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The KLAUSEN PASS, Switzerland
The KLAUSEN PASS is a very beautiful 1948 meters high Swiss mountain pass, stretching about 46 kilometres from Altdorf (home of the statue and monument of the legend Wilhelm Tell) to Linthal. At the top, there is a small chapel, the Bruder Klaus chapel from 1938. The road is often narrow with no option to enjoy the fantastic views and the numerous waterfalls, but from…
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The AARE GORGE, Switzerland
The AARE GORGE, Aareschlucht, a couple of kilometers from Meiringen, is for many a well-known (worldwide!) gorge, made accessible by hard-working pioneers back in the late 1880s. Safe paths and tunnels, and just a few steps, make the gorge available for most people. The gorge is 1400 meters long, in some places 200 meters deep (high!) and at the most narrow places just one meter…
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A medieval village, SAINT-URSANNE, Switzerland
SAINT-URSANNE, set in a narrow valley by the river Doubs, is a beautiful medieval town in the canton of Jura. Apart from the abbey church, many of the old houses, some from the 14th century, together with the wonderful four-arched sandstone bridge from 1728, gives a fantastic medieval atmosphere in the streets and alleys of this quaint town. A good number of restaurants having outdoor…
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The ÄSCHER mountain restaurant, Switzerland
The ÄSCHER guesthouse on Ebenalp in Alpstein has been among our favourite mountain restaurants ever since we moved to Switzerland. Located 1470 masl. on a plateau, built directly on the mountain – yes, the mountain is partly a wall of the building; the guesthouse has been here since 1884, making it one of the oldest of its kind in Switzerland. The easiest way to reach…
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SONOGNO, village and waterfall, Switzerland
SONOGNO – when driving through the beautiful Verzasca Valley, with its lots of photo stops, Sonogno will be the end station, at least when arriving by car. (There is a parking lot, including places for motor homes just before the village.) Despite the low number of inhabitants, less than a hundred (they even speak their own language!!), this beautiful little 800 years old village lists…
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RIGI! Queen of the Mountains, Switzerland
RIGI, Mount Rigi, Queen of the mountains in Switzerland – nothing less! Rigi Kulm is the highest point, just 1.798 meters above sea level, but it has a 360° panorama view to lots of lakes and an endless number of other mountain peaks, even in the Black Forest in Germany and the Vosges in France! We visited Rigi in the spring when there was still…
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The BRIDGE in Sigriswil
The Panorama Bridge by Sigriswil is yet another pedestrian bridge mainly built to make a (safer) school way for kids from Sigriswil and Aeschlen. The 344 meters long steel bridge hangs elegantly 182 meters over the bottom of the Guntenbach gorge, also called the Gumi gorge. It is also part of a panoramic circular hike around Lake Thun and other hikes. The view from the…
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THUN, lovely town be the lake, Switzerland
THUN also has an historic Altstadt, old town, with cobbled streets and beautiful old buildings. One of the old shopping streets have quirky shops and cafés in two storeys. From this street a covered stairway with many, many steps, leads the 30 meters up to the Castle of Thun with tremendous views over Thun, Lake Thun and the Swiss Alps. The castle is more than…
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FOROGLIO, village and waterfall, Ticino, Switzerland
FOROGLIO in Ticino is probably mostly known for the waterfall of the same name. The waterfall can be seen from all over the village. It is possible to reach, or at least get closer to, the waterfall from two sides, an easy path close to the foot of the fall and a more challenging hike from the opposite end of the village. The reward for…
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Cheese Fondue in an Igloo, Switzerland
CHEESE FONDUE in the mountains of Switzerland. It is incredible what can be reached in just one day with a bit of planning. We left the Basel area in the morning this Saturday and look what happened. From Stechelberg we went by three sections of cable cars to Birg. We arrived to the igloo by foot (it is also possible to come skiing or on…
