Day 2 of two-day trip to Canton Valais: Binn Valley in Upper Wallis

Sunday October 6, 2024 -- The weather on Sunday wasn't nearly as good as the day before, but because we had decided to spend a night in the area, we planned another hike in the region. Our accommodation for the night was in the city of Brig, which is very centrally located in Canton Wallis. The hike we did on Saturday (Photos HERE) was about an hour west of Brig in Lower Valais (more French-speaking area), so for Sunday we decided to go east in the direction of Fiesch in the Upper Wallis, where German is spoken. Back in 2014 we had rented a small chalet for a week near Fiesch and done some outings from there as a base, and we had discovered the Binn Valley at the time (Photos HERE), but hadn't been there since. 

We left the train station in Brig at 9:23 and got to the start of hour hike further back in the Binn Valley at about 10:30. We soon found out that this valley is known for its many minerals and mined crystals, and saw many displays of these on our walk back down the valley. Our goal was to go as far out as possible, but we only made it back to Ausserbinn, less than a 10-km and three-hour walk. But we took it easy, admiring all the houses and chapels, and the outdoor sculptures in the Twingi Gorge. (Side note: The Twingi Gorge has been used as an important passage to Italy and a trade route since before Roman Times, as well as a popular pilgrimage route during the Baroque Era). To make access easier, a road was built through the gorge in the 1930s, but even that became difficult to navigate especially in winter, so a tunnel was built in 1964 to bypass the gorge, and the old road is now a very lovely hiking trail.

We had little sunshine this day, but it was quite alright to do a valley hike like this one. 

We left our hotel in Brig at about 9 a.m. and headed by train to Fiesch, from where we took a bus into the Binn Valley. The bus passes through the very pretty village of Ernen, which we had a close look at back in August 2014 when we spent a week in a vacation home in Fiesch. 

There are some very pretty houses in Ernen, and it would definitely be worth coming again. Back in 2014, when we visited the church, there was a fellow there playing the bells (carillon) who told us that he was retiring soon but could not find anyone to replace him. Seems to be a lost art. 

Heading into the Binn valley now: The roads are very narrow that it is difficult for two cars to pass. 

These houses along the Binn Valley road are in a village called Ausserbinn, which was actually where we ended our hike later in the day (3:30 p.m.), and caught the bus back to Fiesch from here. 

Once through the tunnel, the bus passes through the village of Binn, which we walked through on our way back down the valley. The large building is the historical Ofenhorn Hotel. 

We got to the hamlet of Fäld (or Imfeld), end of the bus line, at about 10:35. (An hour and 15 minutes travel time from Brig). This is where we started our hike and walked back out of the valley. 

Road signs and maps call this place Fäld, but it is also known as "Im Feld", pronounced the same way. It means "In the Field". 

We discovered that there is a lot of mining for crystals and minerals in this valley, and here was an actual mineral museum (closed) and a mineral shop (also closed). We peeked at all the crystals and rocks through the window, but this one displayed in front of the shop is magnificent!

Wandering through Fäld. 

Heading up and down the alleyways between the houses in Fäld.

Ah yes, the village chapel! Is it locked?

The chapel was open, so we did have a look inside. I thought the door must be only for decoration, with those potted flowers on the steps. This Chapel (St.Martin's) was built in 1660.

Looking down from the site of the chapel is a small restaurant (where the two people are sitting). The owner had just opened the restaurant, coming from her home on the other side of the alley. 

We spent over half an hour inspecting this little hamlet. 

At the very edge of the village is a sign which reads: "Welcome to the the most beautiful village square in Switzerland". 

Intersting information about the village of Fäld: There was a fire in 1598 which destroyed the entire village (14 houses) except for one single house at the top of the village. Immediately after the fire, seven or eight of the houses were rebuilt on the old foundations. 

At 11:20 we were ready to start our hike down the valley toward Binn, and from there through the Twingi Gorge, i.e. the side valley to the right of the mountain in the back. 

