Furstin-Gina-Weg via Berggasthaus Sareis

We planned this trip after randomly finding a good deal on flights to Zurich, and impulsively purchasing them -- last summer.  The Lauterbrunnen Valley in Switzerland and the Alsace region in France were quickly penciled in as our main destinations, but I lobbied hard to include a stop in Liechtenstein.  Erwin was skeptical at first.  Several otherwise reputable travel bloggers have written that there is little to do there, and he wasn't interested in visiting just to check another country off a list.  Well...that wasn't what I wanted either!  I wanted to hike the Furtin-Gina-Weg.  So I sent him some links, which he skimmed over.  He was intrigued enough to do some further research of his own, which involved watching some youtube videos, and then he was fully on board.  I then moved on to phase 2 in my (obviously successful) campaign: an overnight stay at a mountain hut.  By September 2018, I had booked us a family room at the Berggasthaus Sareis for the very first night of our trip.  

Yeah, that's right.  We drove to Newark, then flew to Zurich on a red eye, picked up a rental car, and drove to Liechtenstein.  We stopped in Vaduz, at the hotel where we had booked a room for the following evening and made arrangements to leave our luggage for the first night.  We shuffled a bit of gear around in the parking lot, dropped our suitcases off at reception, and drove up into the mountains with just day packs.  We arrived in Malbun, parking in one of the little lots on the outskirts of the village, and walked uphill to the Sareis Talstation where we boarded a chairlift for the ride to our private lodge in the sky.  Because even though I had booked a room super early... no one else did.  So aside from our charming host, we had the entire mountain top to ourselves.  And it was amazing!

view from the chairlift

arriving at Berggasthaus Sareis

There was an enormous wrap around wooden deck overlooking Malbun, with amazing views of the trail we would take up Augstenberg snaking up the ridge, and Schesaplana and the Falknis Range visible in the distance.  This was exciting for Frankie and I, as we had recently read Heidi, which takes place there.  Although truthfully, he was a bit more excited by the trampoline... 

Augstenberg, which we will be hiking, is the biggest peak in the foreground (all the way to the right)

Erwin was pretty wasted at this point and Frankie was thrilled to play, so I wandered off alone to explore the immediate environs.  I followed several small paths off in various directions, and found a swing and more stunning views. 

dangerously stoked

I headed back to the hut to check on the boys, and we decided to have dinner so Erwin could go to bed.  The menu was all in German, but our host suggested a regional specialty and we were happy to indulge -- stuffed chard leaves.  Erwin got the meaty variety and I the vegetable variety, and YUM.  I made immediate plans to eat this again all over Switzerland, but we never saw it on another menu.  So perhaps a Liechtenstein specialty?  Anyway, I highly recommend the Capuns. 

handgerollte Capuns vegetarisch

Frankie was thrilled to get a donut dessert

After dinner, Erwin decided to shower and crash, but Frankie and I weren't quite ready yet.  Frankie readily agreed to go off exploring and try the swing I'd found earlier, so off we went.  We also found SNOW and had a snowball fight, which I had to interrupt several time to take pictures of flowers.  It was glorious! 

forest cowslip (Primula elatior)

globeflower (Trollius europaeus)

Erwin eventually came out and found us, and we all trundled off to bed. After pegging him with some snowballs, of course.  Bwahaha!  After both boys were asleep, I snuck back outside to take a gander at the sunset.  It was very hot and hazy, which would become a theme on this trip, so the colors were a bit muted but I still very much enjoyed the view.  I would sneak out one additional time in the middle of the night, to see the stars, but I didn't take any pictures then.  Too sleepy...

morning in the family room

done with breakfast and ready to hit the trail

It was with mixed feelings that we set off down the trail in the morning.  We were eager for the hike, but a bit sad to leave the Berggasthaus.  What an incredible experience!  Like Johns Brooks Lodge, this stay just left me wanting more.  I hope to stay at additional mountain huts in the future. 

gateway to the trail

setting off along the amazing ridge walk

looking back from where we came - the Berggasthaus is already tiny on the left

Frankie was very eager to get up to a patch of snow we could see on the trail, so at some point we rushed past Erwin and hurried ahead.  I was happy to do that so Frankie would have more time to play.  The temperature is a few very welcome degrees lower in the snow, and that was a relief because it was HOT.  And zero shade of course.

photo by Erwin

Erwin passed us again after a tiny little scramble, and that was the last we saw of him for a while.  He waited for us at the base of the final ascent up the Augstenberg -- in the col at the right of the image below, between the pointy peak and the bigger massive behind it. 

I love you, Liechtenstein!

alpine pasqueflower (Pulsatilla alpina)

bird's eye primrose (Primula farinosa)

at the Augstenberg summit -- elevation 7,739 feet

my boy!!

we three

spring gentian (Gentiana vernua)

Once again, Erwin moved off ahead, and we didn't see him again until the Pfälzerhütte, some distance along.  It wasn't terribly far, but there was a steep descent with scree, which can be challenging for Frankie.  He does great with slab, dirt, and grass trails, but descending with loose stones under his feet is still a little rough.  So we moved slowly through that terrain to avoid a tumble.  In addition, there were several more snowfields to cross, with all the joyful distractions. 

Erwin enjoyed a nice long rest at the Pfälzerhütte before we arrived, drinking several cold ciders out of the sun. When Frankie and I arrived, we needed a break from the relentless sun, too, so we went inside and shared an amazing gemischter salat (mixed salad).  This might not sound like anything special, but it had many varieties of pickled vegetables with a powerful vinaigrette, and it really hit the spot with all the sweating we'd been doing.  After we finished eating, Erwin was getting restless, so we all set out together. 

heading down the trail toward Malbun from the Pfälzerhütte

leafy lousewort (Pedicularis foliosa)

This part of the hike was less dramatic and had fewer wildflowers, so I stopped less often for photos.  The route initially followed a dirt road that was nearly level, and then rounded a bend and descended gently.  After losing quite a bit of elevation, it splits from the road onto a narrower trail and climbs  a bit more before cresting a ridge and descending a set of steep switchbacks back into the valley.  Erwin's stomach was feeling a little off (too much cider at the hut) and it was still ungodly hot (upper 90s) so we all stuck together for the descent.  Frankie was a little disappointed, as he was looking forward to running ahead and beating his Dad back to the car, but he did understand that wouldn't be sporting. 

MapMyRide tracked this hike at 7.1 miles with approximately 1,975 feet elevation gain.  I cannot recommend this adventure highly enough!  Liechtenstein is an absolute paradise for hiking and we loved every second of our time here.