As of: 16 September 2026

Wild camping at the Seefeldsee

The Seefeldsee is the moor lake at 1'820 m between the Älggialp and the Abgschütz, 40 minutes above the car park, two hours over the pass from Melchsee-Frutt. It is exactly the ground people want to sleep on, and exactly what the canton fenced in 1995: the lake and its whole shore are a nature reserve, and Obwalden fines a tent in one. Since June the owner has closed the pasture too. Sleep on the Abgschütz.

Leon Helg
Leon Helg · Legal situation checked in September 2026 · Published 16 September 2026
What do these mean?

Illegal A specific rule bans it, usually with a fine, and it can be enforced. Sleep somewhere else.

Not allowed No real place to camp here. A gated site, a developed area, or nowhere sensible to lie down, even if no fine is attached.

It depends You can sleep here, but there's a condition first: ask the landowner, book a spot, stay inside a set zone, or use a bivvy instead of a tent. The report says which.

Tolerated No rule clearly allows or bans it, but a single night is accepted in practice and nobody enforces against it. Normal for high bivouacs above the treeline.

Legal Camping one night is fine here. Either a rule allows it, or we checked every law and found nothing against it. Still: pitch late, leave early, no trace.

What "wild camping" means here: one night. A small tent or a bivvy bag, up towards evening, gone in the morning. Not a base camp, not a camper van. Most Swiss bans are written against camping; whether a single night also falls under them depends on the exact wording, so this article checks that wording. The full difference: wild camping vs bivouacking.

What the Seefeldsee is: a moor basin everyone would sleep in, fenced by a protection plan

Wild camping at the Seefeldsee is a question people ask because the place looks made for it. The pin, LV95 2'660'556 / 1'182'218, is the federal gazetteer's label point for the lake and sits on the water, 85 m from the shore; the lake itself is 5.6 hectares at 1'820 m, held in a flat basin of moor and alp pasture under the Seefeldgrat, with a second, smaller pond 120 m to the north-west, the outlet stream leaving the north shore past it, three alp buildings 300 m north and a hut 90 m west. There is no forest in the basin: the cadastre reads the ground as water, moor and pasture, the nearest wood is 700 m west, and the tree symbols on the old map sit 400 m north of the reserve at 1'760 to 1'800 m. Open ground at the upper edge of the local treeline, reached in forty minutes from the Älggialp car park or in two hours over the Abgschütz from Melchsee-Frutt.56

Masked for the water, the basin has 1'108 land cells on a 25 m grid within 450 m of the pin. The north shore is the flattest: 105 of its 134 cells are under 10 degrees, a moor floor with boardwalks, a nature-information board 13 m from the water and the guidepost "Seefeldsee 1823". The east shore rises steeply to a terrace at 1'874 m, with two picnic benches 3 and 15 m from the water. The south-east corner, where the mountain path from the Abgschütz arrives, is flat pasture at 1'828 m. The west shore is steep pasture under the hut. Every one of those cells within 24 m of the water is inside the cantonal zone, every one within 29 m inside the federal amphibian site, and the fen boundary runs within 16 m of every point of the shore.56

So the common-sense gate opens: this is ground a person would sleep on, flat, dry at the edges, above the last trees. That is the whole reason the canton fenced it, and it is why the answer here is the law and not the terrain.

The named norm: a 1995 protection plan with four zones, and the canton's reading of it

Obwalden protects its nature reserves through cantonal protection plans, and the one for this basin is old, precise and in force. Government decision GDB 786.45 of 11 December 1995, approved by the cantonal parliament on 25 January 1996 and unchanged since, enacts for the "Naturschutzzone Sachsler Seefeld, Gemeinde Sachseln" a protection plan at 1:5'000, a measures plan and a protection and use regulation, resting on Art. 29 of the nature-protection ordinance. The regulation is a seven-page scan on the canton's publications server. It grades the basin into four zones. Zone IA is the whole lake surface and the shore sections with vegetation too fragile to walk on; there, entering the sensitive shore vegetation is banned except for quiet nature observation, and so is swimming in the lower pond and grazing. Zone IB is the fen around the lower pond, the most valuable small-sedge meadows, and it carries the only camping verb in the document:1

"Es gelten die zusätzlichen Verbote: das Betreten ausser zur stillen Naturbeobachtung und zur Bewirtschaftung (Streueschnitt, teilweise Beweidung), das Düngen, das Kampieren und Anfachen von Feuer."Schutz- und Nutzungsreglement Naturschutzzone Sachsler Seefeld, Amt für Wald und Landschaft of the canton of Obwalden, 11 December 1995, Schutzzone IB: additional bans on entering except for quiet observation and management, on fertilising, and on camping and lighting fires.

