Hike in Short
| Metric | |
|---|---|
| Distance | 18.2 km |
| Altimeters | 1,630m |
| Time | 7h30min |
| Type | One-way |
| Part of | Route 568 (Wildbeobachtungspfad) & Route 599 (ViaUrschweiz) Etappe 3 |
| Start Location | Emmetten, Switzerland |
| End Location | Klewenalp, Switzerland |
| Physical difficulty | medium |
| Technical difficulty | medium |
Hiking Map
Hike Report
The name of Risetenstock might not directly ring a bell for the ones familiar with hiking in Switzerland. Nevertheless, it is a worthwhile one-day hike of 18 kilometers with a bit more than 1600 altimeters in the region of Niederbauen and Engelberg. The hike starts in Emmetten where you can come easily by bus from direction Luzern (Bus 311). If you come by car, you can park your car for free in the village centre. Overall, the hike kicks off easy on paved roads and gravel paths in the direction of the Stockhütte.
After climbing around 400 meters, you will see some houses at the top of the hill with a view on the Niederbauen Kulm in the background (top-right mountain in the image below). This is the endpoint of the cablecar and the starting point of a lot of different hikes like the Wildbeobachtungspfad (Route 568) and Nidwaldner Höhenweg (Route 88, Stage 6).
To come to the Risetenstock you will follow the easy gravel path over the Wildbeobachtungspfad until Emmeten Aengi. From there, you will switch to a steeper path on the ViaUrschweiz route (Route 599, Stage 2) with beautiful views over Lake Lucerne, Pilatus Kulm and Rigi. Following the path for while, you will be rewarded with astonishing views on the Schinberg (2145m) like the image below.
At the point of Hinter Jochli (2105m), it is only one short climb away from reaching the Risetenstock peak (2290m). From there, you can keep following the path over the ridge in the direction of Schuenegg and Brisen (2403m). Actually, there are several ways to continue from there, you have a look at the map above, be creative and go out. As we did the hike in October (so sun goes down relatively early), in order to catch the cablecar back to Beckenried, we turned around at this point and walked back to Klewenalp. As alternative to this route, I can advise you to keep following the ViaUrschweiz route to Isenthal and take public transport from there. For the fanatic hikers, you can also follow the ridge of the Risetenstock below and hike to Wolfenschiessen or Dallenwill (via Brisen).
Video Journal
For more drone and hike videos, you can go Videos.