Hike across the Albis Range on the Zurich-Zugerland Panorama Trail

Saturday February 22nd -- On the spur of the moment my cousin and her partner joined us on a local hike this most beautiful February day. They are also avid hikers and were happy to try out a trail in our area: Along the Albis Ridge which separates the Zug area from Lake Zurich, and offers a lovely panorama with views far and wide to the North and the South (not for nothing it's called the "Zurich-Zugerland Panorama" Trail).  This is a trail we have done a couple of times, and we knew it was perfect for this time of year. 

We started at the Albis pass, and reached the Hochwacht look-out tower in just 30 minutes, a beautiful wooden tower built in 1978, but not as high as the cement tower we visited recently. Nevertheless, from here you can see all the way across lake Zug to the Bernese Alps, and in the East to the Glarus Alps, plus far away to the North across Lake Zurich as well. And we were very lucky to have a nice clear day for this.

Most of the trail was a comfortable woods trail, and we took it easy, enjoyed the sunshine, had a picnic lunch and made it to our destination four and a half hours after starting... for a 3-hour hike, so pretty well the normal timing. But you have to take your time to enjoy this kind of weather. Only negative side: There was an unexpected cold wind on the ridge sections. Oh, and I had my camera on the wrong setting, so my photos turned out not quite as sharp as usual!

Shortly after starting at the Albis Pass, we get the first views of Lake Zurich. It is densely populated along the lake around this area near Zurich

Just 30 minutes from the Albis pass we reach the 33-meter high Hochwacht look-out tower, built entirely of wood in 1978

Heading up the tower for a 360-degree view around the Zürich-Zug area

A beautiful sunny day for this excursion, but slightly windy and cool here on the ridge!

View South across Lake Zug to the Bernese Alps, from the look-out platform on the Hochwacht Tower

View North to Zurich and all the way to Germany 

Continuing along the ridge from the Tower, we decided on a detour to a former local fortress, now in ruins

There are only a few short walls remaining of the Fortress Schnabelburg. The ruins were unearthed in 1955, and it was guessed that it looked like this. The fortress was part of the large holdings of the Dukes of Zähringen between Zurich and Luzern in the 13th Century

We had our picnic lunch at the fortress ruins, but didn't stay long because there was also a cold wind blowing up here.

This is the highest point of the Albis Range between Zurich and Sihlbrugg. It is 915 meters above sea level

From this highest point along the ridge we get a view of the popular Türlersee Lake, which is just West of the Albis Pass

A little further on we came to the Albishorn, where there is a restaurant accessible only on foot, and is also a passage from East to West, i.e. from Lake Zurich to Zug, a trail we also walked previously. From here we got some spectacular views toward the South end of Lake Zurich and the Glarus Alps. Below is the very large Sihlwald Forest, known as the Zurich Wilderness Park, where the forest is left to grow as nature sees fit.

 

VIDEO:

Panorama of Lake Zurich from Albishorn

Zoomed view of the Glarus Alps and the "Silberen", which is the largest karst area (eroded limestone) in Switzerland

The trail from Albis Pass to Sihlbrugg takes about 3 hours along Route no.47: The Zurich-Zugerland Panorama Trail

Last stretch heading down to Sihlbrugg. We stopped here for a coffee break and to enjoy the view eastward and over the little farming village of Oberalbis. To the South we had the wide open view over Lake Zug and the Bernese Alps 

Sitting on a bench and enjoying the sunshine and the view of Lake Zug and the Alps

It's always fun to catch sight of birds, be able to photograph them, and then look them up on the Internet afterwards. This one is called a "Baumläufer" or "Treecreeper"

Another view toward the Glarus Alps. Mount Schärhorn on the right is a favourite (above the Klausen Pass) 

Final descent to Sihlbrugg, where we caught a bus back (half of us back to the car at Albis Pass, the other half of us to our home in Zug!)

The signs suggested this would be a 3-hour hike, but we also had less actual walking time. We took most of the afternoon to enjoy the particularly nice views we had on this day. We started at the Albis Pass and walked to Sihlbrugg.

An approximately 3-hour hike across the Albis Range from the Albis Pass to Sihlbrugg. To the North is Lake Zurich and the Sihlwald Forest

This area is easily accessible to us, so we have done lots of walking here in the past 6 years. All joined together, we have also completed the Zurich-Zug Panorama Trail.  

Irrigation Channels in the Vineyards of Salgesch

Saturday February 15th -- In a train jam-packed full of people on their way to skiing holidays with luggage and equipment, we headed to Canton Valais to enjoy a day of hiking in the vineyards there... and watched in satisfaction as most of the people from our train rushed off to their probably standing-room-only connection to Zermatt and the Matterhorn, while we ended up with our own private chauffeur in the small van-bus that runs hourly from Sierre to Varen in the renowned wine area of Salgesch, the first village in Switzerland to use the Grand Cru designation for their wines in 1988. (This designation means strict regulation of production of Pinot Noir, including max 800 g. of grapes per square meter)

What started out as a plan to walk 13 km along Trail no.36: "Chemin des Vignobles" (Vineyard Trail) between Varen and Sierre (including a section on an historical irrigation channel) was soon changed to include sections of other irrigation channels which we only discovered locally. The trails were also better, as the "Chemin des Vignobles" consists mainly of paved roadways. 