Our actual hike started at 11:20 in Fäld, and we got back on the bus at Ausserbinn at 3:30 p.m. We took our time enjoying the wooden houses, the chapels, and the magnificent gorge. This was an easy hike, about 10 km and 3 hours. 

It was nice to walk with the sound of cowbells, still in the pastures this high at the back of the valley. 

VIDEO:

There was some argument in the cow pastures:

And there were still some meadow flowers! The large clefts in the moutain ahead of us were pretty spectacular. 

A look behind us at the hamlet of Fäld as we head down the valley. 

A nice small comfortable trail makes walking fun. 

Far up ahead past the rooftops of Binn is a church we want to visit later. 

Entering the village of Binn from the east side. 

The most dominant building in Binn is the historical Ofenhorn Hotel, here since 1883. 

Information about the community of Binn: First became renowned in the mid 19th-Century when the first tourists from England discovered the Binn Valley and its minerals. The largest building is the Ofenhorn Hotel from 1883, which has as status in the inventory of "Swiss Historic Hotels". The stone bridge over the Binna River was built in 1564. 

We popped into the Ofenhorn Hotel to look around a bit. There was a very nice display of crystals in the foyer as well. 

View from the Ofenhorn Hotel's glassed-in terrace on the river side. Urs would have liked to have a coffee in the this room, but it was heated too much and I wasn't prepared to change into lighter clothes for a coffee!

I always like the little buildings (granaries) on the mushroom posts!

Main street in Binn, including a small grocery store. 

Looking up the Binna River from the little stone bridge. Urs is on his way to another shop selling crystals and minerals. 

This valley is really a hotbed of minerals and crystals of all kinds!

The mask hanging on this wall is a traditional mask of the Lötschen Valley in Canton Valais.  These masks are called Tschäggätä. They are usually much more hideous-looking.  

The stone bridge over the Binna River dates from 1564

View down the river (from the bridge) to the church we are headed to next. 

This is a fun detail on the side of a house!

On display is an old flax and hemp mill. 

An old typed description and pencil drawings explain that from centuries ago until 1940, hemp and flax were grown on the southern slopes in the valley and processed into fabrics. The diagrams show various apparatus for this process. 

Now we are off to see St.Michael's church, a small detour on our planned trail. 

A little cemetery tucked in between a residence and the church. 

Interesting how the church is tucked between the residences. 

We went in to look at the interior of the church, but there were people practising musical instruments for a concert. The strange instrument that lady is playing is called a "Hackbrett" or Dulcimer. (The tune she was playing was not very melodious, though). 

Details of this church and cemetery. The date above the door reads 1565. 

We sat on a bench next to the wall to eat our sandwiches at 1 p.m. This was our view. 

Heading back down from the little church on the hill to continue on our walk down the valley. This is the last look at the village of Binn. 

A nice little forested section.

This is now at the junction of the other valley called the Lengtal. Just three kilometers into this valley is the pilgrimage church of Heiligkreuz (Holy Cross), one of the most popular pilgrim churches in the Upper Wallis in during the Baroque Era. Major storms this summer caused lots of damage there, and the restaurant is closed, as are the hiking trails into the side valleys. 

This little hamlet called Ze Binne sits on a promontory above the reservoir lake at the entrance to the Zwingi Gorge. The hamlet was first mentioned in documents of 1395. The St.Sebastian Chapel in Ze Binne was built in 1725. 

Here in Ze Binne is where we started our 2014 hike down the Binn Valley, the only other time we were here. (Photos are HERE). 

In 2014 we walked from here to Grengiols, an approximately 3-hour hike through the Twingi Gorge. This time we are headed towards Ernen, although not that far. (1 hour 20 minutes to Ausserbinn). The road through the gorge, built in 1930's is 2.4 kilometers long. Because the road was difficult to navigate in winter, a 1.8-kilometer tunnel was built in 1964 to bypass the gorge road, which is now a pedestrian trail.  

At the start of the trail there is information about the history of the Twingi Gorge and the construction of the road in the 1930s. This photo of the Postauto bus in the 1950's is kind of neat. 

