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MOUNT PILATUS, Switzerland
MOUNT PILATUS, another very well-known mountain massif in Switzerland with lots of hiking opportunities, can be reached by foot, cable car, or by the steepest cogwheel railway in the world – opened way back in 1889, with a gradient of up to 48 %!!! So, guess which one we decided on! After parking on the huge parking lot (chargeable) by the foot of Pilatus, in…
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WEG der SCHWEIZ II, The Swiss Path II
Another stage of Weg der Schweiz, The Swiss Path. This time we hiked the short but beautiful part from Bauen to Isleten. The whole part of this trip is almost flat as it follows the shore along the Urnersee, but sometimes through old and dark tunnels, which is actually the originally old road to Bauen. In some of these tunnels, there are “windows” with…
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Hiking by the Vièze River, Switzerland
The VIÈZE River is a just 22 kilometers long tributary of the River Rhône. Despite its size, it was still a devastating river in the 16th-18th century with massive floods around Monthey until it was channeled. From Champéry, in the western part of the Canton Wallis, there is a 4 kilometers roundtrip hike of which about half of it is along the Vièze River. After…
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Tiny villages in Tessin, Switzerland
Arcegno, Fontana, Roseto, Ritorto, Sabbione, Fontana, Faèd, Sonlerto…..all names of some of the beautiful, small villages in the Bavona Valley in Ticino. There is so much more to explore in the valley in addition to the most well-known villages. The Bavona Valley is a really different place from any other place on earth!! All houses are built from local rocks, even the roofs. Open spaces…
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LAUTERBRUNNEN from above, Switzerland
LAUTERBRUNNEN, and the valley, is probably best known for the many waterfalls, mainly the very impressive Staubbach fall. But with the many hiking opportunities offered in the area, there is so much more to explore. During one of our many visits, we went for a short hike to the fields over Lauterbrunnen – and what a completely different view there was – so we wanted…
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MEDIEVAL CASTLES in Switzerland, Canton Solothurn
CASTLES and medieval castle ruins are present in all areas of Switzerland, some built by rivers, some placed in old town centers, and others built on top of rocks and thus very easy to defend from enemies. This post is about four of these medieval castles and ruins, all in the area within and around Balsthal, in the Canton of Solothurn. It is possible to…
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OESCHINENSEE, Lake Oeschinen, Switzerland
OESCHINEN LAKE in the summertime is a completely different experience as in the wintertime. The last time we visited was for the Ice Walk – fantastic! But this time it was without snow and together with good friends. Again, with the cable car from Kandersteg to the mountain station and then just 1,4 km almost flat hike to one of the restaurants, the Zur Sennhütte,…
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SIMMENFÄLLE Waterfalls, Switzerland
SIMMENFÄLLE, the Simmen Waterfalls, is a series of waterfalls just outside Lenk im Simmental. Arriving at the restaurant, of the same name, at the end of the paved road, you will already see the first part of the falls. Then there is only a short and bit steep hike (exactly 1 km) upwards to Barbarabrücke (bridge) where the stream can be crossed and the view…
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ZUG old town, Switzerland
ZUG originally got its name after the fisher men pulling fishing nets from Lake Zug, zug = pull/drag. The town, which is also the capital and biggest town in the Swiss canton Zug, is settled by the shore of Lake Zug, Zugersee, with beautiful views to Mount Rigi, Pilatus and other mountains. The old town, Altstadt, is relatively small but interesting with a marketplace and…
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BUVETTE de JAMAN, mountain restaurant, Switzerland
BUVETTE de JAMAN is among the cutest mountain restaurants we have visited and with outstanding views from the tables in front of the restaurant when the weather allows sitting outside. During our last visit to Montreux we took the train from the main railway station in direction of Rochers-de-Naye but jumped off a couple of stops before at Jaman. It is just about a 40…
