Hike along the Historical Polish Road over Tomül Pass from Safien Valley to Vals Valley

Sunday and Monday July 14-15, 2024 -- This time we really lucked out with a two-day trip to Canton Graubünden once again, and again to a valley where we had not yet been, the Valser Valley (home to well-known thermal baths, and the famous Valser Mineral Water Company, recently purchased by Coca-Cola Company). We had much more sunshine than forecast, and ended up doing two 5-hour hikes.

On the first day we traveled to the final bus stop in the Safien Valley, where we have been several times already, to hike over the Tomül Pass into the Valser Valley. In actual fact, Urs had done this hike before as a teenager but in foggy conditions, so it was also new to him. And it was a bit of a historically-themed hike, as this road over the pass was built in its entirety by Polish refugees during the Second World War. 

Even though the entire 700-meter ascent was basically on a "road", it was not difficult to navigate as the scenery kept changing and the views were pretty good. It was also not too hot (we came here to beat the heat at home), and the alpine roses were in full bloom, creating a vast pink landscape. At the pass (2412 meters above sea level), the snow had just recently melted. On the other side of the pass we were greeted by loads of waterfalls and a fabulous upper marshy plateau.

By the fifth hour of hiking, though, toward the end of the long 1200-meter descent toward the mountain town of Vals, my feet were really starting to feel it, and we didn't make it to the 16:35 bus as we had planned, and just barely made the crucial 17:35 bus out of the valley to Ilanz (known as the "Oldest City on the Rhine"), where we had booked a hotel room for the night. In the end, there was more than five hours of walking involved, as the terrain often requires more careful treading. But it was a great hike, and we had a good night's rest at the hotel on the Rhine River, before heading back up the Valser Valley for the next day's hike. 

On the way to the Safien Valley, the train from Chur passes through the Rhine Gorge, which is always a lovely ride. 

Church in Versam as the bus heads up into the Safien Valley for the one-hour bus ride to the final bus stop at the back, called Turrahus.  

Heading toward the back of the Safien Valley, it looks like the sky is full of clouds there, so I was worried we'd have overcast weather, which wasn't the case. 

This is the final bus stop at the back of the Safien Valley. The photos of the bus is to remind me of the horror ride we had: The driver was a woman and she drove too fast, especially in the corners, on a narrow winding road. We had to hold on tight in the corners and I felt ill. Urs had to ask her to slow her pace a bit, and then it was better! I'm sure I'm not the only passenger who was glad! Part of an hour bus ride into these beautiful valleys is to enjoy the ride, not just to get to your destination early!

An old farmhouse here at Turrahus. There are only a couple of buildings here at this spot, mainly a 300-year-old Berggasthaus with restaurant terrace called Turrahus, thus the name of the bus stop. 

Information panels here describe how Polish refugees during WW2 cleverly built the pass road over the Tomül Pass with walls, bridges, etc. Furthermore, the Walser peoples first settled here in the year 1300 after crossing the Safienberg from the south, a passage which had remained a very important route from Chiavenna to the north. (We also crossed this passage to here in July 2022, photos HERE).

We started here at Turrahus at about 10:30 a.m. (it took us 3½ hours to travel to here from home) and followed "Trail no.35: Walser Trail" to the Tomül Pass, and then on to Vals, a 5-hour hike.

Starting at 10:30 in the Safien Valley at Turrahus, we reached the Tomül Pass at 1 p.m, a 2½-hour hike, which was the suggested time. It was an ascent of over 700 meters! The second half of the hike took much longer, descending altogether about 1200 meters to Vals. We got to Vals at 5:20 p.m.  

Berggasthaus Turrahus, a starting and ending place for many hikes in this region. We also stopped here for something to drink back on our July 2022 hike

Looking down at the small cluster of buildings at the final bus stop called Turrahus, at the back of the Safien Valley. 

Being observed by some very curious goats!

A look down the Safien Valley as we start up toward the Tomül Pass. This time the clouds were not directly above us!

The road continues from Turrahus past the reservoir lake to various farms even further back in the valley, and then the Walserweg trail crosses the Safierberg pass on the right into the Rheinwald Valley near the Italian border to the south. 

Another look down the Safien Valley toward Thalkirch. We have been in this valley often, it is a very beautiful valley. 

