clear that there had been some storms recently, as the path was a little precarious. In fact, there were trees down across some of the path that required creativity to circumnavigate, especially given the drop off on one side.
Eventually I reached the village of Seelisberg, and then the highest point of the hike, at Marienhöhe. From this point, there were great views up and down the lake, which made it the perfect place to have my picnic.
From there, the path descended back to the lake. There were some high clouds that had a very unique shape, but mostly it was just amazing and sunny.
The route ended in Bauen, which is famous for its relatively mild climate. My Italian friend informs me that I am not allowed to call it tropical, although, I think that as a Minnesotan, almost anything is tropical to me. Anyways, palm trees and other more warm-weather plants thrive in Bauen, which is an indication of its warmer microclimate.
Thankfully, I arrived in Bauen just on time for the boat connection- otherwise I would've had to wait 2 hours for the next one!
I was really happy to have got out on this hike- I was a little nervous that there would be no more nice weekend days this fall. Thankfully I was wrong!