Zone II is every shore of the Seefeldsee, the spring area, the rock vegetation, the small moor patches and the pasture between the two lakes; its own list bans fertilising, higher stocking, fixed weapon positions and use as a target area, and above it stands the general clause of all zones: all measures that can cause an adverse change to the biotopes and the landscape are inadmissible, from terrain changes and buildings to picking plants. Zone III is the pasture by the alp buildings, with fertiliser limits only. Breaches of decrees resting on the nature-protection ordinance are punished with a fine under its Art. 34; the ordinance names no amount, and neither does this article.12

Here is the honest weak point, stated plainly. The word "Kampieren" appears in the 1995 regulation only in Zone IB, the fen by the pond. On the Zone II shores of the Seefeldsee itself the ban is the general clause, and a lawyer could argue that one tent for one night on Zone II pasture is not a "Massnahme" that changes a biotope. The canton has not adopted that reading. Its Amt für Wald und Landschaft published the opposite on 30 May 2025, after a run of violations, and the cantonal police repeated it on 14 August 2026: "In allen Naturschutzzonen gilt ein striktes Campierverbot." Sachseln carries the same paragraph on its own camping page. That reading is what a hiker meets on the shore, and it is what this article reports.4

"In Schutzgebieten jedoch gilt ein absolutes Campierverbot. Hier sind das Campieren, Biwakieren sowie das Abstellen von Wohnmobilen ausdrücklich untersagt. Dieses Verbot betrifft folgende Gebiete: Moorlandschaft Glaubenberg, Jagdbanngebiete (z.B. Huetstock, Gemeinde Kerns), Naturschutzzonen (z.B. Wichelsee, Gemeinden Sarnen und Alpnach), Geschützte Auen (z.B. Aue Laui, Gemeinde Giswil)."Kanton Obwalden, Amt für Wald und Landschaft, notice of 30 May 2025: in protected areas an absolute camping ban applies, camping, bivouacking and parking motorhomes are expressly prohibited, and the list names the nature-protection zones.

That is also what switches off the sentence that makes the rest of Obwalden unusual. The cantonal camping act bans tents outside campsites in Art. 6 and then allows a single night without a permit in Art. 8, "wenn keine öffentlichen oder privaten Interessen beeinträchtigt werden". A cantonal nature reserve of national importance is a public interest, and the authority applying Art. 8 has said so in writing. What remains inside the perimeter is Art. 6 and the fine of Art. 11 for camping without a permit. A communal permit does not help either: Sachseln's Art. 7 route, CHF 50 with the landowner's consent attached, is for youth camps and events, and the commune's own page says camping in nature-protection zones is banned.34

Where the zone ends, and why the pasture beyond it is closed as well

The perimeter is not a guess. The canton's own planning layer draws the Naturschutzzone Sachsler Seefeld as three polygons, the lake, the pond and a land ring, 23.6 hectares in all, in force since 11 December 1995. Measured from the shore, the outer edge lies 67 to 161 m out on the north side, 49 to 124 m on the east, 24 to 131 m on the south and 77 to 120 m on the west. The federal amphibian site of national importance "Sachsler Seefeld", object OW127, covers the lake and the whole shore out to 29 to 145 m, and the fen of national importance, object 2589, touches the waterline everywhere; the federal inventories bind the canton to protect the objects and carry no camper's fine of their own, the cantonal plan is what carries it. The zone information board foreseen in the 1995 measures plan stands at the path junction on the north-east edge; whether it quotes the zone rules today could not be checked.56

Beyond the perimeter the ground is alp pasture of the Korporation Sachseln, parcel 83, 34.5 square kilometres, the whole Älggi and Seefeld basin. For the record: the flat cell that would qualify under the one-night rule, 40 m or more from the water and outside every protection polygon, is at 2'660'681 / 1'181'968, 1'828 m, 1.8 degrees, in the south-east corner where the Abgschütz path arrives, 149 m from the water, 46 m outside the cantonal zone and 35 m outside the amphibian site, though inside a communal hazard-zone overlay whose process the maps do not name. It is not the tip of this article, because the owner has closed it.67

"Bitte beachten Sie, dass auf der Älggi- und auf der Wolfisbergstrasse sowie auf dem Parkplatz der Älggialp und auf dem ganzen Weidegebiet auf der Älggialp und auf Seefeld das Übernachten und Campieren verboten sind."Korporation Sachseln, notice on its homepage dated Flüeli-Ranft 22 June 2026: overnighting and camping are banned on the Älggi and Wolfisberg roads, on the Älggialp car park and on the whole pasture area of the Älggialp and the Seefeld.

