Climbing Mount Pilatus on the world's steepest cogwheel train

"It's crazy," said one Indonesian friend while we were aboard a cogwheel railcar ascending the steep incline from Aplanachstad to Pilatus Kulm, at the peak of Mount Pilatus.

He was right; it's crazy to build such a steep railway -- the steepest in the world -- just to climb a mountain. However, after reaching Pilatus Kulm, you realize that maybe building this cogwheel railway was not so crazy after all.

The 30-minute trip from Aplanachstad to Pilatus Kulm is an unforgettable experience. The railcar climbs into the Alp forests, passing over some 20 bridges and viaducts over rough terrain.

Despite the steep clime -- with the steepest point a gradient of 48 degrees and the flattest 18 degrees -- we felt safe inside the car. The railcar is electrically powered, and the rail track is built on a wall of granite blocks. Knowing that the railway has been in operation for more than a century made us feel even safer.

Reaching the top of Mount Pilatus at 2,132 meters above sea level, the view is breathtakingly beautiful. You can enjoy 360- degree views of central Switzerland, and marvel at countless snow-capped Alpine summits and lakes down below.

You can also do some hiking. The shortest hike is along the Dragon Track -- dragon being the symbol of Pilatus, from local belief that the mountain was inhabited by dragons -- or you can take a more challenging hike up to the peak overlooking Luzern.

After enjoying the scenery and doing some hiking at Pilatus Kulm, you can take a rest at one of the two hotels provided by Pilatus-Bahnen, or you can just enjoy a drink and a meal at one of the seven restaurants.

Pilatus-Bahnen, a public company that owns and operates the resort area, has even built modern conference facilities at Pilatus Kulm.

After enjoying lunch at one of the seven restaurants, we, a group of journalists from Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam, descended Mount Pilatus from the other side of the cogwheel railway, using the aerial cableway and panorama gondolas to Kriens, just outside Luzern.

The tramways and gondolas, which have been in operation since 1956 and 1954 respectively, are "winter proof" and are in continuous operation all year round, allowing visits to Mount Pilatus in winter and even -- according to Colette Richter of Pilatus-Bahnen -- during heavy snowfall.

By taking the cogwheel train from Alpnachstad to Pilatus Kulm, and then using the tramway from Pilatus Kulm to Frakmuntegg and gondola from Frakmuntegg to Kriens, we had taken the popular "Golden Round trip" to the Dragon Pilatus.