Day 1 Hike in canton Schwyz

There is a lot to cover from day one, but before I do, let me just say a couple of quick things. I don't know what to write about specifically. I am not sure what makes the most sense or is the most interesting. So, I am going to talk about the hike itself, and then I will talk about the canton.


If you have suggestions, or things you would like to know and are interested in, please leave comments, I am happy to adjust over the next 10 days. I have not published a blog before so I do not know the rights/wrongs -- so thank you for that!!

Part I: On to hiking

Some statistics
The distance of the hike was 16.57 Kilometers or, 10.3 miles.  This was a bit unexpected, but only because I am clueless. I knew the map I was going to follow 5.3 miles to the town of Rothenthurm, but, I also expected to not hike into the town and make a left turn at some point. To me, this meant it would be about 12 or 13 kilometers at the most.  So, I made that turn, but, the straight line I drew in my mind turned out to be off by a few wiggly turns.


The total vertical climb was 1312 feet 
(this is, all of the combined climbing, not just the elevation gain)
Going into the hike I expected this, but I also expected it to not be steep. This actually worked out really well. There were a couple of small steep sections, but the larger climbs were long, and steady. If you ask me, this is the best way to climb!!!


The elevation of the climb started at 2782 feet and the summit was at 3779 feet. Just about 1000 feet in total. Not so bad, especially since the elevation was low, which meant there wasn’t much of a problem with getting air into the lungs.

Total hiking time was 4 hours and 40 minutes
This included some small 1-2 minute stops and one 10 minute sitting break just after the halfway mark. I must say, I was impressed with this, given the distance. My legs felt really good and I didn't at any point feel wiped out. But, I know that taking the 10 minute break and sitting was the biggest mistake of the day. When I got back into hiking it hit my like a wall. Next time, it is short breaks (1-2 minutes) and no sitting!!

Overall Hiking Thoughts
At the start of the hike, there is a nice map and some information that talks about the area of where the hike is. This I really enjoyed.

I also love how the trails in Switzerland are so very clearly marked. Sure, there are many that are not marked, but in general, unless you have made your own trail or went off the main ones, you always know where you are going. One interesting thing about the wanderweg’s that I like in all of Switzerland, is that they have an agreement with land owners that you can walk through their private property. Well, there was one property (a cow farm) with not such a well maintained trail that was less than desirable to hike on, but, all part of the adventure.

What I loved about the hike is how nice it started out. Beautiful views of the fields and streams. Really, I may make you sick from saying this so much, but pictures just cannot tell the story of how amazingly beautiful this country is. I love it so very much.. and feel like I am home

While hiking, early on, I had to stop, my new favorite snail was hiking himself across the path. I thought he was so beautiful that I took a quick picture with my Nikon Coolpix. Which reminds me, most of these pictures were taken with this or my d300s with the Tamron 18-270. The latter is very heavy so it was in my pack for a good period of time whist the former was in my front pocket. Anyway, back to the important stuff, isn't he awesome?!?!?!

There was one section below in the woods that was filled with fern, which was really beautiful to look at. Ok, there were many, and I didn't stop to take a picture of all, but, this was just an example.

There were a lot of hawks flying in the fields looking for food and at the higher elevations they could be seen flying below. It was one of those times I wish I had my big zoom with me, but I also just liked the idea of enjoying the moment.  Maybe it is better to have some things left to the imagination.


There are some pictures below I took on the way down from the summit. Still feeling really good. The first is a picture at the summit. It is funny how there wasn't a view of the valley, but there are these two buildings, one of which a small place to eat. I also liked that there were many women sitting around at the top, some hikers, some not, but they all looked very happy. The three pictures that follow are just views once getting past the trees at the summit. It is interesting to me that one has no sense of height here because of the rolling fields.

Overall, I found it to be a very safe hike. No real danger points along the way. During a couple of the harder climbs, if it had been wet, it would have been difficult because it was steep, but a large portion of the hike was on very well maintained trails.

Part II: Let’s talk about the Canton Schwyz

As you know by now, if you are reading this blog, it is based on the 11 oldest cantons in Switzerland, and the hikes are in chronological order. You will have to wait until the 11th day to know why 11 is the number.

As you can read some more details from google, I will give you some highlights that I found interesting.  

•  As you may know, August 1st is a national holiday in Switzerland, and that is because on this date in 1291, Schwyz entered into an alliance that later became known as the Swiss Confederation. This was followed by the Federal Charter.
  
• The oldest building in Schwyz is called Old Archive Tower “Schatzturm” which was built in 1200. This tower was renovated in 1776 (the year of independence for the United States). Would you like to see a picture of this building? Try google, as the only other way seems to pay. It is surrounded by a wall and from what I found, it could not be seen.

• A big part of my daily life is the gift of lunch checks. Here is a complete list of all the restaurants in Schwyz that take them. Yes, it is true, not all of them take them, sadly. I ate Valentino’s which is located in Ibach, only 1 kilometer from the town of Schwyz.
  
  
• There are more women in Schwyz than there are men. It is a 49.9% male and 50.1% female split. Ok, not a large margin, but, if you are a single guy, and considering there were  14,423 residents in 2010, there are an estimated 28.846 women potentially available. Not sure how helpful that is, and no, I am not doing survey’s to find them for you!! :)
  
• And how do you pronounce this canton? Click here.
  
• And finally, while I did not go inside, the Town Hall of Schwyz is really beautiful on the outside. I hope you like the picture I took from my car. I admit, I was exhausted and headed home and just took a quick shot, since the top was down on my car.

And thanks to my friend Andrew, for coming on the hike with me, we certainly talked a LOT about "hiking", which was fine by me, after all, it is my favorite topic :)