Wild camping on Höch Gumme

Wild camping on Höch Gumme: three communes at the summit

Höch Gumme stands above Lungern and the Bärghuis Schönbüel, east of the Arnihaaggen and Brienzer Rothorn. Its summit is about 2'205 m high, well above the trees. This is an open walking summit, with a cross, paths and steep flanks, not a lift station or a mountain inn. The first practical question is whether your small shelter fits somewhere without occupying the path or spilling onto an exposed edge.²⁶

The official summit point belongs to Lungern in Obwalden. Giswil begins only about 1.5 m to its north-west. Hofstetten bei Brienz, in canton Bern, begins about 2.7 m to its west-south-west. These are distances from published boundary geometry, not distances a phone reliably resolves on the mountain. They explain why different maps attach different communes to the same summit.²

The small grassy crest extending north-east follows the Lungern/Giswil boundary. Both sides of that line remain in Obwalden. Roughly 20 to 30 m along the crest, you are about 24 to 30 m from the Bernese boundary. That is the relevant distinction for the statutory permission below. Going west or down the southern flank does not simply carry Obwalden's rule with you.²

Obwalden expressly allows a single night

The permission is Art. 8 of the Gesetz über das Campieren, GDB 971.4. It allows a tent to be erected for a single overnight outside authorised campsites without a permit, subject to a condition that is part of the permission itself:¹

«wenn keine öffentlichen oder privaten Interessen beeinträchtigt werden.»GDB 971.4, Art. 8 para. 1: provided no public or private interests are impaired.

Read that together with Art. 6. The act first prohibits camping outside authorised campsites, then makes this specific exception for one overnight. Quoting only the prohibition produces the wrong answer for a small tent that goes up in the evening and comes down in the morning. Quoting only the exception and ignoring interference with other people or the land produces the wrong answer too.

You do not need to turn a tent night into a tentless loophole. A tent is expressly covered by Art. 8. The act does not impose a separate prohibition on a considerate night in a bivvy bag at this place. In either case, keep it to one night and a small party. A standing base camp, repeated nights or a group event is a different proposal, for which you should speak to the commune before making arrangements.

Art. 8 para. 2 puts the stay at your own risk. Art. 11 allows a fine for breaches of the act or decisions based on it, but gives no franc amount. The CHF 100 to CHF 1'000 in Art. 10 are administrative fees for permits and decisions, not a wild-camping fine. A compliant single night does not attract a fee under Art. 8. There is no verified summit tariff to quote.

The current law collection still carries this exception on 28 September 2026. It is a cantonal permission with limits, not merely the usual Swiss above-the-tree-line custom. For the wider distinction between legislation and mountain practice, see the Swiss wild-camping overview.

Protection zones and hazard maps say different things

No federal game reserve or mapped wildlife rest zone covers the summit point. Neither do the national park, landscape inventory, mire, floodplain, amphibian, dry-meadow, forest-reserve or military layers checked there. This is a finding about this summit, not a claim that the whole Brienzer ridge is unprotected.²

The official Obwalden map likewise shows no cantonal or local nature-protection zone at the summit. That matters because an empty federal map alone would not settle a communal protection zone. Lungern's building and zoning regulation contains nature zones with their own conservation requirements; their existence elsewhere in the commune is not a summit camping prohibition.³⁴

The summit and the small crest pockets are nevertheless in a mapped medium-hazard area. Steeper neighbouring ground carries a higher hazard classification. The canton also records that its assessment does not cover every process completely. This is a reason to take the terrain seriously, not a licence to read the colour as an exact forecast for tonight. Equally, a planning hazard zone is not automatically a law against a single night in a tent.³

Turren's own ski-tour page asks visitors to respect wildlife rest zones. Follow that advice on the approach and descent too. Snow cover does not make slopes safe or erase a seasonal access rule. This report describes a snow-free hiking bivouac; it is not an assessment of winter overnight routes.⁶

What Lungern, Giswil and Hofstetten publish

Lungern's current law collection publishes no general camping or police regulation. Its building and zoning, roads, public rooms and facilities, and dog regulations contain no rule prohibiting a tent or bivouac on this summit. The building regulation links the alpine zone to the applicable cantonal and federal law. Here the relevant overnight provision is Obwalden's Art. 8.⁴

Giswil, immediately across the grassy crest, also publishes no general camping or police act. Its building and zoning regulation has an article about the designated camping and bathing zone. That governs the use and development of a campsite; it does not turn the rest of the commune into a ban on the single overnight that cantonal law allows.⁵

On the Bernese side, Hofstetten bei Brienz's published collection and building regulation contain no general tent or bivouac prohibition either. Its landscape-protection article bars activities that harm the purpose of a mapped landscape zone. That must be read at the relevant location; it is neither Obwalden's express permission nor a blanket camping ban. This report's practical route stays on the Obwalden crest, so it does not offer the steep Bernese flank as an alternative pitch.⁵

None of those statements cancels a private owner's refusal or a specific local order. A summit name is not an ownership certificate. No named owner, standing tent arrangement or overnight payment system has been confirmed for this crest. In particular, do not assume that a cable-car ticket or a meal at Schönbüel buys use of the surrounding ground.