That is an owner's notice, not a court order: no court, no decision number, no franc amount, so no fixed penalty attaches to it directly. Its bite comes through the camping act. Art. 8 grants the permit-free night only where no private interest is impaired, and a landowner who has published a refusal for the exact pasture is that private interest; what remains is the Art. 6 ban and its fine. The older wording on the corporation's road pages covered only the roads and the car park; the June 2026 notice is the one that reaches the Seefeld pasture, and it sits under "Aktuelles" next to the news that the Berggasthaus Älggialp is closed for the season, which reads like a seasonal reaction rather than a standing rule. Check the corporation's page before you plan around it; while it stands, the basin has no lawful pitch.37

What the other layers say: rest zone, game reserve, landscape area, the commune

Everything else is empty or far away. No federal game reserve reaches the basin, the Hutstock reserve begins 4.0 km north-east in Kerns; no BLN object, no mire landscape, no floodplain, no forest reserve at the shore, no military perimeter, with the invalid-layer control returning HTTP 400 and the positive control hitting the Kiental reserve on every run. The wildlife rest zone Gibel - Kleines Melchtal has its edge 558 m south of the shore, on the slope under the Seefeldgrat, and binds only from 1 December to 30 April, when leaving the marked routes inside it costs CHF 150. The regional landscape-protection area "Älggi - Sachsler Seefeld" covers the whole basin, and its effect is a building and terrain rule with no word about a night outdoors.59

Sachseln adds nothing of its own. Its building regulation of 2021 puts the basin in the alp-farming zone and the residual area and hands the reserve to the cantonal plan; its Art. 37 on nature-protection zones bans terrain changes, drainage, new paths and military use, and says nothing about a tent. Of the commune's thirty published regulations none is a police or camping act, and the only camping words in them are roof shapes, a camping zone by the Sarnersee and sewage equivalents for campsites. The one arrangement that does run on this shore is the fishing lease: the Pächtergemeinschaft Seefeldsee sells a day patent for CHF 30, five fish, from 15 June to 15 October, by Twint at the signpost or at the Café zum Stein in Sachseln, shore fishing by daylight only. It tells you who watches the lake in season, and it offers no camping.810

  • On the Abgschütz, one night. The pass above the south-east corner of the basin is in Kerns, outside every protection polygon, and Obwalden's camping act allows a single night there without a permit; the pitch is a grass bench 100 m west of the shelter hut, LV95 2'660'740 / 1'181'390, 2'221 m, 33 m inside Kerns and clear of the Sachseln pasture the corporation has closed. From the lake it is 2.3 km and 460 m of climb, about an hour and ten minutes, on a mountain path with fixed cables between the Seefeldgrat and the pass: wild camping on the Abgschütz.311
  • Not at the lake, not on its shore, not in the fen by the pond. Cantonal nature reserve from the water to 24 to 161 m out; the canton reads a blanket camping ban there and fines it.14
  • Not on the Seefeld pasture either, while the notice stands. The Korporation Sachseln has banned overnighting and camping on the whole pasture area since 22 June 2026.7
  • Beds. The Berggasthaus Älggialp, the only house in the valley, is closed for the whole 2026 season after its tenant's bankruptcy; the next beds are the nine houses on Melchsee-Frutt, two hours over the pass, and the hotels in Sachseln and Flüeli-Ranft. Tent campsites: Camping Ewil in Sachseln on the Sarnersee, and Seefeld Park in Sarnen, which despite the name is on the Sarnersee and not at this lake.1011
  • Getting there and away. From the Älggialp car park 30 to 40 minutes on foot; the road up from Sachseln or Flüeli-Ranft is single-lane and on weekends the last 5 km run one way, uphill in the even hours, downhill in the odd; a minibus runs from Sachseln on request. From Melchsee-Frutt about two hours; the gondola from Stöckalp runs until 18 October 2026, last descent 17.20 on weekdays and 17.50 at weekends, last PostAuto 343 from Stöckalp 17.40.1011
  • Fire and hunting. Obwalden has been at danger level 3 since 11 September 2026 with a conditional fire ban, fires only in fixed fire sites; in the fen zone the regulation bans fires in any season. The high hunt runs from 1 to 24 September 2026 in this basin.511

