Hiking From Einsiedeln To Schwyz (Via Jacobi - Stage 5)

Report of a hike from Einsiedeln to Schwyz, part of Via Jacobi - Stage 5.
⁠,
2016-05-29 – ⁠2022-09-08 finished
Trailhead in Schwyz, Switzerland
Started on May 29, 2016 at 09:00
Weather overcast
Hikers J, L
Effort medium
Distance 19 km
Elevation
Slope ↗3%
Ascent 600 m
Descent 900 m
Max Elevation 1410 m
Min Elevation 490 m
Time
Total Time ~7h
Moving Time ~6h

Today’s adventure started in Einsiedeln, in the canton of Schwyz. This time we decided to one stage of the Via Jacobi which is part of “El Camino de Santiago”.

The first part of the hike ran through a wide valley outside of Einsiedeln. The weather looked challenging but the forecast promised no rain over the following hours and we are trusting people.

View right outside of Eisiedeln.
View right outside of Eisiedeln.

We saw various small Christian chapels and altars along the way as well as a fancy-looking convent for Benedictine nuns. Like in previous hikes we came across few people, mostly runners, mountain bikers and old people strolling around.

Posing while we still had energy to smile :D.
Posing while we still had energy to smile :D.

A couple of hours later we found a bench right next to the river, literally a meter away from the water, to refuel. And then we started the ascend. The sky was still covered with clouds but luckily, a bit later, when we reached the top it cleared up and allowed us to enjoy these views:

Mount Kleiner Mythen (Smaller Mythen)
Mount Kleiner Mythen (Smaller Mythen)

Approaching mounts Kleiner Mythen and Grosser (bigger) Mythen.
Approaching mounts Kleiner Mythen and Grosser (bigger) Mythen.

Kleiner Mythen on the left and the Alps at the back.
Kleiner Mythen on the left and the Alps at the back.

The alps in the back with Lake Lucerne in the front.
The alps in the back with Lake Lucerne in the front.

These surroundings make me forget about work, about projects and basically about everything. It’s one of the most powerful tools to develop mindfulness and to relax. When I’m in these kind of places my mind shuts up and looks, it’s breath-taking.

Anyways, after enjoying the views we started the descend which took us through a dense forest down to the town of Schwyz.

Cookie Monster inside a tree.
Cookie Monster inside a tree.

moss-close-up-forest.webp

And after a few more fantastic views we got on the train, saw a lot of people with hiking gear that we had no idea where they were hiking, and eventually we got home happily tired.

Lake Lauerz.
Lake Lauerz.

hill-prairies-and-trees-sunny.webp

Today’s trip made me think how amazing and humbling it is that all of this beautiful complexity developed from something as simple as atoms of hydrogen colliding which each other, slowly building up to more atoms with different properties, and slowly getting together to form planets, mountains, lakes, life and us. I find it fascinating.

This entry is part of the series Switzerland (2015 - 2020):

  1. Bye Bye California, Welcome Switzerland
  2. Schaffhausen And The Rheinfall Waterfalls
  3. Hiking From Wasserauen to Ebenalp
  4. Konstanz, Germany
  5. Bellinzona
  6. Hiking From Richterswil to Pfäffikon SZ
  7. Hiking From Einsiedeln To Schwyz (Via Jacobi - Stage 5) (This entry)
  8. Hiking From Staffelegg to Brugg (Jura Crest Trail - stage 2)
  9. Hiking From Trogen to Appenzell
  10. Hiking From Maienfeld To Heididorf
  11. Sense Exploring While Walking In Nature
  12. Hiking From Einsiedeln To Brunni
  13. Living In Switzerland