At this point the trail is a "paved" road, but pleasant to walk. It also wasn't very hot. 

Both the cows and I enjoyed some very nice cold water here! There were small bottles of buttermilk for sale here, being kept fresh in the cold water.

Another very nice look further back into the Safien Valley, where we walked in July 2022. 

I spotted a VERY large bird nearby, and on closer inspection of the photo, knew this must be a vulture. Later, I confirmed this with the bird experts, it is indeed a bearded vulture, the largest bird of the Alps (3-meter wingspan!). This is a rare sight for hikers in the Alps, as there are only 100 such birds in Switzerland (30 breeding pairs). They are being reintroduced due to having been hunted to extinction in the early 19th Century. (They were believed to have caught children and sheep, but really they mostly only eat bones).

The real highlight of this day were the entire mountainsides full of alpine roses!

Now we've passed the "paved" road and are walking along the historical road built by the Polish refugees. 

This road built in WW2 by the Polish refugees was a clever use of the landscape. 

It was not hot, the view as wonderful, and so the 2½-hour to the Tomül pass was not difficult at all. 

There were many stone walls such as this one supporting the road. 

Closer to the pass now, the road was laid out with rocks, a lot of work!

A couple of snowy patches to cross as we reach the pass at over 2400 meters above sea level. 

We got to the Tomül Pass at 1 p.m, a good time for us. Here the sign is showing almost 3 more hours to Vals, so the hike was actually much longer than I had originally estimated! (Over 5 hours). A sign here reminds us of the work done by the Polish refugees in building this pass road in 1941. 

Happy and proud to reach the pass! Now it's time to look for a place to have lunch. 

Crossing the pass and looking for a place to sit where it's not wet! The snow only just melted here. 

We found the perfect place for our lunch break, a wooden beam set next to the road, the Tomül stream below us, and a view of the mountains in the Valser Valley, where we are headed. 

Heading down the valley now on the west side of the Tomül Pass, toward the Valser Valley. 

On the rock next to the bridge was a sign that read "Tomülbachbrücke", the name of the bridge over the stream here. Also on this side you can see all the work done on building this pass road. 

Always a treat to catch sight of a marmot. 

All those little buds just getting ready to open!

Now we've arrived at the large Tomül Alp, where of course the cows are all comfortably resting all over the hiking trail. As there are babies involved, we did another large detour over some very wet landscape, so that we wouldn't get too close. Mother cows can be mean. 

The beautiful Tomül Alp, and a very large farm below! (The trail passes right between those buildings). 

We got here at 2:10 p.m.... The sign says another two hours to Vals. We had hoped to catch the 16:35 bus, but that wasn't going to happen now unless we walked really quikly! So we aimed for 17:35, but could not miss that one, as the next bus wasn't till two hours after that. 

Walking through the farm now, Urs always makes a wide berth around the cows. 

Not sure where this littly guy came from, but I saw him racing around where the cows were, and then he took off up the hillside!

So Urs obviously didn't want to walk past those two very cute cows, who are wondering as to why he climbed the wall. I on the other hand walked through the regular opening past them, no issues at all. 

That's the wrong red-and-white flag! There was a small farmer's shop here, but we didn't stop this time. 

Alp Tomül, a large alpine meadow, where the cows can roam very, very far. 

Continuing down the mountain again. 

A look behind us as we continue down the mountain. At least the trail is not boring!

We had seen on the map that there was a very large upper moor here (it was aptly called Riedboden) but weren't prepared for how large and stunningly beautiful it was. 

There were several waterfalls here!

VIDEO:

The large upper moor and all the waterfalls

We love the landscape here. 

By now my feet were very sore, having been walking for five hours with barely a break. So I found a good place to rest for a few minutes near the water!

Urs found his own interesting place to sit... 

A final look up the Riedboden before we start on our steeper descent through the forest into the Valser Valley. Also here the mountainsides were pink with the flowering alpine roses. 

Directly below us is the Valser Valley, but it joins the lovely Lumnezia Valley here, a place we did a winter hike in February 2023, and the only time we were ever in that valley. 

For 30 minutes we descended 300 meters through the forest. 

By the time we had a wide open view of the Valser Valley, the sky had become overcast. At this point it's 4 p.m. and we sure weren't going to make the 4:30 p.m. bus out of the valley!

