Siwfass

July 3, 2021 by Pat and Bruno  ‐  4 min read

Difficulty T2
⇄ Distance 7.8 km
↑ Up 420 m
↓ Down 420 m
Notable Locations Riemenstalden, Gitschen, Spilauersee, Siwfass
Public Transit Access? Yes1

Quick Summary

  • A nice and easy Sonntagsspaziergang (Sunday stroll) in a somewhat obscure valley.
  • Park at Käppeliberg and then take the small cable car up to Gitschen.
    • There is a phone at the bottom of the cable car that you need to use to call up to the hut at the top; they will run the cable car then.
    • Cost was around 20.- per person and they only accepted cash (although I think they may also accept Twint now?).
  • From Gitschen, we hiked to the Spilauersee.
  • The ascent to the Siwfass from the Spilauersee involved first hiking up to the joch between the Hagelstock and the Siwfass and then taking an unofficial path from the joch up to the Siwfass.
    • While not being an official hiking path, the dirt path was very visible and easy to follow.
    • There was a single bench at the top of the Siwfass which offered a great view of the surrounding peaks.
  • Descended the Siwfass to the west and circled around the Hundstock to get back to Gitschen.
  • Took the cable car back down to Käppeliberg.
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Spilauersee

The cable car which goes from Käppeliberg to Gitschen. There is only room for 4 or 5 people inside.

A view back to Gitschen. One of these huts is where the cable car station is.

Starting to make our way towards the Spilauersee. This area is a beloved spot in the winter for backcountry skiing and snowshoeing because of its relative proximity to Lucerne and Zug while still being relatively high up. The Rossstock (peak on the very left of the image) is one of the most popular of these winter tours.

''Tour guide'' Bruno pointing out where the backcountry skiing routes are in the winter.

A small hut located just above the Spilauersee (visible on the right-hand-side of the image).

Siwfass

Looking back from the joch between the Hagelstock and the Siwfass. The peak on the left-hand-side is the Rossstock. There's still a surprising amount of snow up here despite being mid-summer.

The view southward towards the Hoch Fulen (large peak in the center) from the plateau just below the Siwfass.

The Hundstock (literally means ''dog stick'') as seen from the ascent to the Siwfass.

A view westward towards the Diepen. After we descend from the Siwfass, we'll be making our way from left to right across this flat plain.

At the top of the Siwfass. A nice little spot to enjoy a bite to eat.

Return to Gitschen

After making our way down from the Siwfass, we headed westward toward the Schön Chulm. This is a view towards the Siwfass (peak in the center). The path to the top first leads below the near-vertical rock face and then doubles back over the ridge to the top.

There were a ton of wildflowers down near the Schön Chulm. This is the view southward towards the Gotthard.

Incredible colours here. Here looking towards the Urnersee (south-eastern part of the Vierwaldstättersee).

A waypoint slightly to the north of Schön Chulm.

Continuing north between the Tibistock and the Hundstock, here we are looking back towards the Siwfass (peak on the right).

Gradually approaching the treeline again. The ridge behind Bruno on the other side of the valley is the Chlingenstock (Stoos).

On the north side of the Hundstock we started running into some very curious cows. Apart from a single photographer we met near the Spilauersee, these cows were the only other living things we saw the whole hike.

Once again back at Gitschen. The cable car is just beside the barn on the bottom left part of the image.

  1. There is a small PostAuto that goes to Riemenstalden from Sisikon, but it requires a seat reservation and drives very infrequently. It is recommended to go by car if possible. ↩︎

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