The mountain to the East of Zurich with the large communications tower is Uetliberg and its very accessible. There are many Uetliberg Hiking Trails from all directions. I like the trails I’ve listed here since I think they show off the mountain best.
Hiking Zurich’s House Mountain; Uetliberg. Hiking Time with photos: 3 hours. Transportation Time: 1 hour
We begin by taking trams 14 or 9 to the Triemlispital station or the S10 train to Triemli station. Purchase a ZVV Albis Day Pass – this is good for all of Zurich as well as the extra zones for Uetliberg, Felsenegg, and Adliswil.
The travel up to the top of Uetliberg Kulm takes about an hour along well-kept, easily identifiable trails. The ascent to the Uetliberg peak is 1350ft or about 400meters. This trail will bring you past the upper Uetliberg S10 train station. You can take the train up if you’d like or take the train down, usually every 30 minutes. There are a number of paths to the top and back down. My hike continues past the Uetliberg peak and along the Planetary Trail. Ending at planetoid Pluto with a cable car at Felsenegg.
The start is uphill. From the Triemlispital tram station, you need to walk up a block to the Triemli train station. Then up the paved hiking path until you come to an opening in the forest. When facing the mountain and the forest, the trail on the left (left is typically the correct turn today) is correct. There are several water fountains, benches, and lookouts. If you are in shape, you can choose not to carry a pack and drink from the fountains. I bring a water bottle with me and I fill it up a few times throughout the morning. A snack is always nice although there are two restaurants at the top, Uto Kulm (the Top of Zurich) and Uto Staffel and then another restaurant at Felsenegg.
Parallel to the Uetliberg Hiking Trails is a bike path. This is a great mountain bike experience. While walking, it’s likely you will be passed by bikers riding up and down. You can take your bike on the train and just ride down as well. In the winter, the bike path is turned into a sledding trail.
Although the trail is well marked, there are lots of side trail intersections – Follow the hiking traffic and keep going up. At about the 1/2 way point you’ll reach a playground and picnic area. There are no bathrooms here but it’s a nice place to stop. If you are a flatlander like me, I’m from Chicago, remember that this is a playground, and little kids, as well as parents with strollers, voluntarily walk up to this point.
Taking the upward path, you will enter a beautiful pine forest. On subsequent hikes, it’s fun to take some of the smaller side paths. The pine forest leads up to the train station where you will walk up a few stairs.
Soon you will see a giant model of the Sun which is the beginning of the Planetary Hike of Uetliberg, the Planetenwag. On a scale of 1:1 billion, as you hike your pace will be the equivalent to twice the speed of light. Unfortunately, Earth is on the road under the panorama views at the top of Uetliberg. You can double back after you get some photos but maybe a return hike is in order if you want to see the earth model.
At the top, there are many photo opportunities. Bring coins; 2chf coins and 1chf coins. The coins should cover the fee for the lookout tower and bathroom. If this is your first time then you must go up the lookout tower for the best panorama views of the Alps. Depending on the day and time, the cafeteria and restaurant at Uto Kulm may be open. I love sitting outside with a beer and a brat to people watch. Uto Kulm is a hotel if you’d like to stay on Top of Zurich. The hotel hosts several seasonal events such as Oktoberfest and New Year’s Eve or Silvester as it’s called in Switzerland.
When you finally decide to leave the Uetliberg, you’ll begin a walk down some stairs. Notice the gravel-ish rock on the mountain. This is molasse, a conglomerate of sandstones and shales that occurred during the formation of the Alps.
At the bottom of the stairs is another restaurant Uto Staffel with indoor and outdoor seating. Another great stop and if you are only going to the top of Uetliberg once, try and eat at this restaurant. Have a fondue while sitting outside looking at the Alps. Confirm their hours of operation before heading up.
After Uto Staffel, you’ll take the path that stays reasonably level. There are a few paths down the mountain. If you take one, make sure you are headed down toward Zurich because there is not a great selection of transportation in the western valley.
You’ll come to a big fork in the path with several options. Going straight take you on the Planetary Hike (Albis Planetenwag). You want to take one of the paths to your left, down toward Zurich. The Uetliberg Hiking Trails down are steep. The primary trail has lights for dusk and night hiking.
I like a little trail that begins shortly after the top and appears to the right of the primary path. I think this trail, with stairs, has better views.