Through An Old Bear Cave And Along A Narrow Ledge

To get to Aescher, you drop down from the top station of the Ebenalp cable car and scramble down a slippery trail through the Wildkirchli Hoelle (Wild Church Cave) and onto a narrow ledge. The cave can be seen on the right in the picture above - along with a small chapel - and the trail leads along the rock face towards Aescher (just around the corner on the left). A small covered bridge (tan structure on the left) lets you get across the most treacherous part of the trail.

Not to worry! A stout handrail make this a very safe walk - just a bit giddy for those with fear of straight dropoffs. Well worth it once you get to Aescher.

The Wildkirchli cave itself once housed cave bears (about 90,000 years ago) and you can imagine the huge lumbering beasts in this large cavern. Later, it was inhabited by hermits and became a chapel in the wilderness.

A brief detour on your destination up into the Alpstein, the Wildkirchli Cave and Berggasthaus Aescher are well worth an hour of your morning.

Starting A Trek Of The Alpstein

Although Switzerland is a picturesque country no matter where you go, the Appenzell will astound you with its beauty. Well worth spending some time in the valley below, looking at all the painted houses, but first, let's grab a cable car from Wasserauen and take the ride high up to Ebenalp.

There, you must take the quick detour for a morning coffee at the cliff-hugging Aescher restaurant. Sitting on it's sun terrace under the looming cliffs is a great way to start a day of hiking, and the scramble through the Wildkirchli Cave is an interesting way to approach any restaurant.

To Go Where Buses Don't Go

I've always enjoyed hiking, mountain biking, or river rafting where the mainstream tourists are non-existent and I can truly absorb the environment around me. In this blog, I hope to share with you some of the wonders of adventure travel.