Hirzli Rundweg • Peak hike near Zürich

I kept seeing this Hirzli Rundweg popup in my searches, but I kept brushing it aside because of the 680m of elevation ascent, which I worried would make my kids not want to hike again for a long while. But then we had amazing weather in mid-November and this was basically the only gondola still open. Decision made.

So glad we finally went! Can you believe this view??? It was a tough climb up and even I was having trouble staying motivated until I saw a kid running the trail with his mom. Then at the top, there was a five year smiling, giggling and enjoying a snack with his mom. So you can definitely do this hike with the right motivation. Have fun! 

Overview

This trail is located in Glarnerland in Eastern Switzerland, in the town of Niederurnen.

Here is the trail map for this Morgenholz area. Download the brochure with this map. You can get this map free at the Niederurnen – Morgenholz cable car.

We did the Hirzli Rundweg (dark blue on this map), which climbs 680m over 3 km to reach the Hirzli peak and panorama views, then loops back down to your starting point. Part of the trail is on the Sculpture path, which has wooden animal sculptures and info boards along the way.

Trail map

The path is a typical dirt mountain trail, lots of switchbacks, some loose rock, no strollers. Hiking sticks are helpful. It’s not dangerous, no steep drop-offs until the lookout point.

Shorter option: You can do the Sculpture path (4.5 km, 300m ascent/descent, about 1hr30), which has 40 animal sculptures and info boards along the way. You don’t get the panorama views from this trail like the top of the Hirzli loop, but it’s still very nice.

The kids can stamp a card along the way and can turn it in at the cable car station for an animal figurine. We did this in 2018, it may have changed since then.

Here my son is stamping his card at one of the sculptures. I was a little surprised that my 11 year old still found this motivating and really liked this part.

In 2018, you could turn in your stamp card and get one of the animal figurines shown below.

Longer option: From the Hirzli peak, you can optionally continue walking on the ridgeline to the Planggenstock peak before heading back down to Morgenholz. This loop is 3 km longer, about 4hr30 walking time compared to 3hr on the Hirzli loop. See trail map here.

Getting there

By car: Drive to Hädilochstrasse 48, 8867 Niederurnen, follow signs to the cable car. There is free parking as shown in the map below. Even on a quiet day in November, the main parking was full. So in summer, I suspect it might get busy here. Go early.

We parked at the overflow past the gondola station, at the far left of the map, shown below.

By public transport: Take a train to Ziegelbrücke, then bus 511 to Niederurnen, Ochsenplatz. From this bus stop, it’s a 8 min walk through a quiet neighborhood to the cable car station, as shown below.

Riding the cable car

Here’s a view from the gondola station in Niederurnen looking up to Morgenholz. Buy your return tickets here. Return ticket costs CHF 18 for adults, CHF 40 for family of 4. No discounts for travel cards. It runs every 30 mins from 7:30 to 11:30 and 13:00 to 18:00. On busy days, it will run more frequently based on demand.

The cable car is small, maybe only fits 6 or 8 people.

Starting the hike

The gondola drops you off here at this red building. There are maps and info signs on the animal sculptures here.

Follow signs up the mountain to Hirzli, also marked 814 Hirzli Rundweg. We did the loop counter-clockwise, following the sign to the right. But it doesn’t matter which direction you do it.

Some animal sculptures near the start.

The trail is quite steep at the beginning and has lots of switchbacks. It’s a tough climb.

Hiking up

After about 30 mins, we reached this house. There’s a picnic table behind the fence but no services.

Narrow path along the mountain side, but not dangerous.

In the forest, lots of leaves and tree roots on the path, watch your step.

So pretty along the way, I might have preferred to walk the loop in the opposite direction (clockwise) so we had this view the whole time.

View at the top

Here we are at the top of the Hirzli peak at 1640m. A kind stranger took our pic.

View down toward Rapperswil and Zürich lake.

A couple benches at the top. Good place for a picnic, but can be a bit windy and colder than the trail.

This is the money shot here.

Looking north from Hirzli along the ridge toward Plaggenstock peak.

Hiking down

When you are ready to hike down, keep following the 814 Hirzli Rundweg signs, but toward Morgenholz, continuing the loop.

The trail optionally continues along the ridge toward Planggenstock, but that trail is about 1hr30 longer than the one you are on. So take the fork to the left toward Morgenholz when it comes along.

Pretty easy walking on the way down.

Zig-zagging across the mountain.

Nice fall colors in late October.

The path eventually joins the valley road, which leads back to the gondola station.

Near the end you pass the Berghaus Hirzli, which has a restaurant and overnight accommodations.

That’s it. What do you think? Will you try this hike?

See more hikes in the Glarnerland region in Eastern Switzerland.