As we started along the road, we were surprised by this collection of red birdhouses on that tree, and then I had a memory of an art display that we experienced along this road 10 years ago. Sure enough, there was a small sign with a description next to the tree describing the piece. So we kept our eyes open for other such displays along the way. 

The cliff walls on the south side of the Twingi Gorge

An easy walk along the Twingi Road. 

At some point I saw a molded rabbit in a small cave. Then later another and another, obviously made of cow dung. By that time I figured this can't just be a random person hiking here and molding cow dung. Sure enough, by the time we got to the other end of the road, it was confirmed that this is an art exhibition, running from the 16th of June to the 13th of October, and that the rabbits were part of the exhibition. 

View down the Twingi Gorge to the Bettmerhorn-Eggishorn Ridge in the Aletsch Arena.

Tunnels along the way always make a trail more interesting. 

Old Twingi Road built in the 1930's, but no longer in use for vehicle traffic

View back up the gorge. 

The disc above me was another one of the art pieces. Most of the displays were pretty weird. The creators of the art pieces are from all around the country. 

By the time we got to the other end of the gorge road, it was confirmed that this was indeed an art exhibition. The rabbit art is called "Schisshasen", literally translated to "Shit Rabbits", but a play on words because figuratively it means "Scaredy Cats". Apparently there were 10 such rabbits made of cow dung along the trail, but we only saw three of them. Had we started on the other side of the gorge road, I would have known this and looked out for them better. Also, I can submit my photos now and maybe win a limited edition "Dung Rabbit" as a prize! Also, it looks like today was the last day of the exhibition. 

It's 2:26 p.m. now, and the bus reaches Ausserbinn (on the way out of the valley) at 15:30, so we have an hour to get there (any other bus stations past that would be cutting it too close). As it turns out, we took longer than the 25 minutes expected!

Heading toward another small side-ravine which we have to descend before heading back to the main road and Ausserbinn (on the right). 

Across the Rhône Valley, a close-up look at the summit of Mt.Eggishorn on the right, the summit station of the Fiescheralp-Eggishorn cableway, and the houses at Fiescheralp on the left. Behind this ridge is the massive Aletsch Glacier, the largest glacier in the Alps. 

Also some interesting fungi on this trail!

We had to descend into a small ravine through which a side stream flowed to enter the Binna River. From there, a similar ascent back to the road. 

It took us 45 minutes to get here to Ausserbinn, instead of the expeced 25! We still had 10 minutes for a quick look at the village church.  

A short walk up through the alleys of Ausserbinn to the small church there. 

Small chapel in Ausserbinn. It was open so we had a look. 

The date above the door on the lintel reads 1614. 

From beside the church, a look up the Twingi Gorge. Now we have a bit of sunshine!

What our hike looks like on Google Satellite Maps, starting in Fäld higher up in the Binn Valley, and walking through the Twingi Gorge to Ausserbinn. It was about a 3-hour hike, but the whole outing was about 4½ hours. 

Bus ride back down to Fiesch train station via the village of Ernen. 

From Fiesch it is about the same time to return home via Andermatt as via Brig/Bern (3¾ hours). We always prefer the Andermatt route. We caught this train in Fiesch just before 4 p.m. and were home by 7:45 p.m. 

Heading up through the Goms region toward Oberwald we pass a fairly new suspension bridge at Bellwald. The town across the gorge is called Mühlebach, and back in 2014 we walked from Ernen to Mühlebach and then here to Bellwald, but the bridge had not been built yet, and so we had to descend into the ravine and out again to get here. 

This region called the Upper Goms (right before the train heads through the Furka Base Tunnel) is wide and open and very popular for cross-country skiing in winter. This is still Canton Wallis, and on the other side of the tunnel is Canton Uri. 

The various hikes we have done around the area of Fiesch and the Binn Valley. 

Where the Binn Valley is located within Switzerland. 

On the artist's Website www.pierabuchli.ch,  I found this picture in her portfolio, which seem to be the locations of the 10 "Dung Rabbits" !