Hiking in the Lötschental – circular hike to the Anenhütte

The Lonza is rumbling mightily this morning. We hear how the water drags heavy stones along the bottom of the stream down the valley. The raging mountain stream, which rises on the Lang Glacier, flows through the Lötschental, is fed along the way by umpteen mountain streams that flow into the side and flows into the Rhone 22 kilometres later near Gampel. The hot temperatures of the last few weeks have taken their toll on the glacier and accordingly a lot of water is flowing downhill these days.

The evening before, we had watched the thick raindrops of the summer thunderstorm through the windows of the cozy restaurant of the Hotel Nest- und Bietschhorn, from where we are exploring the Lötschental this weekend. The precipitation was so heavy that a debris flow flooded the road between Blatten and Fafleralp and completely covered it over a length of almost 100 metres. The next morning, the damage has not yet been repaired and so the post bus temporarily only serves the route to Blatten. We had arranged to meet my parents for the Fafleralp-Anenhütte circular hike. The forces of nature have now unexpectedly imposed a more sporty program on us. Instead of starting from Fafleralp, we start the hike from Blatten. On this morning, the farthest village of the Lötschental presents itself with its sun-tanned Valais granaries in a mystical atmosphere. The valley flanks are shrouded in mist and the dark clouds slowly retreat towards the high mountains. The air is fresh and pleasantly cool. After the last hot hiking days a welcome change.

We cross the village centre of Blatten and then hike uphill along the left side of the valley. Soon we pass the place above the “problem stream”, which has buried part of the road under it. The postbus driver said that “at noon the road would be open again”. At this sight, we doubt this optimistic announcement. Passing the hamlets of Eisten and Kühmad, we reach Fafleralp an hour later after a brisk march.

From here, our originally planned circular hike begins with the ascent to the Anenhütte. First we pass the Alp Guggistafeln and then hike over hill and dale towards Guggisee. This is the first break of the day. Above the small mountain lake, Erens graze and the lake itself delights with the reflections of the surrounding mountain flanks. Postcard idyll par excellence.

This is followed by the hardest part of the tour. From the Guggisee to the Anenhütte, there are still 350 meters of altitude to be mastered. We follow the narrow path in the direction of the Lang Glacier. In front of us, the landscape presents itself high alpine and behind us the view opens up to the alpine pastures of the Lötschental.

Shortly before I run out of breath, we reach the Anenhütte at 2,358 m above sea level. It is the only privately run and self-sufficient mountain hut in the UNESCO area of the Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch-Bietschhorn. Architecturally an extremely interesting building and compared to other mountain huts a rather exclusive thing. We treat ourselves to a well-deserved piece of apricot cake and enjoy the majestic location high above the Lötschental.

During our break, the sun was finally able to prevail against the last stubborn wisps of clouds. The best conditions for the detour to the Anensee, which is located just behind the hut, and the subsequent descent with a view of the glacier tongue of the Lang Glacier.

We cross the Lonza and walk through a sparse larch forest back down the valley towards Fafleralp. In between, we feel a bit like we are in the wilderness of Canada in this untouched mountain landscape. When it comes to the Grundsee, we unanimously say: “These colors! It looks like the Caribbean.” The water here is crystal clear. But only the most hard-boiled guys dare to go inside. The Grundsee rarely gets warmer than 12° Celsius. However, the sun has attracted numerous hikers to the shore, who are now tentatively stretching their feet in. The friend leaves the lake to the left and refreshes himself a few meters further ahead upside down in the happily babbling fountain.

We cross the Lonza a second time, are greeted by a fearsome Tschäggättä at the Fafleralp car park and hurry back to Blatten in a record-breaking 40 minutes so that we can catch the right post bus. The road is still closed at this time.

Back at the Hotel Nest- und Bietschhorn, we put our tired legs up on the sun terrace, toast each other with a homemade iced tea. Wildly romantic mountain landscapes, magnificent panoramas, raging rivers, mountain lakes and open pastures. Everything is right here.

By the way, from 6:00 p.m., the road to Fafleralp was open again. Chapeau, for this effort.

Practical tips for the circular hike Blatten/Fafleralp – Anenhütte

The route can be found on the map below. Starting at Fafleralp, the Anenhütte circular hike is about 10 km long, includes an ascent of 650 metres in altitude and a descent of 650 metres in altitude. The pure running time is around 4 hours. If you start in Blatten like we did, you have to accept an additional 9 kilometres of running distance and 350 metres of altitude. This extends the hiking time to around 6 hours. From Goppenstein, a post bus runs every hour to the Lötschental.

More information about the tour can be found here: Lötschental Mountain Hiking Trails

Note: My trip to the Lötschental was supported by the Hotel Nest- und Bietschhorn. Thank you very much for this! As always, my readers can be sure that I always represent my views and enthusiasm.