Bike & hike to Piz Linard (2768 m) on December 27th!

Bike & hike to Piz Linard (2768 m) on December 27th!

Normally, I would consider the alpine hiking season to last from May through October. But this year is different. I was inspired by Polder's report from 02-DEC-2015, and I assumed that the snow from 3 weeks ago was now gone. I could even see from one webcam in the Savognin ski area that the entire south side of Piz Linard appeared to be snow free. So I made my plans for the December hike to Piz Linard.

I started my hike at P.1080 (Igls Plangs), bringing my mountain bike along. Biking is permitted, at the start of the road the sign says only cars and motorcycles are prohibited unless with special permit. As usual on steep ascents I mostly walked the bike. The road was generally snow and ice free, only isolated spots were not. I followed this alp road all the way up up to Schautschen (1864 m) where I left my bike behind. There I was lucky enough to stumble right upon the unmarked trail leading up through Arsa Pintga. It starts above a grassy field at about 1875 m elevation where the marked trail passes on the way to Hetta da las Nuorsas.

From P. 2232 I followed the SSW ridge up to the summit of  Piz Linard without any problems. Shortly before reaching the summit I met with a bigger group of fellow hikers who were descending. At the summit the view was magnificent!

For the descent I chose to follow the SSE ridge towards Culmatsch. I mainly tried to find the best sand and gravel to surf down on, and the lighter color one proved to be the best. Afterwards I followed the previous route through Arsa Pintga down to Schautschen.

The bike ride back down to P.1080 (Igls Plangs) was uneventful, but bumpy, and I had to be cautious in those few places where it was icy. Not sure if it was worth bringing the mountain bike along, because following the alp road up meant a much longer distance compared to starting at P.1109 (see ivo66's report).

Times:
P.1080 (Igls Plangs) - Pigni - Propissi Sot - Schautschen (pushing the bike along): 2 h 30 min
Schautschen - Arsa Pintga - P. 2232 m - SSW ridge - Piz Linard: 2 h 30 min (incl. lunch break)
Piz Linard - SSE ridge- Arsa Pintga - Schautschen: 1 h 20 min
Schautschen- Propissi Sot- Pigni - P.1080 (Igls Plangs) (by bike): 1 h

Remark: The area below Schautschen is a designated wildlife protection area, and in the period from 20.Dec - 20.May, it is only permitted to pass through on the alp road between Pigni and Schautschen. See http://www.wildruhezonen.ch for detail.