Climbing Uetliberg in Zurich, Switzerland

Switzerland. A country renowned for its mountains – the sharp, white teeth of the Alps rising out of gentle green farm valleys, lending elegance and bitter triumph to the history of mountaineering. Naturally, I was drawn to this place. While I knew that a major journey was not logistically possible on my three-day trip to Switzerland, I hoped to at least explore some of the ‘urban’ peaks surrounding the northern Swiss town of Zurich.

My bus drove through southern Germany in a snow storm, which only thickened as we gained altitude. By the time my woefully water-absorbent shoes hit pavement in Zurich, the snow was coming down heavy. I’ll admit that, while I got thoroughly soaked on my way to my accommodations in the historic Old Town, I very much enjoyed the quiet softness of the snow in those old streets. But it was somewhat concerning for my hiking prospects; in desperation back at home, I was forced to abandon my dependable (and waterproof) hiking boots in my closet, as I simply had no more room in my luggage. It was a calculated risk, bringing only my old running shoes to play double-duty on runs and hikes, but I figured I could handle some cold, wet feet for a few hours. And besides, I’d heard that hiking in Switzerland is a little different than in remote and empty Canada. It sounds like I could expect to run into cafes and restaurants on the tops of my selected hills. An entirely different kind of adventure.

As my time in Zurich was brief, I selected a short hike, one recommended by a couple girls I met in a shop the night I arrived. While I was prepared for urbanity, for tourists, for cable cars and chalets, I must say that the climb up Uetliberg really was the most unusual hike I have ever done.

The highest point in the city, offering a 360 degree panorama of the surrounding towns, sprawling Lake Zurich, and the glistening Alps themselves, Uetliberg is easily accessible by public transit. You can even take a cable car to the top. From here, a restaurant, cafe, viewing tower, and plentiful ridge trails await you, including the famous Planet Trail, a two hour walk designed to teach hikers about the solar system. As I’d heard that the trail from the base up Uetliberg was quite short (about 45 minutes), I decided to add some extra distance and elevation by walking from the city centre, where I was staying.

Unfortunately, I had started to develop a cold the day before, which left me with a sore throat and the sniffles. While I started the ‘trail’ somewhat atypically with a hot cup of honey tea in hand from some fashionable coffee shop, I very much appreciated the luxury that day. After this stop, my trek to the base of Uetliberg was about 4km of gradually uphill terrain through the city streets, and I’m very glad I elected not to transit for two reasons: one, that walking through the city to my destination was a fantastic way to keep exploring new neighbourhoods; and two, that the actual hike up Uetliberg was really very short, and I was glad to log some extra elevation and distance.

I started the trail itself from the parking lot on Uetlibergstrasse. There is no special route to get to the trailhead – I just put Uetliberg into Google Maps, and took a slightly longer route in order to walk through a large park (where paragliders were practicing launches in the morning breeze – very cool!). Here, I got some great trail information from a new Swiss friend who had just finished the trail. He told me how to find an alternate route that he thought was better than the main route, and informed me that the trail was “a run, not a hike”. While I figured I had encountered some direhard trailrunner (for whom literally everything is a run), sure enough, I was passed by numerous other runners as I started up the wide, gravel, lantern-lined trail. It was extra impressive because, speaking as someone who hikes a lot, that hill is steep! I was huffing and puffing as I went.Fortunately, it really isn’t very long; I was at the ridge in 15 minutes, and at the summit viewing tower in another 5. The snow was much lighter than I anticipated also – the trail itself was mostly clear in late February.

I took my time up top, having lunch at one of the many outdoor tables. If bag lunches aren’t your thing, try the restaurant! While a white haze in the air prevented most of my photos from turning out, seeing the Alps in person was spectacular and inspiring.

On the way down, I decided to follow the alternate trail my new Swiss friend recommended. While not labelled, I had some descriptions and an adventurous spirit, and ended up finding it without issue. Descending from the summit down the stairs, pass the lower cafe and continue to the place where all the ridge trails converge, where you received your first view of the valley on the other side of the mountain on the way up. From here, facing downhill, look for a narrow trail on the left (it will be very muddy if you’re doing it in the winter like me). It leads slightly downhill and across the ridge, back in the direction of the summit. The trail is much quieter, narrower, and more rustic than the main path. There are a number of other paths branching off – while I suspect they all take you down, I always selected the rightmost trail, thereby staying somewhat parallel to the main trail, and hoping to intersect with it near the bottom. My plan worked perfectly. I stumbled suddenly on a very distinct looking tree trunk carved into a face that I had noticed on the way up. From here, the main trail took me back to the parking lot. And from there, I tested my memory by entirely retracing my steps through the city back to where I started (and nailed it!).

All told, including my ‘approach’ to the trailhead through Zurich, my Uetliberg trek came in at about 13km, of which about 4km was on the actual mountain trail. The elevation gain was about 500 m.

While I’m not sure I’m quite sold on urban hikes, it was a novel change of pace, and a good “when in Rome” experience. And it’s pretty hard to say no to a hot cup of something on top of a wet mountain in the middle of winter, so maybe there’s something to this…

Have any experience with these European style ‘urban’ hikes? An intrusion into nature, or a way to encourage the broader population to get outside and appreciate their backyard? I’d love to hear your thoughts below!