General rules for wild camping

This applies wherever you are genuinely allowed to sleep outside, which for this basin means the bench on the Abgschütz and not one metre of the Seefeld. It is not legal text, but decency and common sense, and next to a moor that carries the largest alpine-newt population in the canton it is also why the boardwalks and the fences are there.

  • 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. It is based on the publicly accessible and official sources linked below. It does not replace legal advice and is not a binding statement of the current legal situation.

Cantonal acts, owner notices and timetables change. The 1995 protection regulation is a scanned document read by eye; its camping verb sits in the fen zone by the pond, and the ban on the lake shores follows the canton's published reading of its general clause, which no court has tested. The cadastre extract for the 34.5 km² parcel could not be obtained and the zone geometry was taken from the canton's map service instead. The Korporation Sachseln's notice of June 2026 may be seasonal; check its page. The hazard-zone process south of the lake is not published. Before every tour, check the current sources yourself and follow instructions and boards on site. A genuine emergency bivouac in distress is a separate question from a planned camp. Anyone who spends the night outside bears responsibility for their own conduct and any consequences themselves. Hikebeast, Leon Helg and Saftladen GmbH accept no liability for decisions made on the basis of this text, and call on no one to break applicable law.

Frequently asked questions

Is wild camping allowed at the Seefeldsee?
No. The lake and its whole shore, out to 24 to 161 m from the water, are the cantonal nature-protection zone Sachsler Seefeld, enacted in 1995. Its regulation bans entering the sensitive shore vegetation and, in the fen by the lower pond, camping and fires, and the canton's published reading is a blanket camping ban in all its nature-protection zones, bivouac included, with a fine under the nature-protection ordinance. Obwalden's one-night rule does not apply where a public interest is impaired, and a nature reserve is one.
What is the fine?
A fine with no published amount. Breaches of the protection plan are punished under Art. 34 of the Obwalden nature-protection ordinance, and camping without a permit under Art. 11 of the camping act; neither names a franc figure, so this article gives none. The only fixed number nearby is the wildlife rest zone 558 m south: CHF 150 for leaving the marked routes inside it between 1 December and 30 April.
Can I pitch just outside the reserve, on the pasture?
Not this season. The flat corner outside every protection polygon exists, 149 m from the water at the south-east end, but the landowner, the Korporation Sachseln, posted on 22 June 2026 that overnighting and camping are banned on the whole Seefeld pasture. Under the camping act a published refusal by the owner is an impaired private interest, which removes the permit-free night. The notice sits next to the news of the Berggasthaus closure and may be seasonal; check korporation-sachseln.ch.
Where exactly does the protected zone end?
24 to 161 m from the water, depending on the side. The canton's zone runs 67 to 161 m out on the north shore, 49 to 124 m on the east, 24 to 131 m on the south and 77 to 120 m on the west; the federal amphibian site covers the shore to 29 to 145 m and the fen touches the waterline everywhere. No phone GPS resolves that reliably at the narrow south end, which is another reason to sleep on the pass.
Where do I sleep then?
On the Abgschütz, one night. The pass is in Kerns, outside every protection polygon, and the cantonal act allows a single night without a permit; the bench 100 m west of the shelter hut is an hour and ten minutes above the lake. Beds: Melchsee-Frutt over the pass, Sachseln or Flüeli-Ranft in the valley; the Berggasthaus Älggialp is closed for 2026. Nearest tent campsites: Camping Ewil in Sachseln and Seefeld Park in Sarnen.
Leon Helg

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.

