Gigierwaldsee to the Sardona Hut: Hiking into the Past
Tucked away in the jagged edges of East Switzerland lies the Calfeisental, a valley that feels entirely disconnected from the modern world. This spectacular hike takes you from a massive mid-century engineering marvel, through a 14th-century medieval village, and up into a high-alpine environment shaped by continental collisions.
Whether you like sweeping mountain vistas, rich Swiss history, or a big plate of alpine food, this long day hike delivers an epic challenge…
ROUTE SUMMARY
Distance: at least 23 km (Full round-trip from the Gigerwald Dam)
[Shortcut: ~19 km total if you drive and park directly at St. Martin.]
Elevation Gain/Loss: ~ +/-1080 meters.
Duration: 8-9 hours of total moving time (plan for a very full day!)
Difficulty: T2 (Moderate) along the reservoir to Alp Sardona; T3 (Challenging) for the steep upper mountain track to the SAC hut.
Best Time to Visit: Mid-June to mid-Sept. (defined by the bus schedule & trail conditions).
PUBLIC TRANSPORT & WINTER SAFETY NOTES
Planning this trip requires attention to seasonal constraints, bus schedules, and environmental restrictions.
Bus Line 451 Shifting Stops:
The route is serviced by PostBus #451 from Bad Ragaz via Vaettis. During peak summer (early June to mid-Sept.), select daily buses run deep into the valley to Gigerwald, Staudamm (the dam wall) or the Gigerwald, Restaurant (below the dam crest). During shoulder seasons or late-evening runs, the bus terminates early at Vaettis, Dorf. If you get dropped at Vaettis, it adds an extra 5 Km each way just to reach the start of the reservoir!
Winter Animal Protection & High Avalanche Risks:
Do not attempt to visit the dam, reservoir road, or upper valley in winter. The Calfeisental is surrounded by near-vertical, sheer rock walls. During winter, these slopes accumulate large amounts of snow, creating a highly volatile avalanche risk where slides naturally channel down across the access road and trail. Additionally, the upper valley serves as a protected winter wildlife refuge and is officially inaccessible during the snowy months.
Part 1: THE TURQUOISE LAKE & CONNECTED WATERS
The journey begins at the Gigerwald, Staudamm bus stop, situated at the southern end of the massive concrete barrier. Built between 1971 and 1976, this concrete arch dam stands an imposing 147 m high and holds back up to 35M cubic meters of water. It is managed by Kraftwerke Sarganserland (KSL) and forms part of an interconnected, multi-stage pump-storage system.
The water captured here does not just sit still - it travels through high-pressure subterranean tunnels down the valley to be turbined at the lower Mapraggsee reservoir near Vadura (see my other article on this), seamlessly recycling energy between the upper & lower basins to power the region.
As you step off the bus and head across the 430 m crest, the reservoir below gleams with an intense, opaque turquoise-green glow. This visual magic is caused by "rock flour" - ultra-fine particles of silt suspended in the water, ground down by the heavy weight of the surrounding glaciers upstream.
The Trail:
The first stretch is a flat, 3 Km leg hugging the shoreline road. You will enjoy a unique, easy stroll passing through cool, hand-carved rock tunnels, past waterfalls with the reservoir and mountains on your right.
The Ghosts of the Flooded Valley:
While the turquoise waters look pristine today, they hide a forgotten history. Before the valley was flooded in 1976, old stone structures, foundations, and high meadows sat where the lake now rests. If you visit late in the season when the water levels are down, or during a scheduled maintenance drain, you can actually spot the ghost-like outlines of the old valley floor emerging from the silt…
The Mystery of the Hanging Dolls:
Before you leave the open dam wall and step onto the path, keep an eye out on your right. Inside a dark, jagged rock alcove (Felskluft) facing the water hangs a collection of eerie yet beautifully carved wooden human-like figures suspended by ropes. Created by local regional artist Anna Maria Thoeny-Luck, these hanging sculptures pay tribute to ancient Calfeisental folklore. They represent the "Wilde Frauen" (Wild Women) - mythical mountain spirits said to have lived in these rock crevices centuries before the modern reservoir drowned the valley floor.
