Area: | Oberes Toggenburg |
Base: | 900m |
Summit: | 2260m |
Skiable vertical: | 1350m |
Lifts: | 12 (6 draglifts) |
Total lift vert: | 4450m |
Slope orientation: | North-facing |
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There are three main bases to the resort, with access by bus to all three. Perhaps the most convenient is Unterwasser, with its railway leading directly up to the cable car station at Iltios. By public transport, the double-decker buses run regularly from Nesslau-Neu St Johann along the valley, stopping at Alt St Johann, Unterwasser and then Wildhaus Lisighaus.
From Zürich, the time to get there is a reasonable 1h45, but it entails a fiddly 3 (yes, three) changes - an S-bahn to Rapperswil, a train to Wattwil, another train to Nesslau-Neu St Johann and then the bus. The Snow and Rail pass for the day from Zürich has gone up to CHF 63 for the 2004/05 season.
If you're coming by car, there are car parks at Wildhaus, Unterwasser and Alt St Johann. Once you're there, an adult day pass for the lifts will cost you CHF 47.
They require a CHF 5 deposit for the day pass card, which is a minor pain, but if you remember to take it back at the end of the day, you can simply put it in one of the provided machines to retrieve your coin.
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This resort covers a fair area of North-facing slopes, with a variety of drag lifts, chairlifts and a cable car. The run down from Chäserrugg to Alt St Johann drops an impressive 1350m, given suitable conditions.
If you refuse to use drag lifts (even these friendly ones), you'll have a limited day and won't be able to explore the whole area. Beginners also might find some of the slopes a bit steep, as most runs are (easy) reds.
Navigation is relatively straightforward, with plenty of signposts for the numbered runs and major locations, and the piste map is clear and accurate. It just takes a little concentration to get across from one peak to the other.
Two 'fun parks' are marked, one in Oberdorf and one near lift 'N' above Iltios. The first one is quite large but hard and neglected, and the second is just a single, although impressive, jump hidden away in the trees.
Most of the runs are marked as reds, so flat spots are fairly limited. The only awkward ones are the traverse from the Gamserrugg side to Iltios (marked as number 15) and the number 23 towards Sellamatt. But these are difficult to avoid as they form the only connections across.
There are quite a few drag lifts here, but most are pretty friendly. The only nasty ones are marked as D and N on the map, being both quite steep and bumpy.
19 January 2008 - Old snow suffering from the mild weather, although fairly clear weather and very short queues.
8 January 2004 - Some fresh snow, but not a great deal, and there are grassy patches even up at the top. The runs down to all three base stations are open, but getting rather hard and noisy lower down. Snow is good up at the top of Chäserrugg and around the Ruestel area. Lots of space to play and practically zero queues!
Resort information is at wildhausbahnen.ch, which has webcams, prices, and a good piste plan. Snow'n'Rail details are at railaway.ch. Snow conditions are at wispo.stnet.ch under "Ostschweiz".
For hiking in the area, there is a five-day hike called the Toggenburger Höhenweg starting from Wildhaus and passing through this ski resort through Oberdorf, Iltios and Sellamatt. See the Swiss multi-day hiking section for more information.