Swiss Guide Wildcamping Checker Color Grading

Sources

  1. Regierungsratsbeschluss über die Naturschutzzone Sachsler Seefeld, Gemeinde Sachseln, GDB 786.45 of 11 December 1995 (RRB no. 594), in force since 25 January 1996 on approval by the Kantonsrat, current version of 1 August 2007, not abrogated: "Der Regierungsrat des Kantons Obwalden, gestützt auf Artikel 29 Absatz 3 der Naturschutzverordnung vom 30. März 1990 ... beschliesst: 1. Für die Naturschutzzone Sachsler Seefeld, Gemeinde Sachseln, wird der kantonale Schutzplan, bestehend aus Schutzplan, Massstab 1:5000, Massnahmenplan, Massstab 1:5000 sowie Schutz- und Nutzungsreglement, technischen Massnahmen und Pflege, erlassen." Schutz- und Nutzungsplanung Sachsler Seefeld, Amt für Wald und Landschaft, 11 December 1995 (seven-page scan, read after OCR and checked by eye): general clause "In den Schutzzonen sind alle Massnahmen, welche eine nachteilige Veränderung der Biotope und der Landschaft zur Folge haben können, unzulässig" (terrain changes and deposits, buildings, drainage, toxins, picking plants, fish stocking in the lower lake, killing animals outside licensed fishing and hunting, alien species); Schutzzone IA ("Sie umfasst die gesamte Seefläche und diejenigen Uferabschnitte, welche eine kaum begehbare, äusserst trittempfindliche Vegetation ... aufweisen", bans "das Betreten der empfindlichen Ufervegetation ausgenommen zur stillen Naturbeobachtung", "das Baden im unteren See", grazing and fertilising except occasional grazing at the upper lake); Schutzzone IB (fen by the lower pond, quoted in the text, "das Kampieren und Anfachen von Feuer"); Schutzzone II (every shore of the upper lake, bans fertilising, higher stocking, fixed weapon positions, use as a target area); Schutzzone III (pasture by the huts, fertiliser limits). Measures plan: information board at the north-east path junction, fences kept to hold stock off the sensitive vegetation. gdb.ow.ch (GDB 786.45), ow.ch (Reglement und Karten, PDF). ↩
  2. Verordnung über den Natur- und Landschaftsschutz (Naturschutzverordnung) of the canton of Obwalden, GDB 786.11 of 30 March 1990, version of 1 March 2026 (last amendment of 4 December 2025, not touching the articles below): Art. 3 para. 2 ("Naturschutzzonen umfassen eng begrenzte Gebietsteile, in denen die umfassende Erhaltung von Lebensräumen (Biotopen) für schutzwürdige Tiere und Pflanzen Vorrang vor anderen Nutzungszwecken hat."), Art. 12 para. 1 ("In Naturschutzzonen sind Massnahmen, welche eine nachteilige Veränderung des Biotops oder eine Gefährdung schützenswerter Arten zur Folge haben können, unzulässig. ..."), Art. 26 para. 1 (nature-protection zones of regional and national importance are designated in cantonal protection plans), Art. 33 (police, forest staff and game wardens must watch over compliance and report offenders), Art. 34 para. 1 ("Vorsätzliche oder fahrlässige Widerhandlungen gegen Vorschriften dieser Verordnung sowie darauf gestützter Erlasse und Verfügungen werden mit Busse bestraft. ..."); no franc figure. gdb.ow.ch (NLV). ↩
  3. Gesetz über das Campieren (Campinggesetz) of the canton of Obwalden, GDB 971.4 of 4 December 2014, in force since 1 March 2015, re-read 16 September 2026 (single version, not abrogated, no future version): Art. 6 ("Das Aufstellen von Zelten, Wohnwagen und Wohnmobilen zum Campieren ausserhalb behördlich bewilligter Campingplätze ist nicht gestattet."), Art. 7 para. 1 (communal exceptions for youth camps, large events and other justified cases) and para. 2 ("Durch die Ausnahmebewilligungen dürfen keine öffentlichen oder privaten Interessen beeinträchtigt werden."), Art. 8 para. 1 ("Zum einmaligen Übernachten darf ein Zelt, ein Wohnwagen oder ein Wohnmobil ohne Bewilligung ausserhalb bewilligter Campingplätze aufgestellt werden, wenn keine öffentlichen oder privaten Interessen beeinträchtigt werden."), Art. 11 para. 1 ("Mit Busse wird bestraft, wer vorsätzlich oder fahrlässig gegen dieses Gesetz oder darauf gestützte Verfügungen verstösst, insbesondere wer: a. ohne Bewilligung campiert; ..."). No amount anywhere in the act. gdb.ow.ch. ↩
