Brünig · Glaubenbielen · Entlebuch Flow

Two passes and 170 km, high point 1611 m

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Why this ride

A mountain day with softer edges and excellent coffee logic. A 170 km loop that starts and ends near Luzern, about 3 h 15 of riding. On the way it passes Entlebuch and Giswil. The climbs: Glaubenbielen high road and Brünigpass sweepers. It tops out at 1,611 m. Brunig Pass is subject to seasonal closure - check it is open before you set off. The passes are the reason to go.

Roadbook

1. Lucerne lake exit scenic · 436 m

   Lucerne sits where the lake narrows into the Reuss, with the Alps stacked up behind it, and at 436 metres it is one of the most visited cities in Switzerland. The best way to see the old town is on foot, so find a car park and leave the bike.

   The Chapel Bridge, a covered wooden footbridge across the Reuss, dates from the fourteenth century and is the city's emblem, with painted panels under the roof showing local history. Much of it burned in a fire in 1993 and was rebuilt, and the octagonal Water Tower beside it survived. A short walk takes you to the Lion Monument, a huge relief carved into a sandstone cliff in the early nineteenth century to honour Swiss guards killed in Paris in 1792. Mark Twain called it the saddest and most moving piece of stone in the world, and it still moves visitors today.

   For riders, Lucerne is the lake city that opens the way into central Switzerland. The shoreline roads wind round Lake Lucerne, with its odd shape of fingers and bays, towards Küssnacht, Weggis and Vitznau, with Rigi and Pilatus rising above them. Pilatus gets its name from a legend that Pontius Pilate's body was thrown into a lake on its slopes, and the mountain was long considered haunted. The roads around the lake are scenic but crowded in summer, so use early mornings and late evenings for the best rides.

   The lake is one of the cradles of Switzerland. Around its shores lie the original cantons of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden, and the Rütli meadow, where the oath of the confederates is said to have been sworn in 1291, is reachable by boat. Steamers still ply the lake, and some are paddle-wheelers more than a century old. If you have time, take one to Flüelen or Vitznau and ride back, or simply watch them from the quay.

   Lucerne is dense with tourists in July and August, and parking is expensive, but the lake light in the evening is something special. It is also a city of music, with a famous summer festival and a modern concert hall right by the water.

2. Entlebuch food stop food · 723 m

   Entlebuch gave the world a dog. The Entlebucher Sennenhund, a small, sturdy, tricolour herding breed, was developed in these valleys to drive cattle on the steep pastures, and the village is proud of it. The surrounding region is a UNESCO biosphere reserve, recognised in 2001, a landscape of moors, wooded ridges and green pasture, where the Kleine Emme river runs down from the Alps toward Lucerne.

   The village itself has about three thousand people, and stands at 723 metres on the road between Bern and Lucerne, a crossing that has been important since medieval times. It has a good selection of practical stops: fuel, bakeries, a couple of restaurants and the kind of friendly village guesthouses that serve a hearty plate of rösti or a slice of something sweet with thick cream. This is the end of a long ride for many, a place to finish the day with a beer on a terrace.

   The roads around are lovely. The valley road follows the river through farms and forest, with gentle bends, wooden barns and cows with bells on the slopes, and the side roads climb up to the high ridges, with wide views of the Pilatus and the Alps. The surface is generally excellent, and traffic is light outside the commuting hours. Hasle and Schüpfheim, the next villages, are similar, and the road toward Marbach and the Schangnau is a fine piece of riding, with a bit more climbing and some tighter bends.

   The biosphere is notable for its moors, which are protected, and the area has a distinctive feel, damp and green, with mist on the hills in the morning. Spring brings blossom and autumn, golden beech woods. Rain is frequent, and fog can sit in the valley, so check the forecast. If you want more services, Malters, a few kilometres down the valley, is larger, with about six thousand people, and Lucerne is a short ride beyond it.

3. Glaubenbielen high road pass · 1611 m

   Glaubenbielen is a pass for people who like their mountains empty. It crosses a green saddle at 1,611 metres between Giswil in Obwalden and the Entlebuch valley in Lucerne, and the road is narrow, steep and often quiet, with long stretches where you will meet nothing but cows and the occasional cyclist. The scenery is gentle but big, with moorland, scattered spruce and an open sky.

   The pass lies inside the Entlebuch biosphere reserve, a UNESCO-recognised landscape where high moors, forests and traditional farming have been protected together. The moors here are among the most important in Switzerland, wet, spongy places full of rare plants and insects, and the walking paths across them are carefully marked. It is not a landscape that shouts, and that is its appeal.

   On the Giswil side, the road climbs from the shore of Lake Sarnen in a series of hairpins through forest, with views opening gradually over the lake and the mountains of Obwalden. It is steep in places, and the corners are tight, so take care on a loaded bike. At the top, the land opens into meadows and the road eases into a wide, rolling descent toward Sörenberg, a ski village that is quiet in summer. The surface is generally good but patched, and the shade can hold moisture late into the morning.

