Luca In The Alps

🥾 Overview Starting Point:  Haut de Caux (1,180 m) Summit Altitude:  2,045 m Elevation Gain:  ~865 m Distance:  ~12 km Time (round trip):  4-5 hours (depending on route) Difficulty:  Moderate (some steep paths and snow risk in early season) Best Season:  Mid-June to October Highlights: Cogwheel train station at the summit Marmots & panoramic views of Lake Geneva Alpine botanical garden with a Buddhist stupa Optional K5 via ferrata for thrill-seekers Download GPS file Rocher de Naye  can be considered a classic – even if I don’t hike it every year. It’s a renowned destination near where I live, known for its iconic cogwheel mountain train – perhaps the only one in French-speaking Switzerland that rivals those in Central Switzerland. While there are many ways to reach the summit, I usually start from  Haut de Caux  (1180 m), where you’ll find a small parking area right next to the train station of the same name. Route Options from Hau...

🗺️ Overview Starting point : Col du Mollendruz (1180 m) Summit : Châtel Cross (1442 m) Distance : 7.8 km round trip Ascent : ~270 m Time : ~1h30 with a brisk pace or 2h30–3h round trip with kids Difficulty : Easy Suitable for : Families, beginners, snowshoes in winter Download GPS file The hike to the summit cross of  Châtel , above Montricher, is one of my all-time classics. It’s easy, scenic, and family-friendly—perfect even with a 4-year-old, who managed (almost) the entire walk. Whether in  summer   or  winter , this route works beautifully—snowshoeing in the cold months or hiking under a clear June sky, as you can clearly see in the pictures below 🤣 . Bonus: there are cozy mountain huts along the way for tea, cake, or even fondue. The Trail While there’s a longer route starting from Montricher , I usually begin at Col du Mollendruz (1180m) , where the snowshoe trails are marked in winter. There’s ample parking, but it can fill up on sunny...

After the hikes starting from Col du Mollendruz, Le Suchet is closer to home for me. Therefore, it counts as a classic—I’ve done it many times! As is typical for Jura hikes, you can approach it from various sides, and even more so for Le Suchet—even from France! Here’s a quick inventory of the main routes: From Grange Neuve : 40 minutes to the summit, a 2-hour loop with 370m elevation gain in total if returning along the ridge (see detailed description below). From Baulmes : 12.6 km round trip with 910m elevation gain. A challenging route. From Refuge du Chaudron : 7.2 km and 860m elevation gain. Steep, especially at the beginning. From Mathulaz : 4.2 km and 440m elevation gain. It’s a midpoint of the previous option and reachable by car. From Entre Les Fourgs (Jougne, FR): 16 km and 700m elevation gain. Quite a long route! In this post, I’ll dive into the first one—from Grange Neuve—because it’s the perfect, easy family hike. Download GPS file Grange Neuve i...

Overview Starting point:  Moléson-sur-Gruyère funicular base station (1100 m) Highest point and destination:  2022 m Ascent time:  ~2.5 hours Difficulty:  Moderate (steep sections) Options:  Hiking trail or via ferrata (K4 or K5) Download GPS fIle Moléson is another of my classics. I do it almost every year—it’s a perfect spring hike: long enough to train, low enough to be snow-free by mid-May, and with the added bonus of the Magic Pass cable car for a quick descent. It’s ideal for a half-day outing. The hike begins just left of the funicular station in Moléson-sur-Gruyère. A gravel road leads up through picturesque pastures dotted with alpages and cows—it looks like being in a Swiss postcard. After about 15 minutes, the road steepens significantly (it is a good training trail I said after all!). Here, you’ll see a trail sign showing two options for reaching the summit. In fact to get to the summit you have to turn around the mountain and reach it from behind ...