  4. The canton's reading. Kanton Obwalden, Amt für Wald und Landschaft, notice of 30 May 2025 after repeated violations, published verbatim by the Obwaldner Zeitung on 30 May 2025 and by polizei.news on 1 June 2025 (the canton's own page returns HTTP 404): "Im Kanton Obwalden ist es grundsätzlich erlaubt, ein Zelt, einen Wohnwagen oder ein Wohnmobil für eine einmalige Übernachtung ausserhalb bewilligter Campingplätze aufzustellen, solange keine öffentlichen oder privaten Interessen beeinträchtigt werden. In Schutzgebieten jedoch gilt ein absolutes Campierverbot. Hier sind das Campieren, Biwakieren sowie das Abstellen von Wohnmobilen ausdrücklich untersagt. Dieses Verbot betrifft folgende Gebiete: Moorlandschaft Glaubenberg, Jagdbanngebiete (z.B. Huetstock, Gemeinde Kerns), Naturschutzzonen (z.B. Wichelsee, Gemeinden Sarnen und Alpnach), Geschützte Auen (z.B. Aue Laui, Gemeinde Giswil). Wer gegen das Campierverbot verstösst und ohne Bewilligung campiert, muss mit einer Busse rechnen. In den jeweiligen Gebieten weisen Schilder gut sichtbar auf das Verbot hin." Kantonspolizei Obwalden, 14 August 2026, via polizei.news: "Das Aufstellen von Zelten, Wohnwagen und Wohnmobilen ausserhalb behördlich bewilligter Campingplätze ist verboten. In allen Naturschutzzonen gilt ein striktes Campierverbot." Einwohnergemeinde Sachseln, service page "Campieren", read 16 September 2026: restates Art. 6, Art. 7 and Art. 8, sets the permit fee under Art. 7 at CHF 50 ("Dem Bewilligungsgesuch ist die Zustimmung des Grundeigentümers beizulegen"), then "Campieren in Schutzgebieten ist verboten. In Schutzgebieten gilt ein absolutes Campierverbot. Hier sind das Campieren, Biwakieren sowie das Abstellen von Wohnmobilen ausdrücklich untersagt. ..." with the same list. obwaldnerzeitung.ch, polizei.news, sachseln.ch. ↩
  5. Official federal geodata, queried 16 September 2026 with tolerance 0 at the pin LV95 2'660'556 / 1'182'218 (gazetteer "See Seefeldsee (OW) - Sachseln", 1'820.3 m, on the water) and with a 1 km envelope with geometry: amphibian site of national importance "Sachsler Seefeld", object OW127, HIT at the pin, Bereich A 20.7 ha covering the lake, the pond and the whole shore to 29 to 145 m from the water, Bereich B 3.8 ha to the north-west (object sheet: Ichthyosaura alpestris population very large, Rana temporaria large; survey 2001, revision 2017); fen of national importance "Sachsler Seefeld", object 2589, 5.35 ha, overlapping 17 % of the lake surface and running within 16 m of every point of the shore; wildlife rest zone "Gibel - Kleines Melchtal (Nr. 17.1)", legally binding, R70 access ban off the marked routes and leash rule, 1 December to 30 April, edge 558 m south of the shore; forest reserve Wägisberg 698 m west; game reserves none within 1 km (Hutstock, object 11, 4'008 m north-east in Kerns); BLN, mire landscapes, raised bogs, floodplains, dry meadows, Ramsar, Emerald, parks, military plan: no object. Invalid-layer control HTTP 400 on every run, positive control at 2'626'000 / 1'154'500 returns game reserve Kiental. Forest-fire danger layers: Obwalden "Erhebliche Gefahr" since 11 September 2026 and "Bedingtes Feuerverbot im Wald und in Waldesnähe/im Freien" since 28 August 2026, fires tolerated only on fixed fireplaces. Commune layer, current year: Sachseln at the pin and every candidate; Lungern line 589 m south-west, Kerns line 826 m south-east of the east bench. Terrain: 25 m grid within 450 m, water masked with the OSM ring, 1'108 land cells, median slope 16.9 degrees; north shore 105 of 134 cells under 10 degrees. api3.geo.admin.ch, object sheet OW127 (PDF). ↩
