Mürren to Gimmelwald, Switzerland
07.02.2022
The Mürren to Gimmelwald via ferrata was, without a doubt, one of the most memorable activities we did on our 13 day trip to Switzerland. Before we decided to take on this adventure, we did our research.
Helpful Facts:
Length: 1.4 miles, downhill
Time: 3 hours
Start: Murren
End: Gimmelwald
Equipment: helmet, climbing harness, via ferrata lanyard, gloves, sturdy shoes
Open: June through October, 9am – 6pm (closed if it is wet or raining)
Official website: Klettersteig Murren
Via Ferrata is Italian for “iron way,” and these routes are comprised of iron ladders, rung, tight ropes, and safety cables that were originally created to help soldiers cross steep mountains during WWI. Now, hundreds of via ferratas can be found across the globe for recreation use with varying levels of difficulty.
Note: In Switzerland, the word “klettersteig” which is German for “climbing path” is more widely used than the word “via ferrata”.
To Guide or Not to Guide
The Mürren to Gimmelwald via ferrata is rated as a K3, or medium difficulty. The German scale goes from K1-K6 with K6 being the most difficult. Before deciding if Scott and I were up for this challenge, I did my research both on this particular via ferrata and on the technique in general. We felt confident in our hiking stamina, the concept of safely using the via ferrata carabiners, and our feeling about heights. We also felt $25 per person to rent the equipment from Intersport Mürren – comprised of a helmet, climbing harness, and via ferrata lanyard – was very reasonable. Hiring a guide for $150 per person was not.
Needless to say we opted to go “out on a limb” and simply rent the equipment and take any advice the rental shop worker would give us. She made sure our harnesses were properly on, that we had sturdy enough shoes, enough water for the 3 hour hike, and kindly asked if we were both ok with heights. With that, we signed our waiver and she directed us to the trailhead and advised us to get going so we would not get stuck behind the first guided group of the day.
Enjoy the Via Ferrata
The trail started with a tunnel through a rock wall and, from then on we were hooked (with both carabiner hooks) onto the cable line. Then we were unclipping and re-clipping one and then the other between the fasteners that hold the cable to the rock wall.
This via ferrata trail is comprised of many fun elements in the following order:
1 exposed cliff section
2 tightropes (or 1 tightrope and 1 zip line if you do this with a guide)
5+ ladders
1 long suspension bridge
Note: A detailed map of the course is available on the official website.
For Scott and I, the most difficult section was the exposed cliff where you laterally traverse on the iron rungs drilled into the rock that hang 2,000 feet over the Lauterbrunnen Valley. It comes up first and while it’s not overly long, it’s also not overly short. I thought the iron rungs were a little odd in size for my feet. I pictured my foot going right through the middle of one and knowing that, even if you did fall and manage to pull yourself back up, you would undoubtedly get quite scraped up during the fall. However, we took our time and kept our heads, proudly emerging on the other side.
We found the tightropes highly fun, the ladders engaging, and the swinging bridge was an excellent grand finale. I call the suspension bridge a swinging bridge because it does just that. We were thankful to not have anybody else near us on the trail for the entire hike, but especially on this bridge. It has a max capacity of 10 people and besides the cable you are clipped to, there aren’t any horizontal cables on either side of you until you are in the middle of the bridge where the main support cables are within reach. And it moves quite a lot.
The trail itself is mostly shaded with amazing views of the Lauterbrunnen Valley below, iconic mountain peaks above, and countless paragliders floating down in between. Though we were one of the first ones on the via ferrata for the day, it had gotten quite hot by the time we reached Gimmelwald. The trail comes out behind the cable car station and we immediately used these restrooms to change out of our gear and into cooler clothing. Next, we walked through the tiny and charming farming town of Gimmelwald. We sat at a vacant mountain overlook where we devoured our picnic lunch before taking the cable car back up to Mürren to return our equipment.
If you are a fit person that has enough strength to lift your own weight, have no fear of heights, and are looking for a thrilling element to add to your visit to Switzerland’s Jungfrau region, I highly recommend adding the Mürren to Gimmelwald via ferrata to your itinerary.
