[Anonymous]

27 March 2013 at 10:40:08 #805884

Hi everyone!

I’m planning a hiking day trip from Luzern on April 29, and what I’m looking for is a nice train ride, and a challenging and hopefully beautiful but not too “touristy” hike.

So far I considered the Graubünden area (Arosa-Leinzerheide, Pontresina-Murtel, etc) or the Bernese Oberland (Jungfrau, Eiger, or Aletsch glacier).
Other alternatives I thought of are the Muothatal-Chinzertal-Altdorf trail, and something around Disentis.

Any recomendations are welcome!

Many thanks and greetings from Argentina!

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[Annika]

Reply 1 of 3 • 29 March 2013 at 4:47:38 #838308

Welcome to the forum gpereyra! If you want to return to Lucerne the same day, you’re limited in terms of where you can hike. Graubünden, including Disentis, would be way too far off for a day trip. You can check traveling times here. The Muotathal trail or the Bernese Oberland would be a more obvious choice. By the end of April, many of the high altitude tracks are still covered by snow and thus inaccessible, meaning you’ll have to search for hikes at lower altitude 0I’d say under 2000 metres above sea level), unless you’re a very experienced hiker with proper winter gear. Make sure you inquire about weather and hiking trail circumstances at a local tourist office before taking off. Whichever route you pick, you don’t have to worry about ‘touristy’ routes as you’re traveling outside of the tourist high season.

Now, as for options: I think you’re referring to a section of the so-called Suworow-trail when mentioning the Muotathal-Altdorf trail. The route gets up as high as 2700 metres, which is too high for the end of April. This section of the same route might be more suitable. Consider some lower sections of the Via Alpina in the Bernese Oberland as well, such as Meiringen-Grindelwald or Grindelwald-Lauterbrunnen via Kleine Scheidegg (probably still covered in snow). In clear weather, spectacular views are guaranteed. The train ride from Lucerne is great too: pick the Golden Pass route via the Brünig Pass and Meiringen.

I hope this helps you choose a route!

[User]

Reply 2 of 3 • 29 March 2013 at 15:18:40 #838309

Hi Annika! Thank you for your comments. Indeed the snow question is something I was overlooking…

I will definetely look into the Via Alpina suggestions you made; both of them sound very interesting.

Following your section switch suggestion for the Suworow trail, I found that the bus service to Hinter Klöntal doesn’t run till May, so that trail would be discarded.

Regarding Graubünden (Disentis or Arosa), I was considering taking the train early in the morning (7:30 vía Göschenen and Andermatt) to be able to start hiking around noon. That’d leave me around 4-5 hours for the hike, before the train ride the other way round (Chur and Thalwil) back to Lucerne. Was hoping to also take short walk around Chur to shoot a couple of photos (and a cup of tea!), getting back to Lucerne around 21. Would that be doable?

Thanks again!

[Annika]

Reply 3 of 3 • 1 April 2013 at 9:17:20 #838310

Hi gepereyra! Your suggestion for a relatively short and easy hike near Disentis or Arosa would be doable, but personally I wouldn’t prefer to start hiking by noon. Especially if you’re up for a more challenging hike, it’s wise to start earlier and thus have spare time if any setbacks occur along the way. So if you don’t mind leaving really early (you could even take off by 6 am) and returning late, your plan is just fine. Please mind that the hike Arosa-Lenzerheide you suggested in your first post is too long for such a day and the trail is too high for April. Please find details here.