  6. Cantonal geodata, canton Obwalden map service (WMS, EPSG:2056, invalid-layer control returns LayerNotDefined at every point), queried 16 September 2026 at the pin, at the shores and at the candidate cells: "Nutzungsplanung kantonal" returns "Naturschutzzone Sachsler Seefeld Gewässer" at the pin (5.57 ha, published 11 December 1995, in force) and "Naturschutzzone Sachsler Seefeld" (17.76 ha land ring) on the shores; "Naturschutzzonen regional" returns "Kantonale Naturschutzzone, Gebiet Sachsler Seefeld, rechtskräftig ja, RRB Nr. 786.45, 11.12.1995, Bedeutung national", 23.62 ha as a union of lake, pond and ring, bounds E 2'660'232 to 2'660'810, N 1'182'012 to 1'182'667; distance from the shore to the perimeter north 67 to 161 m, east 49 to 124 m, south 24 to 131 m, west 77 to 120 m. "Landschaftsschutzgebiete regional" returns "Älggi-Sachsler Seefeld", object i, approved 27 November 2001 and 19 April 2002, over the whole basin. Communal hazard overlay: "keine Gefahrenzone ausgewiesen" at the pin and on the west, north and east shores, "Gefahrenzone 2, mittlere Gefährdung" along the south side and at the south-east candidate cells; the process layers are empty there. Cadastral land cover: standing water 55'715 m² at the pin, "übrige humusierte" and "Acker_Wiese_Weide" on the shores and candidates, no wooded polygon anywhere in the basin; parcel 83 at every point. The ÖREB extract for parcel 83 (EGRID CH543604770013, 34.55 km²) could not be obtained: four attempts with and without geometry timed out at up to 590 s, and the cantonal WMS themes were queried point by point instead. Candidate cells outside every protection polygon and 40 m or more from the water: 2'660'681 / 1'181'968 (1.8 degrees, 1'828 m, 149 m from the water, 46 m outside the zone, 35 m outside Bereich A, Gefahrenzone 2), 2'660'731 / 1'181'943 (2.6 degrees, 203 m, 75 m outside), 2'660'906 / 1'182'243 (1.1 degrees, 1'882 m, 203 m from the water, no hazard zone, 190 m off any path). gis-daten.ch (canton Obwalden ÖREB). ↩
  7. Korporation Sachseln, owner of parcel 83 (34.55 km², the whole Älggi and Seefeld basin; "die grösste Sachsler Alp", grazing rights drawn by lot among the corporation's citizens): notice on its homepage under "Aktuelles", dated Flüeli-Ranft 22 June 2026, read 16 September 2026: "Das Berggasthaus Älggialp ist gemäss Inserat im Obwaldner Informationsblatt 'Aktuell' Nr. 23 geschlossen. Bitte beachten Sie, dass auf der Älggi- und auf der Wolfisbergstrasse sowie auf dem Parkplatz der Älggialp und auf dem ganzen Weidegebiet auf der Älggialp und auf Seefeld das Übernachten und Campieren verboten sind." The corporation's road and nature pages carry the older, narrower wording covering only the roads and the car park. No court, decision number or franc amount is named: an owner's refusal under the Civil Code, not a court ban. Korporation Sachseln, Chalchofen 1, 6073 Flüeli-Ranft, telephone 041 662 20 90, info@korporation-sachseln.ch, counter Tuesday 08.00 to 11.30. korporation-sachseln.ch, aelggialp.ch. ↩
  8. Einwohnergemeinde Sachseln, Baureglement of 28 November 2021 with the amendment of 30 November 2022, named by the cadastre as in force: Art. 36 Alpwirtschaftszone (buildings only), Art. 37 Naturschutzzone para. 1 ("Die Naturschutzzone bezweckt den Schutz besonders empfindlicher Lebensräume von Pflanzen und Tieren."), para. 5 ("Terrainveränderungen (Abgrabungen, Aufschüttungen, Materialabbau, Materialablagerung u. dgl.), Entwässerungen, die Erstellung neuer Wege und Leitungen sowie die Benutzung als militärische Stellungs- und Zielräume sind unzulässig.") and para. 7 (a protection ordinance with deviating rules replaces the zone rules for a closed area), Art. 38 Übriges Gemeindegebiet; no camping or access verb. Regulations collection, 30 published acts, all downloaded and scanned after de-hyphenation with per-file control terms: no police or camping act; hits only for roof shapes ("Zeltdächer"), the camping zone by the Sarnersee (Baureglement Art. 28 and annex 4) and campsite sewage equivalents. sachseln.ch (Baureglement, PDF), sachseln.ch/reglemente. ↩