How a night works on this crest

Arrive while you can still inspect the ground. The summit point is a path junction beside a steep drop. The plausible ground is the small grassy crest north-east of it, about 20 to 30 m from the top. Official imagery shows grass there, and the elevation model shows short flatter pockets around 2'200 m. It does not show a broad level camping lawn.²

A shelter that fits without obstructing the path may be possible. That is a site-selection decision you must make on arrival, looking at the entire tent footprint, pegs and guy lines, wind exposure, unstable ground and distance from the edge. A nearly level centre point is not enough. Do not dig a platform, cut turf or move stones to make a marginal site work.

Keep the whole setup on dry, robust ground, away from flowers, wet hollows and animal movement. If people are still moving along the ridge, wait until evening and leave the route fully open. Pack early. A view from the cross is shared space, not a reason to place your tent across the place where everyone passes.

If the only available ground is the path, the lip of the drop or a steep slope, go down. The legal answer does not make the physical answer yes on every visit. Wind, wet grass, fresh snow, livestock or another party can remove the little usable space. Carry a sleeping plan that still works when you decide against the ridge.

Where an alp farmer or owner is present, ask which ground avoids their work and animals. Respect any refusal or no-camping notice. No public fee or blanket permission from a named summit landowner has been verified, so there is no honest 'pay this person and pitch anywhere' shortcut to give. For a local rule or an unclear sign, contact Lungern municipal administration, +41 41 679 79 79, gemeinde@lungern.ch.⁴

The walk, water and a bed at Schönbüel

Obwalden Tourismus publishes an 11 km circuit from Turren via Dundelegg, Mändli and Arnifirst to Höch Gumme, descending past Schönbüel and Alp Breitenfeld. Its stated figures are 4 hours 5 minutes and 814 m of ascent. Those are full-circuit figures, not a promise that a loaded overnight pack reaches the summit in a particular time. Plan enough daylight for the last path and for inspecting the ground.⁶

The direct approach above Schönbüel uses a narrow zigzag path. Swiss Hiking Trails describes that final approach as not officially waymarked. Carry an offline map, and do not leave the descent to an improvised line across the flanks. Turren's cable-car timetable is a separate planning item: check the operator's current departures rather than assuming a late descent is available.⁶

Bring the water you need. Do not build an overnight plan around an unverified spring, snow patch, trough or free refill along the route. Your option to descend must remain realistic even after you have decided against the place where you meant to sleep.

The SAC's general advice supports a considerate single night by a few people above the tree line where no contrary rule applies. On Höch Gumme it complements the statute and terrain assessment; it does not certify a pitch. If your route continues farther west, read the separate Brienzer Rothorn report before carrying the answer from this summit onto another one. The Hochstollen report gives another Obwalden example where the same law meets different local boundaries.⁷

General rules for wild camping

These ground rules apply wherever you have found a lawful, suitable place for the night. On Höch Gumme the limited room, the through-path and the exposed slopes matter as much as the permission in the statute.

• No fire. An open fire has no place in the mountains. A gas stove is enough.
• Pitch late, strike early. Set up towards evening, gone again early. A bivouac is one night, not a base camp.
• Leave no rubbish. Everything you carry up you carry down, organic scraps and toilet paper included.
• At least 50 metres from any water for the big business, so you do not foul what people and livestock drink.
• Stay small and quiet. A small group, no speaker, no drone, dogs on the lead, and the alp staff's word goes.

Disclaimer

This article reflects my research and assessment to the best of my knowledge, as of September 2026, based on the official and public sources below. It does not replace legal advice or constitute a binding statement by a public authority.

The assessment relies on the current Obwalden camping act, published communal rules, official boundary and protection maps, aerial imagery and the elevation model. It includes no site visit, current inspection of signs, confirmation of land ownership or direct permission from an owner. The small grassy pockets described are terrain observations, not surveyed or guaranteed safe tent pitches. A hazard map is neither a complete risk assessment nor a forecast. Weather, snow, grazing, notices, regulations, opening dates and water availability can change. Check the current sources and conditions before setting out and follow instructions on site. A genuine emergency bivouac is different from a planned overnight. You remain responsible for your conduct and its consequences. Hikebeast, Leon Helg and Saftladen GmbH accept no liability for decisions based on this text and call on no one to break applicable law.

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Leon Helg

Swiss filmmaker and software developer. Spends his free time in the Swiss Alps and maps his favourite spots for Hikebeast. Posts as @leon.helg on Instagram and TikTok.

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