uetliberg

On Saturday it was absolutely gorgeous out, and some people at work had told me that I should definitely get up to Uetliberg at some point. Uetliberg is a mountain offering panoramic views of the entire city of Zurich. It is part of the Alps chain and rises to 2,864 feet. The native Swiss people at Deloitte ensured me that Uetliberg was not really a mountain (even though berg means mountain in german). Well, after my hike Saturday I am sticking to the literal translation and saying that Uetliberg is most definitely a MOUNTAIN! That's right, I climbed a mountain in the Alps on Saturday! To give you an idea of how high it is, here is a picture I took in Bellevue (by the lake). Do you see the two tiny sticks at the top of that large ´´hill´´? That is a tv antenna (on the right) and a viewing tower (smaller one to the left) at the top of Uetliberg.

My hike up the mountain started with a nice and flat 30 minute walk through beautiful gardens to the base of the mountain and the start of the trail. Then the fun started. The first 5 minutes of the hike up (which I was told would take about 70-90 minutes) were straight uphill and I started sweating. There were people running (yes, running!) past me on the trail. I´m sure they were calling me a fat american in their head as they passed and heard me breathing so heavily. But the trail was beautiful. It winded through the forest and along a creek for awhile.

Although the trail never stopped going uphill, I eventually got into a groove and got my first glimpse of the city of Zurich from above. Another 30 minutes later I realized that the glimpse I saw earlier (which I thought was amazing at the time) paled in comparison to the view from the top of the mountain. But for the best views, I had to climb up the viewing tower (pictured below) which slightly sways in the wind. This is the same tiny little tower in picture above.

Restaurant at the top of the mountain

Lampposts along the trail near the top of the mountain

Pictures cannot do the view justice, but here are a few I took from the top of Uetliberg atop the tower:

City

City and Lake

City and Lake

Lake Zurich

Backside of Mountain - Country

Looking down from top of tower at the top of the mountain. They were getting ready for a wedding which is why there are the white chairs and aisle way.

Me at the top :)

I had a nice little picnic after taking lots of pictures. The hike down took less than 40 minutes. For those of you non-hikers that would like to visit Zurich there is a tram that takes you to the top of the mountain, so no worries!