  9. Regierungsratsbeschluss über die Landschaftsschutzgebiete von regionaler Bedeutung, Teilerlass II, GDB 786.49 of 27 November 2001, in force 19 April 2002, Ziff. 1 lit. i "Älggi - Sachsler-Seefeld, Gemeinde Sachseln"; effect under NLV Art. 11, a building and terrain rule with no camping or access clause (scan: Campier, Zelt, Biwak, Übernacht, Betret all zero, control "Landschaftsschutz" 4). Wildlife rest zone Gibel - Kleines Melchtal: Reglement über die kantonalen Wildruhezonen, the regulation annexed to GDB 651.150, Art. 3 Weggebot (marked routes only from 1 December to 30 April), and Ordnungsbussenverordnung SR 314.11 annex 2 no. 12003 (CHF 150 for entering a rest zone off the marked routes). gdb.ow.ch (GDB 786.49), gdb.ow.ch (GDB 651.150). ↩
  10. Ground truth, read 16 September 2026: Pächtergemeinschaft Seefeldsee, seefeldsee.ch: day patent CHF 30, maximum five fish, season 15 June to 15 October 2026, by Twint at the signpost on site or at Café zum Stein, Dorfplatz 9, Sachseln (041 662 20 00), fishing by daylight and from the shore only; "ACHTUNG: Das Berggasthaus Älggialp bleibt bis auf weiteres geschlossen." Aktuell Obwalden of 4 June 2026 via sachseln.ch: "Infolge Pächtererkrankung, Elementarschadenereignissen und Instandstellungsarbeiten bleibt die Aelggialp Berggasthaus geschlossen."; Bote der Urschweiz, 22 July 2026 (press): "Das Berggasthaus Älggialp öffnet diesen Sommer nicht. Der Pächter meldete Konkurs an". aelggialp.ch (Korporation Sachseln): road from Sachseln/Edisried or Flüeli-Ranft via the Wolfisbergstrasse, single-lane, on weekends and holidays the last 5 km Blatten to Älggialp one way, uphill in the even hours and downhill in the odd, no winter service; minibus from Sachseln on request, up to 14 people, Kurt Rohrer 079 709 54 65; Älggialp to Seefeld 40 minutes. melchsee-frutt.com, Wanderung 3.3: Melchsee-Frutt to Blauseeli 20 min, Abgschütz 1 h 20, Älggi 2 h 30; luzern.com and wandersite.ch (colour): the Seefeldgrat to Abgschütz section is a mountain path with fixed cables and exposed places. seefeldsee.ch, bote.ch, aelggialp.ch. ↩
  11. Access, beds and season: Sportbahnen Melchsee-Frutt, summer opening hours 2026, season 13 June to 18 October 2026, Gondelbahn Stöckalp to Melchsee-Frutt Monday to Friday 08.25 to 12.20 and 13.20 to 17.20, weekends and holidays the same plus a descent at 17.50; last PostAuto 343 from Stöckalp 17.40. The Abgschütz bench, verified in this series on 16 September 2026: LV95 2'660'740 / 1'181'390, 2'221 m, Kerns, outside every protection polygon, 58 m from the rest zone; lake north end to the pass 2.3 km, +458 m, about 1 h 30, from the south-east corner about 1 h 10. Beds on Melchsee-Frutt: nine houses (Hotel Frutt Mountain Resort 041 669 79 79, Hotel Posthuis 041 669 12 42, Berghotel Distelboden 041 669 12 66, Berggasthaus Tannalp 041 669 12 41, Berghotel Bonistock 041 669 12 30, Bergrestaurant Erzegg 041 669 06 00, Bärghuis Frutt 041 661 06 61, Clubhaus Bergfrieden 041 669 00 70, Frutt Living). Tent campsites: Camping Ewil, Sachseln (Ewilmatte on the Sarnersee, named in the Sachseln Baureglement annex 4) and Seefeld Park, Sarnen (separate tent meadow, bookable). Hunting seasons Obwalden 2026: Hochjagd 1 to 24 September, Rehjagd 5 to 24 October, Niederjagd 5 October to 30 November. frutt.ch, seefeldpark.ch, ow.ch (Jagdzeiten). ↩