Sisiger Spitz - Fronalpstock

When I called to book the Riemenstalden bus (www.riemenstalden.com), there seemed to be some surprise at the other end of the line that anybody would want to use the bus at all. Indeed, the conditions on the Lidernen side look pretty unsuitable for both hiking and skiing and the cable car is not in service. But we have our eye on the other side of the valley: the long ridge from Wannentritt over Sisiger Spitz and Chlingenstock to the Fronalpstock.

There's a light drizzle as we start walking from Chäppeliberg, but the skies start brightening when we reach the Wannentritt. Soon after the Wannentritt, we leave the path and aim for the small saddle between Driangel and P. 1724. The last couple of metres to the saddle are steep and very slippery. In wet conditions like today, it might be more pleasant to loop around P. 1724 via P. 1602.

The Driangel (covered by a dusting of fresh snow) is reached without problems along the north ridge. The east ridge of the Sisiger Spitz is steeper and more exposed, with the slippery conditions requiring extra care. We are the first names in the summit book since the 1st of November. We descend along the north ridge to the foot of P. 1882, where we turn left into an obvious gully (a mix of black scree, slippery grass and wet snow). From the bottom of the gully, a snowy traverse brings us to the Lauchstock north ridge. We climb this ridge directly, which gets uncomfortably steep and slippery near the summit. It's probably recommended to pick a less direct line, though for us this would have meant dealing with more snow.

The guidebook grades this traverse of the Sisiger Spitz as T4+, which is probably accurate, though the slippery conditions made it feel a bit more difficult, demanding a double dose of sure-footedness.
For an up-to-date description of the direct ridge from Lauchstock to Sisiger Spitz, see Chrichen's report.

From the Lauchstock onwards, it's a nice ridge hike, only interrupted by the occasional bush blocking the ridge line. The final ascent of the Hängst (briefly quite exposed) is not as bad as it looks. After the Hängst, the difficulties are limited to T2. The tourist route from Chlingenstock to Fronalpstock might be overcrowded in summer, but it's definitely a spectacular path and today we encounter just a handful of other hikers. The Fronalpstock restaurant is open and the chair lift is operating, though at such a slow pace that we miss our intended funicular down from Stoos...

The conditions might have been a little more difficult than expected, but the weather on the day left nothing to be desired: mild temperatures, some sunshine and an endless sea of clouds rising above the Vierwaldstättersee area.