At this point we left the "Walserweg" Trail to take a less steep but longer path to the valley bottom. That way we had more views, and more lovely meadows to pass through. We also sat here in the meadow for a while, to rest the feet some more. 

Down below us is the bottling factory of the famous Valser Mineral Water, purchased by Coca Cola company in 2002. 

Several large boulders here were full of these pretty flowers!

Another lovely look northwards out of the Valser Valley toward Val Lumnezia

Way down below on the outskirts of the village of Vals we spotted the famous underground house (VillaVals) we had recently read about. You can overnight here (minumum three nights) for 1000 CHF per night! (+ 35 CHF per person per night if more than 6 people Hahahaha). 

Across the valley on the western side are all these lovely barns scattered around, each one exactly the same! (We ended up walking there the next day). 

And now a view to the very back of the Valser Valley. You can just make out part of the large Zervreila dam, behind which is a large lake which we want to visit the next day. And the very striking peak at the back is called the Zervreilahorn, also nicknamed the "Matterhorn of Graubünden" 

Looking down to the main road, there is a little hamlet just north of Vals, with a few cute houses and an equally cute church. We didn't have a chance to check it out up close. 

The closer we got to valley bottom, the more meadows we passed through. 

Now a good look over the entire town of Vals. The river below is called the Valser Rhine, one of the many tributaries that join to form the larger Rhine River further north. 

Cutting it close again! It's 5:20 p.m., and the bus we want to catch leaves on the other side of the river past the church at 17:35!

Heading down the main street of Vals to our bus stop. We had no time to look into the church, but we knew we'd be ending another hike here the next day, so had a chance to look into it then. 

We got to the bus at 17:28, so might have had time to peek into the church after all! We had booked a hotel room in Ilanz, a 40-minute bus ride out of the valley, as the room rates were way cheaper than here in Vals, which is a town known for it mineral baths, and therefore attracts many tourists. 

Heading out of the Valser Valley along the Valser Rhine River, through a gorge where there are unfortunately no hiking trails. 

What our 5+-hour hike looks like on Google Satellite Maps, starting at Turrahus in the Safien Valley at 10:30, and passing via the Tomül Pass to Vals, where we arrived at 5:30 p.m. 

When we got to Ilanz at 6:15 p.m., we checked in to our hotel, and then walked around the village for a while, before returning to the hotel for dinner. These photos are of the city of Ilanz, established 700 years ago and the first community on the entire Rhine River to receive status as an actual city (it is thus known as the "Oldest City on the Rhine"), located just before the river enters the Rhine Canyon. 

City Hall in Ilanz. We noticed a large rock in front. 

This house is called "Casa Gronda", built in 1677

The house on the right was the administration office for the large monastery in Disentis, established in about 1395, but burned down and rebuilt twice, the second time in 1893

Then we got to the church higher up in the town, and notice lots of rocks strewn about. 

This is St.Margarethen reformed church. It also burned down in the fire of 1483 and was rebuilt in 1520. The organ above the altar was quite unusual. The tower is one of the few medieval structures which survived the town fire of 1483.

A quick look into the cemetery area of the church grounds, and now we are really perplexed about the rocks, as we had also seen them on the main square in front of City Hall when we got off the bus earlier. 

One of several of the city gates. This one is called Obertor, or Upper Gate. The bottom part of the structure dates from 1513. The upper part is Baroque Era, 1717. 

The city wall, as well as the four city gates were all built between 1715 and 1717, probably on older foundations from 200 years previously. 

Back at City Hall Square (actually almost right next to our hotel), we had a closer look at the exhibition of rocks and finally found an explanation for this!

It turns out that all these rocks all over the city are part of an art exhibition. 200 tons of rocks were brought here to the "oldest city on the Rhine" from all the side valleys of the Surselva, to remind us how much older nature is than we are.

Back to the hotel for a much too expensive dinner. 

This is the Hotel Rätia where we stayed for one night. The room was large, clean, modern and affordable. It was also very quiet as there were few guests here this night. The view of the church steeple was from our room window, and from the shared balcony on the third floor you could see the old tower of the St.Margarethen church. These photos are from early in the morning on Monday, which dawned superbly beautiful, but already quite hot. 

Location of Safien and Vals Valleys in Switzerland