The Waterfalls:
Roughly halfway along the reservoir road, the mountain walls part slightly to reveal a spectacular hidden waterfall. Fed by alpine torrents cascading down the steep crags above, it plummets dramatically towards the edge of the lake path, providing a mist-cooled oasis and a perfect photography point before continuing west. If memory serves, there’s another more visible one on the other side of the lake...
Part 2: STEP BACK TO THE 14TH CENTURY (ST. MARTIN)
After roughly 45 mins of lakeside walking, the reservoir ends and the valley opens up to reveal a living museum: the Walser Settlement of St. Martin. Originally settled around 1312 by Walser migrants, St. Martin looks like a postcard frozen in time. Due to the intense alpine winters, the village has no winter operations and is strictly open from May to October.
The Sacred Heart: St. Martin's "Chirchli"
The emotional anchor of this hamlet is its beautiful chapel, dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours. Erected at the town's founding in 1312, this tiny Chirchli served as the absolute center of community life for generations of hard-scrabble mountain families. Step inside, and you will find an interior defined by simple, ancient piety - including a historic timber ceiling and a beautiful Madonna sculpture dating back to the earliest Walser migrations.
The church also holds a deeply poignant story of the valley's abandonment. By the mid-17th century, a worsening climate (the "Little Ice Age") made winter survival in the sun-starved canyon near impossible. In 1652, the last remaining residents - Ursula Sutter, the widow of the church sexton (Mesmer), and her two sons - extinguished the chapel's "eternal flame" and moved down to Vaettis. To this day, the cross mounted atop the church's pointed spire is actually the original grave cross of that very last sexton.
A Culinary Oasis: Fueling Up at the Restaurant
Beyond the history, St. Martin is a premier culinary hotspot in the valley and the absolute best place to refuel. The historic timber inn operates an exceptional restaurant that serves top-tier regional delicacies.
If you time your hike perfectly for the Sunday following July 25th, you will walk straight into the historic Jakobi-Sunntig Chilbi (St. James' Sunday Fair). This ancient festival begins with a traditional morning mass inside the packed Chirchli before moving outside into an open-air celebration of food stalls, local treats, and live folk music. I saw this by accident…
Driving Tip: Traffic on the single-lane road along the reservoir is regulated by a timed, alternating half-hour window, but I prefer the walk…
Detour to a Giant:
Before pushing up to the hut, keep an eye out for a trail heading up the forest slope. A steep 40-min detour leads to a local celebrity: a 300-year-old giant spruce tree, locally famous as one of the thickest trees in the country, sporting a massive 1.84m trunk diameter!
Note on the World Record Tree:
In a bittersweet update, this magnificent 300-year-old giant sadly reached the end of its lifecycle and died in late 2024. While it no longer blooms with needles, its monumental, weathered wooden skeleton has been preserved on the pasture as a protected natural monument. Standing as a stark, dramatic icon against the mountain backdrop, it serves as a hauntingly beautiful reminder of the harsh, unyielding raw climate of the high Calfeisental.
Part 3: BRIDGES, WATERFALLS & HIGH-ALPINE GIANTS
Leaving the chalets of St. Martin behind, you step onto a wide unpaved track that tracks further west into the heart of the upper Calfeisental. This section of the trail is an absolute sensory experience, characterized by a dramatic landscape sculpted entirely by moving water.
The Symphony of Bridges and Waterfalls
As you advance toward Alp Sardona, the trail follows the roaring, white-water rapids of the Tamina River. You will cross several timber & steel bridges, each offering a front-row seat to the rushing currents below. The gorge walls closely constrict the trail, and the melting snowfields from the high peaks feed countless cascading waterfalls that slice down through the sheer rock seams beside the path.
