Today we suggest to go to the resort town, which can only be reached by cable car. This transport is attractive - beautiful wagons, high lift, and views of stunning beauty. The town itself and its surroundings, as well as various options for the way back - this is a lot of impressions and a palette of pleasant emotions. We believe that our story will inspire you to travel and give you many positive emotions.

Funicular and path to Braunwald

Regardless of which city you are from, you first need to get to the train station Linthal Braunwaldbahn, which is located at an altitude of 674 meters above sea level. From there you can take the funicular up to Braunwald, the fare of which is included in the Ostwind-ZVV day pass Z-pass. If you come to Linthal by car, then the ticket will cost only 10 Swiss francs round trip.

Braunwald is unique in that it has no cars at all. It can only be reached by funicular, and this gives it a special charm.

The ascent on this railway is 600 m, the maximum slope is 64%. It was put into operation on August 6, 1907 and initially worked only in the summer season, and from 1928 it began to work all year round.

From the beginning, the cable cars were silver and could accommodate 60 people. During the reconstruction of 1967, red cars appeared, which already accommodated 100 people.

In the same year, the construction of a new mountain station began. It opened on the 75th anniversary of the old station, in August 1982, and had direct connections to other SBB trains.

The last complete technical reconstruction of the funicular was carried out in 1997. Then they updated the track and machine systems, as well as the cars. Today it can carry 920 people, and it takes 4-5 minutes to get up.

City without cars

Today it is difficult to imagine Braunwald without a railway. It is the only motorized connection to a car-free tourist and residential area.

Braunwald is the perfect place to spend an unforgettable adventure in the mountains. This is a very beautiful climatic resort where you can relax both in winter and in summer.

In this city, you can take a break and cool off with a cold local beer or visit one of the several restaurants. You can also stay overnight at the hotel. 

Mountain, cave and terrace restaurant

After resting, go for a walk in the mountains to the peak of Gumen at an altitude of 1910 m. The route is 6.2 km one way and will take about 2 hours depending on your physical condition and photo stops. Elevation difference - 644 meters

The path will pass through another town with typical alpine flower beds and where you can meet goats, cows or llamas. Then you will pass through the forest with various plants, including beautiful flowers and, in season, juicy berries. After that  you will go  through a small cave and then you will have a beautiful view of the Glarn Alps with meadows and flowers. Periodically on the trails you will come across signs with a gnome, which contains information about those places that children really like.

And if you don’t want to waste your energy and get to the top of Gumen on your own, you can use the services of the Gumenbach cable car located in Kombibach Gumen.

At the very top of Gumen, the Gumen mountain restaurant awaits you. This is a self-service restaurant with a terrace that offers breathtaking views of the mountains and the lake.

Mountain restaurants are the best, because after a long hike it is always nice to have something tasty to eat. You can drink hot aromatic coffee or cool beer, enjoy french fries with onion sauce or traditional Swiss schnitzel. If it's cold, the waiter will offer you a blanket.

In the restaurant hall, pay attention to unusual paintings that will give you different impressions depending on the distance from hard labor you will look at them.

Six options for continuing the journey

Next, you will have at least 6 options to continue your journey. Even if you, returning, go along the same road as up, then your views and emotions will be completely different.

1. You can walk along the path above to the place where climbers start their journey and you will see a breathtaking view of the gorge and bare rocks (one way will take about 20 minutes)
2. Go down on foot along the path you climbed
3. Go downhill on a mountain bike if you brought one with you.
4. Go down the funicular Kombebach Gumen. You can read about it in detail here.
5. Or take a trip further to the Oberblegisee lake - where you will not get tired of being surprised by the crystal clear waters and the incredible beauty of the landscapes. 
6. You can also return to Braundwald by another road where you will meet a clearing with equipped places for grilling, and completely different views, from which everything is also breathtaking.

In this case, you will enter the city from the other side, where there will be a shop with local cheeses, which we highly recommend trying.

If you are interested in more detailed information about this area, then you can find it on this website.

We sincerely hope that you enjoyed just reading this article and a lot of inspiration to plan your trip.