We are not particular wine fans, but it is still interesting to learn about the agriculture, land use, process, distribution etc., all explained in detail on information placards along the way. More of interest to us are the old irrigation channels (most of them built in the 15th Century) and the confrontations that communities used to have over water usage in this driest of areas (sometimes resulting in gun fights). But for me the highlight of this trip was that without foreplanning, we found ourselves walking along the language border of Canton Valais: German speaking to the East (Upper Valais) and French to the West (Lower Valais), which border is along the Raspille River and Canyon. Before crossing the river, we had met a few other walkers, and greeted them in German. And right after crossing the river, the first person we met greeted us in French! And whereas East of the river the information placards were German first, then French, on the other side, all information was French first!

Salgesch is the first official German-speaking community to the East of this border, and many of the towns around this area have double French/German or German/French names (Sierre/Siders, Sion/Sitten, Salgesch/Salquenen, Varen/Varonne, Leuk/Loèche).

The bus ride from Sierre to Varen took us past Salgesch and the vineyards of the "Domaine du Clos du Chateau de Ravire" (in the circle), which we passed through on our walk back to Sierre. This vintner claims to be the only one in the world to bottle and sell the famous Glacier Wine, a historical wine of the Sierre and Val d'Anniviers Regions.

We started our walk around the cliff church in Varen, with views up and down the Rhone Valley

One of many wine cellars in this area. On this side of the language border, they are called "Keller" and on the French side they are called "Caves"

Old Valais houses in Varen

Official hiking trail: "Chemin du Vignoble" between Varen and Sierre

A sign below at the Church described a round tour of the village, which included this old irrigation channel trail above the village, so we took this route instead of the originally-planned paved road

Looking down at the village of Varen and the church on the cliff where we started our walk. In the background below is the Pfynwald Forest, the largest Pine Forest in the Alps

 

The irrigation channel above Varen is called "Dalawasserleitu" (Dala Channel) whose water has been diverted through pipes to prevent water loss through evaporation, but which also means that the area around the channel has become drier

Looking westward across the vineyards of Salgesch to the city of Sierre (our destination)

Looking eastward up the Rhone Valley: Below is the Pfynwald Forest, the largest connecting pine forest in the Alps and a protected nature reserve of national value

This second irrigation channel (water shut off for the winter) was in our original plan. It crosses a mountain flank where there was a huge landslide in glacial times, and higher up is a second channel parallel to this one, one that we walked along several years ago. 

A look down at the village of Salgesch 

In summer, water runs in this channel. Because this one is not diverted through pipes, the vegetation along the channel is green

These paddle-wheels were used to indicate if the water was running properly in the channel: When the hammering noise stopped, the farmers knew there was a blockage which required cleaning

Residual water in this channel, called the "Mengis Wasserleitu"

Another look back toward the Pfynwald Forest and the vineyards of Salgesch, from the other side this time. 

Zoomed view of the mountains in the Upper Valais region (Oberwallis)

And a look at the hillside where we just crossed along the lower irrigation channel. You can see where both irrigation channels are located due to the green stripes, compared to the rest of the dried-out hillside

This heart-shaped bench seemed fitting for the day after Valentine's Day! 

Village of Salgesch. This is the largest wine-growing area in the Upper Valais, 208 hectares of vineyards and 40 producers of wine

This is the Raspille Canyon, the language border which separates Upper Valais (German-speaking) from Lower Valais (French-speaking) 

Information about the language border: On this side of the river all information is first in German, then in French

This irrigation channel along the language border is called "Bisse des Marais" (water diverted from the Raspille River to the left) and was constructed at the end of the 15th century to irrigate this area (these irrigation channels were necessary due to climate warming, which was already an issue several hundred years ago).

And on this side of the river, all information is first in French, then in German!

The first butterfly!

These geological features at the entrance of the Raspille Canyon were a complete and fascinating surprise!

The Pyramids of La Raspille, hardened calcium deposits from ground water.

The pyramids of Raspille. In the back on the hillside, the higher irrigation channel is distinctly visible

Coming out of the Raspille Canyon... this also wasn't on our original plan, it was a last-minute decision to descend through the canyon, and one which we were glad about.

Other features of this wine-growing area which I find particularly fascinating are the dry-stone walls which form the foundation of the hundreds of terraces

This was near the "Domaine du Clos du Chateau de Rawire", 9 hectares of vines ideally located around the hillside for a large variety of conditions for different types of grapes. 

After rounding the "Domaine du Clos du Chateau de Rawire", we descended toward Sierre through another small river valley.

From the West, this is the view of the Rawire Castle. This is one of the most prestigious wine growers in the area, and even though the original castle here was hundreds of years old, this is a fairly new construction. The owner claims to be the only vintner in the world to bottle the famous Glacier Wine.

To the South: The entrance to the Val d'Anniviers

"Eglise de Notre-Dame de Marais", built in 1422, was the parish church of Sierre for over three centuries. 

Had a peek into the little church, and it definitely looked like very old construction! This section of the church was built in 1524.

Near the train station in Sierre is this castle-like structure, probably fairly "modern"!

We had time to check out a "younger church" (1687):  Eglise Ste. Catherine in the historical centre of the city of Sierre. This is apparently one of the most meaningful examples of a Baroque Church in Canton Valais

I was particulary impressed with this beautiful organ, one of many contructed by a family of organ builders from the Upper Valais Region (Carlen family of Reckingen). This one was built approx. 1780.

Our 11-km walk through the vineyards of Salgesch from Varen to Sierre, with walks along four irrigation channels, and along the language border between Upper Valais (German, to the East) and Lower Valais (French, to the West) ... along the Raspille River and Canyon. 

Our walk took us along three irrigation channels plus an additional smaller section in Veyras near Sierre. We walked along the Bisse Neuf (the upper irrigation channel) in 2016.