Leave the car in Bristen and then take the aerial cable car to the sunny plateau called Golzernalp, high above the Maderaner Valley. The hamlet of Golzern, under the steep cliffs of the Grossen Windgällen, is very picturesque indeed, with its houses that huddle close to each other. The dreamy, dark lake of the same name completes the picture. Nothing disrupts this peaceful picture of the Maderaner valley, where rocky pyramids of Bristen, Oberalpstock, Hüfigletscher and Gross Düssi rise majestically into the blue sky.
Pass through gnarled woods and then enjoy the riotous colors of meadows, alive with flowers, as you walk towards Balmenegg, where in former times a palatial hotel welcomed guests. But those are days long gone by: today the hotel is closed, and the area is quiet and romantic, only interrupted by the glittering mountain crystals, which are offered by the wayside in the Maderaner Valley.
How to get there:
Drive or take the train or bus from Lucerne via Amsteg to Bristen.
Maderaner Valley: Wildly Romantic, Rugged but Gentle
Bristen
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Adelboden: Engstligenalp
Adventure Park
Alpine Garden
Amden: High Moor
Appenzell: Lake Fälen
Baar: Hell-Grottoes
Bad Ragaz: Weisstannen
Baltschieder Valley
Bavona: Maggia-Vallemaggia
Bergell: Chestnut Trail
Bettmeralp: Glacier Path
Binntal Landschaftspark
Blenio: Acquarossa
Brienz: Rothorn
Calanca Valley
Caslano: Nature Trail
Champéry: Barmaz Plateau
Champex Lac: Val d'Arpette
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Chur: Roundtrip
Courtedoux: Dinosaurs
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Davos: Zügen Gorge
Derborence: Virgin Forest
Diemtigtal: Valley Hiking T
Disentis-Sedrun: Mineral
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Engstligen, Adelboden
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Evolène: Arbey Lake
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Evolène: The Blue Lake
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Flims: Vorderrhein Gorge
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Glovelier: Tabeillon Coomb
Göschenen: Göscheneralp
Grimentz: Exploration
Grimentz: Fool's Gold
Grimentz: Ramble
Grimentz: Sunrise
Grimentz: Wildlife
Gruyère: Trail
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Gstaad: Lake Lauenen
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Interlaken: Ice Climbing
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Kandersteg: Lake Oeschinen
Kien Valley: Nature Trail
La Pierreuse
Lake Retaud
Lake Thun: Beatus Caves
Lake Thun: Fox Trail
Lauterbrunnen Valley
Lauterbrunnen: Trümmelbach
Lisengrat
Maderaner Valley
Maggia - Vallemaggia
Malans GR: Aelpli Cableway
Malcantone: Chestnut Groves
Malcantone: Monte Lema
Maloja: Glacier Mills
Martigny: Durnand Gorge
Meiringen: Rosenlaui Gorge
Moléson: Via Ferrata
Monthey: Lac de Taney
Morat: Walking
Morat: Wine Trail
Mountainbike / Fahrrad
Muota Valley: Hölloch Caves
Murg: Chestnut Forest
Murgtal: Mountain Lake
Mürren: Schilthorn
Neuchâtel: Botanical Garden
Oey: Diemtig Valley Hike
Onsernone Valley
Pilatus: Dragon Moor
Pont de Nant
Poschiavo: Lake Saoseo
Ricola, Trogberg
Savognin: Alpine Fishing
Savognin: Wildlife
Schaffhausen: Rhine Falls
Schynige Platte: Paradise
Sierre: Pfyn Forest
Silvaplana: Moorland
Sörenberg: Riverside Trail
St. Bernard: Bourg
St. Imier: Chasseral
St. Leonard: Lake
St. Luc: Observatory
St. Maurice: Grotto
The Orbe Gorges
The Toblerone Trail
Thun: Lake Cruises
Toggenburg: "Klangweg"
Trin: Glacier Mills
Trottinett-Fun
Turtmann Valley
Unterwasser: Lake Schwendi
Unterwasser: Water Falls
Val Ferret
Val Piora: Mountain Lakes
Vallon de Rechy
Vallorbe Grottos
Valposchiavo: Borgo Complex
Verzasca Valley: Hiking
Villars-Gryon Magic
Vineyard Trail
Vira: Nature Reserve
Watchmaking Trail
Weesen: Water Spectacle
Weggis: Hiking tours
Wellness, Berglialp
Zernez: Red Deer
Zinal: Educational Footpath
Zweisimmen: Mountain Forest
Just 30 minutes away from the busy Gotthard Highway lies a rugged and quiet natural paradise. Here cowbells, rather than cars, make the most noise.
More links
Contact Information
- Tourist Info Uri
Tellspielhaus
Schützengasse 11
6460 Altdorf
Tel. +41 (0)41 872 04 50 - www.i-uri.ch
Excursions 