   Giswil is a village of several thousand and the best place to fill up before you start, and Sarnen, a short ride away, is the bigger option. The pass is closed in winter, normally opening in late spring, and it is worth checking the conditions, because snow lingers at this altitude. Summer weekends bring more traffic, but early in the day the road is still your own. Take a warm layer and a camera.

4. Brünigpass sweepers pass · 1008 m

   Brünig is the easy pass, and it is more fun than that makes it sound. At 1,008 metres it is one of the lowest of the main Alpine crossings in central Switzerland, joining Lungern in Obwalden with the shore of Lake Brienz and the Haslital, and it is open all year. The road is fast and well made, with long sweepers that let you lean the bike and keep the revs up, a kind of riding that is rare in the high mountains.

   The Obwalden side climbs from Lungern, a village beside a green lake, up the steep slope in a series of wide bends with views over the water. At the top, the road runs along a wooded saddle with a few small hotels and the old railway nearby. The Brünig railway, a narrow-gauge line with a cog section, has crossed this saddle since the 1880s and still runs scenic trains. From the summit the descent toward Brienz is quick and open, with views over the lake and the Bernese Alps beyond.

   The valley below is a place of old wood and new water. Brienz is known for woodcarving, and the village has a school where the craft is still taught, so the shops sell carved bears, cowbells and music boxes. The Aare river runs through Meiringen, a town famous for inventing the meringue, according to local tradition, and for the nearby Reichenbach Falls, where Sherlock Holmes met his end in a Conan Doyle story.

   Traffic is heavier than on the higher passes because the Brünig is a main road, and trucks and caravans slow things down at times, but the road is wide enough to make passing easy. In winter the road is cleared and gritted, but the shaded bends can be icy.

5. Giswil fuel gate fuel · 485 m

   Giswil sits at the bottom of the Brünig road, and so it is a place where riders gather. The village, with about three and a half thousand people, lies in the valley of the Sarner Aa, at 485 metres, south of Lake Sarnen, between wooded hills and steep slopes. It is a quiet farming community in the canton of Obwalden, the heart of central Switzerland, and the main road runs through it on the way up to Lungern and the Brünig pass.

   For the practical rider, Giswil is a gift. There are fuel stations, a bakery, small shops and a couple of inns, and it is the last easy place to fill up before the road climbs. Sarnen, the cantonal capital, is the nearest larger town, about eight kilometres north, with about nine thousand people and more choice. The lake at Sarnen is a good place to rest, with a lakeside walk and a shady park.

   The riding begins at once. The road to Lungern climbs in a series of smooth bends beside the Lungerersee, a long, narrow lake with water of a deep green, then crosses the Brünig pass at around a thousand metres and drops into the Haslital near Meiringen. It is a gentle pass, wide and easy, but its corners are lovely, and in the early morning, with mist on the lake, it is one of the most pleasant rides in the Alps. The railway, a narrow-gauge line that climbs the pass with a cog section, runs alongside, and sometimes the trains and bikes share the same ridge.

   Further afield, the Glaubenbielen road, the other half of the route, climbs west from Giswil through steep forest to a high pass, with narrow lanes, tight bends and a strong sense of being alone in the mountains. It closes in winter and can be icy until late spring. Giswil itself is a good base, and the evening light on the surrounding peaks is excellent.

6. Zug lake return photo · 413 m

   Zug is a small city with a big lake and a reputation for money. The lake, the Zugersee, lies in a bowl of low hills at the northern edge of the Alps, a calm, blue sheet of water with the Rigi rising across on the south side and the Pilatus further off. The old town sits on the northeastern shore, with a medieval clock tower, pastel houses and a promenade where boats bob in the harbour.

   The canton has long been known for low taxes, which has drawn companies and residents from around the world, but the city has kept a personal scale. There are narrow lanes with small shops, cafes with views of the water, and a lake path that is busy with runners and families. The local speciality is Zuger Kirschtorte, a cake made of layers of almond meringue and sponge, flavoured with cherry brandy, and it is on the menu in nearly every pastry shop. The cherries behind the brandy come from the orchards on the slopes around the lake, which bloom in April.

   The riding here is gentle, and it works well as a return leg at the end of a day. The roads along the lake are smooth and flat, and the traffic can be heavy, especially at commuting hours. If you want something more lively, the road toward the Zugerberg climbs through woods to a ridge with views over the city and the lake. Parking is easy near the harbour, and the lakeside is a pleasant place for a last coffee before the final run home.

   Zug has more than twenty thousand people, along with Baar next door and a ring of suburbs, so fuel and food are everywhere. The weather here is mild by Swiss standards, with fog common in autumn and winter when the lake traps cold air, and the sun comes out late in the morning. In summer, the lake is warm enough for swimming, and the public baths fill with locals, which is a good sign.

7. Back to Lucerne lake exit finish · 436 m

   Back to Lucerne lake closes the day.

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