Skyward Giants: The Peaks of the Arena
As the alpine forest thins out into wide, flower-filled pastures near Alp Sardona (1,742 m), the horizon opens dramatically to reveal the massive mountain sentinels that form the crown of the UNESCO World Heritage Tectonic Arena Sardona:
Sideligerfelsen & Drachenberg (The Dragon Mountain): Towering immediately to your right, these massive limestone cliffs rise sheer out of the valley floor, showing off jagged, layered tooth-like ridges that seem completely impassable.
Pizol (2,844 m): Peeking out to the northeast, the rugged slopes of the Pizol mountain range define the lower valley's skyline.
Ringelspitz / Piz Barghias (3,247 m): Dominating the southern skyline to your left is the highest peak in the Canton of St. Gallen. Its massive, snow-dusted pyramid towers aggressively above the smaller glaciers.
Piz Sardona (3,056 m) & Surenstock: Standing squarely directly in front of you at the head of the valley, these twin giants hold up the massive Sardona Glacier. Their faces showcase a visible horizontal slash - the legendary Glarus Main Thrust - where geological time was physically flipped upside down - see my other articles…
Part 4: THE SHIFT TO THE ALPINE ASCENT
Once you cross the final major bridge past Alp Sardona, the casual valley stroll is officially over. The wide gravel road vanishes, replaced by a narrow, rugged alpine track. This is where the route shifts to a T3 rating.
The trail immediately turns skyward, tackling a relentless series of steep, rocky switchbacks. You will navigate uneven stone steps, loose scree, and open mountain slopes. As your lungs work, look up at the towering cliffs above you; you are walking directly through the Flysch rock formations - ancient sedimentary layers squeezed tight by tectonic forces. The payoff for the steep grind is immediate. With every switchback, the views back down into the Calfeisental and the distant, glistening Gigerwaldsee become increasingly dramatic.
Part 5: SARDONAHUETTE (A MEAL IN THE CLOUDS)
Perched on a high rocky ridge at 2,158 m sits your destination: the Sardonahuette. First constructed in 1898 by the Swiss Alpine Club (SAC), this historic shingle-covered shelter has weathered over a century of fierce alpine winters. From the outdoor terrace, you look directly across at the melting Sardona Glacier and the sharp peak of Piz Sardona. Luckily, the food here is great…
BEYOND THE HUT: LONG-DISTANCE CROSSINGS
For day hikers, the Sardonahuette marks the turning point to retrace their steps down the switchbacks back to the reservoir. However, for long-distance backpackers, the hut is merely a high-altitude base camp to hike over rugged cols into neighboring cantons:
Sardona World Heritage Trail to Elm (via Heubuetzlipass & Foopass): Continuing on Stage 5 of SchweizMobil Route #73, hikers climb out of the valley over the Heubuetzlipass (2,468 m), cross into the Muota valley, and scale the Foopass (2,223 m) before dropping down past scenic slate ridges into the historic village of Elm in Glarus. (T3 | ~20 km | ~7 hours). I tried for this one but was beaten by snow...
High Alpine Pass to Flims (via Calfeisenpass): Cutting directly south into Graubuenden, this demanding path negotiates steep scree slopes up to the Calfeisenpass (2,608 m). It descends into the beautiful alluvial plains of the Segnesboden before concluding in the resort town of Flims (T4 Alpine Route).
Technical Crossing via Trinser Furgga: Mountaineers navigate the glacier ribs towards the Trinser Furgga and the Segnespass (2,622 m), placing them face-to-face with the Martinsloch - the famous 17-meter rock window straight through the Tschingelhoerner rock face. See my other articles for details…
THE RETURN JOURNEY
After resting and filling up on alpine comfort food, retrace your steps down the steep switchbacks back to Alp Sardona. From there, it is a long, gentle, and relaxing cool-down walk past St. Martin and back along the quiet waters of the Gigerwaldsee to catch your PostBus back down to Vaettis & Bad Ragaz…
Note, however, that there's an alternative path back to St Martin that follows the other side of the river which might be a nice loop rather than out & back.
I have done variations on this hike a few times from 2017-24 but my best one was 6th of June 2020, but still a little early for the hut due to lingering snow. Contact me by email for photos or to ask questions.
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