Ready, Set, Trail Hunt: Hörnli Trail Hunt in Arosa Lenzerheide, Switzerland

The Schnitzeljagd (hunt of the Schnitzel) in Sölden has long been established, but on a rememberable weekend in July, the Hörnli Trail Hunt celebrated its premiere. And it was fun – the tricky tasks, good people and great food, amazing trails and chill-out party kind of fun.


The idea behind the Hörnli Trail Hunt is simple, but catchy: riding great trails with like-minded people and having as much fun as humanly possible. In teams of two, the riders in Arosa, Lenzerheide took on the challenge of winning the golden Hörnli (or little horn – like the ibex have them, like the traditional Swiss pasta dish or like the mountain in Arosa called Hörnli). The tasks: solving tricky missions at four different mountain huts and finding two checkpoints on a free-to-choose route while exploring the lush meadows and seemingly endless downhill trails of Arosa, Lenzerheide.


The Trail Hunt got off to a foggy start – literally: the peak of Mount Weisshorn was coated in clouds. But the mist soon made space for a spectacular view of the countless mountains and singletrack in the Grisons destination. Around 40 teams – each one with their own strategy to cross the finish line as the first riders – made their way up with the Arosa – Weisshorn gondola as they got on their bikes and waited for Holger Meyer’s starting signal.


After the Le Mans-start, the first 500 meters were just rubble and crushed rocks – a real challenge for the participants. At the Hörnli Trail Hunt flag, the teams had to decide whether to turn left or right. It was not the last decision they needed to make during the day. If you take the wrong way, you might miss the Urdenbahn tramway – and that will cost you a lot of time. Whoever misses the tramway has to cross the Urdental by bike – nice views, but kind of exhausting.

The participants didn’t only need to find out which trails was best to take regarding being the fastest and catching the lift, but they also had to pass tricky challenges. For example riding a parkour with Scott Bikes – but not the regular kind: Kids bikes, or cutting a croissant with a Leatherman. Not only a tricky task, but also a delicious and welcome treat, because there’s not a lot of time for eating except for in the gondola…


In addition to the trails, there were was a lot of local wildlife to discover – like the cute marmots or the cows who are just enjoying life in this beautiful surrounding.


Happy animals, epic trails, and stoked riders – that’s what it’s all about in Arosa, Lenzerheide. The favourite trail of all the participants was probably the downhill one from the Gredigs Fürggli down to the Älplisee Lake, where you can just enjoy the flow. It’s pretty hard, though, to keep your eyes on the trail because the view is just what dreams are made of.

Having reached all the checkpoints, passed all the tasks, and just relished the nature of Arosa, Lenzerheide, the first teams reached the finish line in just under three hours, welcomed by Holger Meyer and a roaring crowd. Before the tombola and the award ceremony, everyone enjoyed a yummy Hörnli-fest (pasta with minced beef) and shared their experiences on the trails of the Hörnli Trail Hunt. We are happy to say that most teams agree: they want to make those experiences again next year.


Thank you very much to all the riders and most of all to “Die Rasenmäher” – we are excited to welcome you back next summer.

You can find the results of the first Hörnli Trail Hunt here and be sure to watch the video by Marc Welschinger.

Photos by Christoph Bayer Fotography.

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MENTIONS: @LenzerheideBikepark

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