A lot has happened here in the last few weeks – we have set the hiking dates for 2024, discussed new offers, revised our hiking scale and are looking for a new team member. But one thing after the other 🙂
Yay, the 2024 hiking dates are set!
Last year it proved to be a good idea to fix the dates at the beginning of the year, and we’re doing it again this year – you can see an overview of them all below. A few important notes:
- The list may change during the course of the year in exceptional cases (illness or similar), and further offers may be added. We always try to keep it up-to-date here on the website!
- Each hike organizer decides about 2-3 weeks before the tour where the hike will go, depending on the current weather conditions.
- You can register via the website about two weeks before the hike date. If you don’t want to miss out, sign up for the event newsletter (sign up below) and/or join our Whatsapp group (more on this below).
- Vanessa & Nadine are at home in Valais, their hiking dates are mostly in this region. Vicky is at home in central Switzerland. Katerina, Ariane and Julia cover northern/eastern Switzerland, but may also take a detour to other regions from time to time.
- The hikes are in the range up to max. T3 – not because we don’t want more, but for liability reasons we can’t offer more difficult levels as private individuals.
Let's go, pull out the agenda:
02./03.03. Winter-Camping event (organised by Julia)
05.05. (organised by Nadine)
25.05. (organised by Ariane)
02.06. (organised by Vanessa)
22.06. (organised by Pascale)
29.06. (organised by Vicky)
13.07./14.07. Get together / hut weekend
28.07. (organised by Julia)
18.08. (organised by Vanessa)
31.08. (organised by Ariane)
07.09. (organised by Vicky)
14.09. (organised by Katerina)
29.09. (organised by Vanessa)
05.10. (organised by Vicky)
20.10. (organised by Nadine)
29.12. (organised by Julia)
Event newsletter & new Whatsapp community
Be the first to know when a new hike is unlocked! There are two ways to do this: By e-mail with our event newsletter, which you can subscribe to here:
Or via our newly founded Whatsapp community. It works like this: In the main group “Announcements” we publish all new hiking dates and anything else that might be of interest to you throughout Switzerland (events, films, etc.). There will also be subgroups, such as the first one for Zurich and the surrounding area. Here we organize short meetups in the Zurich area (see “Local events” below). To join, send us an email with the subject “Whatsapp Community” and we will send you the invitation link to the group – this way we want to prevent spam. There is not yet a group for your region and you would like to create one and manage it as an admin? Then get in touch with us by mail, too!
We are testing new offers: Local Events & Hiking Intro (online)
For the Zurich region, we are planning to offer short meetups at regular intervals, such as an after-work tour up the Uetliberg, cold water dipping, etc. These meetups don’t require a signup – who’s there, is there 😉 Would you like to have something like this in your region? We are still looking for admins who would like to create and manage a local subgroup in our community. Send us a message for more information!
We are also testing an online meeting for those who are not yet experienced hikers (beginners). We offer this on April 18th (DE, new date) and April 22th (EN) for the summer and on November 7th (DE) and November 14th (EN) for the winter, both in the evening. Topics will include:
1. How do I plan a hike, where can I find info & inspiration;
2. Which weather apps help me with my planning
3. What do the hiking trail signs / descriptions T1 to T5 mean?
4. What should I always pack?
5. How to book and behave in a hut;
6. Assess natural hazards (especially in winter);
7. Wildlife sanctuaries & camping rules
…and many more topics!
Hiking scale / difficulty level of our tours
We have revised our hiking scale to give you a better idea of which of our hikes suit your level (thanks to Katerina!). Here is our new overview:
Easy: You are a beginner or returning hiker and want to take it easy. On tours with this designation, you can expect a slight difference in altitude of less than 500 meters. You have already done some easy hikes and are comfortable with small hills. Example tours: Il Spir > Crestasee > Waldhaus, First – Bachalpsee. Our pace is leisurely and we do 100-200 vertical meters per hour.
Medium: The difference in altitude is approx. 500 – 700 m and requires a certain amount of stamina. You have already undertaken a few hikes this season with an altitude difference of at least 500m. You should be used to walking uphill at a good pace over longer distances without being completely out of breath or having to stop every few meters. Example tours: Seealpsee – Ebenalp; Rigi Fruttli – Rigi Kulm; First – Faulhorn. The pace is not leisurely anymore, but also not fast and we do 200-350 vertical meters per hour. Not suitable for beginners.
Hard: Our most challenging tours, where you quickly cover longer distances and 700 meters of altitude or more. You are already experienced and have hiked many kilometers and altitude meters this year. You are familiar with steeper passages and have no problem walking at a steady pace without getting completely out of breath. Absolutely not suitable for beginners. Example tours: Zermatt – Schönbielhütte; Haldigrat – Brisen – Klewenalp. Our pace is rather a bit brisk we do 300-500 vertical meters per hour.
Support Swissmountaingirls – we are looking for a new team member!
We have a vacancy – we are looking for support in community management! Do you have the desire and time to support us in the area of social media (selecting and pre-planning posts, responding to questions from the community, possibly also supporting the Whatsapp community) and can invest about one day a month for the next 12 months? Ideally, you already have previous experience in this area and a graphic eye? Then we would like to get to know you – send us an email with the subject “Community Mangement”! Please note that this is an unpaid / volunteer position (as it is for all of us).
And last but not least: Our hikes will remain free of charge, but like last year you have the possibility to send the organizers of a hike a small tip via TWINT after the hike for their work (approx. 2 days preparation plus one day to carry out each hike). So if you enjoyed the tour, you are welcome to send whatever you think is appropriate 🙂 You will receive the number to twinten from each organizer, as communication before the hike usually takes place via Whatsapp.
