Switzerland7-Northeastern Switzerland - John Covey - University of ...

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NORTHEASTERN SWITZERLAND GLARUS
KLÖNTAL
Reaching west of Glarus, the 12km
Klöntal is one of the country’s least
touched valleys (and back-door route
into Schwyz canton). Klöntaler See is
a mirror-still lake backed on its south
side by the sheer walls of the Glärnisch
mountains. A couple of majestic
waterfalls open up clefts in this massif.
At the lake’s west end you’ll fi nd a
camping ground and a couple of hotels.
Hotel Vorauen (%055 640 13 83; www
.vorauen.ch; dm/s/d Sfr52/90/120) has
a handful of timber-lined rooms and
primary-coloured dorms.
at this convivial trattoria, which has a leafy
terrace for summer dining. There’s a kids’
menu for the little ones.
8 Getting There & Away
Both Walenstadt and Weesen are handily
located on the A3 freeway from Zürich. By train
from Zürich, get off at Ziegelbrücke (Sfr21, 45
minutes), which is a 15-minute walk from central
Weesen, or change for trains on to Walenstadt.
GLARUS CANTON
The spiky, glacier-capped peaks of the
Glarus Alps rise above stout wooden farmhouses
and lush pastures in this littleexplored
canton, linked to the centre of the
country by the vertiginous Klausenpass. Its
northern boundary touches Walensee and
provides much of the Alpine beauty that can
be observed from the lake’s north shore. For
more information, contact Glarner Tourismus
(%055 610 21 25; www.glarus.ch, in German;
Niederurnen).
Glarus
POP 12,200 / ELEV 472M
Nestling at the foot of the austerely beautiful
Glarus Alps, Glarus is the capital of the
eponymous canton. Two-thirds destroyed
by fi re in 1861, the town is a graceful 19thcentury
creation with some fi ne residential
buildings and the occasional typical old timber
rural house that survived the fl ames. A
couple of hotels overlook the park in front
of the main train station. Hotel Stadthof
(%055 640 63 66; www.hotelstadthof.ch, in German;
Kirchstrasse 2; s/d/tr Sfr90/140/150; W)
has 12 rather plain but clean brightly whitewashed
rooms with parquet fl ooring, some
of which look over the park.
Some trains from Zürich (Sfr24, 60 minutes)
require a change at Rapperswil or
Ziegelbrücke. From St Gallen (Sfr26, 1¼
hours) the trip is longer.
Braunwald
POP 300 / ELEV 1256M
The attractive car-free mountain resort of
Braunwald basks in sunshine on the side of
a steep hill, gazing at the snowcapped Tödi
Mountain (3614m) and overlooking valley
pastures and fi r forests below.
The Braunwaldbahn (one-way/return
Sfr7.80/15.60) climbs the hill from the
Linthal Braunwaldbahn station. Braunwald
Tourism (%055 653 65 65; www.braunwald.ch;
h8am-noon & 1.30-5pm Mon-Fri) is on the top
fl oor of the funicular station.
Braunwald is a terrifi c base for hiking in
summer, and you’ll fi nd pamphlets at the
funicular station outlining several routes,
including to the Oberblegisee, a greentinted
Alpine lake. If you’re up for a challenge,
tackle the fi ve-hour via ferrata at
Eggstock. In winter the resort has family
appeal, with moderate skiing and off -piste
fun from sledding to snow-tubing.
A converted grand Victorian fairy-tale
hotel, the Märchenhotel Bellevue (%055
653 71 71; www.maerchenhotel.ch; r per person from
Sfr175; psc) combines elegant modern
rooms with saunas and bars for adults and
all manner of playthings for children. Parents
can relax in the rooftop spa area while
kids are looked after in the play area.
Less than two minutes from the funicular
station, Hostel Adrenalin (%079 347 29 05;
www.adrenalin.gl; Braunwald; r per person Sfr35)
is the hub of the young snowboarding and
adventure-sports community in winter, with
video games and lots of parties. There is a
Sfr20 surcharge for a one-night stay and
breakfast costs an extra Sfr8.
Trains run roughly hourly from Linthal
Braunwaldbahn to Zürich (Sfr28, 1½ hours)
via Ziegelbrücke (Sfr10.40, 40 minutes). It’s
a 1¼-hour drive from Zürich along the A3.