Schweiz

Cycling Switzerland north to south on Euro Velo Route 5.  Route on Open Street Maps.

Davos

We ended up in Davos for a few days to ski because it's a short drive from Livigno through the Vereina Tunnel with the auto train.  Telemarkers Andi & Connie are here too.

Sleeping at the interesting Hotel Derby because it's the best price in town and next to the Parsennbahn.  Next to an abandoned and dilapidated building, we heard both buildings have been scheduled for demolition for years.

Many of the hotels and buildings in Davos seem ready for demolition or, at the very least, an extensive renovation.  The old hotels were probably beautiful in their heyday in the 70s/80s, but look shabby even from the outside when not covered in snow.  The flat roofs of most buildings are not at all what I expected of a Swiss ski resort.  It seems the town was built without any sort of architectural vision or style; completely characterless.  Can't get over the fact that the richest people in the world stay at these places and pay exorbitant prices during the WEF.  With no cap on hotel room prices, even a dumpy closet of a room will go for 4-figures/night during WEF.

Despite the dated look of the place, everywhere still demands the usual Swiss prices.  In town, we only ate at Weber Bäckerei: sort of reasonable prices in a bakery-café setting.  There, we ate delicious Rösti und Gerstensuppe.

Up on the mountain (Parsenn) we had a nice break at Mungga Hütte (Mungga is Engadiner word for Marmot).  Although a Valliser specialty, the Raclette is amazing here.  We shared a portion and washed it down with some east Swiss apple wine from Möhl - perfect snack and cider was an excellent alternative to crappy mainstream beer.  Möhl uses east Swiss apples too.

Apropos crappy mainstream beer, Davoser alternatives are Monsteiner Bier & Davoser Craft Bier.  The latter wasn't available in any place we went to, but the Monsteiner Naturtrüb Helles - "Huusbier" - is excellent.

Monsteiner Bier is brewed in the tiny Walserdorf of Monstein (pop. <200) - south of and politically part of Davos.  Whenever possible, it uses regional and organic hops and barley.  It even partners with neighbor producers to make cheese, wurst, etc. from brewing byproduct!  We enjoyed plenty of fresh Monsteiner Bier and good food in Monstein at the Veltlinerstübli (Di.-So.).  The other option in Monstein, Restaurant-Hotel Duncan, had Betriebsurlaub when we were in town, but looks like a great place to stay and start off on ski tours or hikes.  In the city of Davos, it is available vom Fass:

  • Coop Restaurant, Bahnhofstr. 1 in Davos Platz - cheapest beer in town!
  • lots of hotel bars
  • Schneider's Cafe at Prom. 68 has it too, but it's ridiculously expensive at more than 5 CHF for a Stange

Davoser Craft Bier has been around since 2018 and can supposedly (many seem to be sold out or not carrying at the moment) be found at numerous bars, restaurants, and hotels around town including:

  • Alpä Traum:  Slow Foodie alert!  Feinkost/Deli just across Promenade from our hotel
  • Montana Bar around the corner from our hotel by the Davos Dorf Bahnhof, 5 CHF per Stange of Calanda, where we met Andi & Connie because it's conveniently located
  • Lokal:  Slow Foodie alert!  alles regional, open Mi.-So.
  • Mountain Akt's Diner & Bar along Promenade by Schatzalpbahn
  • Tijuana Bar by Davos Platz Bahnhof - didn't have Davoser when we were there, but it's the best (and only?) happy hour in town (3 CHF/Stange) and where all the Jakobshorn workers go
  • with most places charging 7 or 8 CHF for 33cl bottle, may as well buy it in the grocery store instead

Engadine

Engadine is the new Vinschgau 😂

Vacation project with Mom & Dad in fall 2019 was to hike the Via Engiadina - Engadiner Höhenweg!
Via Engiadina on Engadine tourist page with GPX download, height profiles, and English.

Fr. 6.9.

Met in Tschlin!  M&D had smooth connection, <4h from ZRH.  Slept at Hotel Macun's Dachwohnung for 2 nights.  Visited the Alp Girun brewery for happy hour before excellent fondue dinner at the hotel.

Sa. 7.9. - Alp Tea

Chilly hike to Alp Tea for lunch, was ~3/3.5h roundtrip.  No inside seating so were promptly on our way again after tasty pasta and Gerstensuppe lunch.  Slept a second night in tranquil Tschlin.

So. 8.9. - Tschlin to Val Sinestra

Tschlin - Val da Ruinas - Vnà - Val Sinestra - Sent.  Tschlin to Sent is 16km. Tschlin to Val Sinestra is ~9,5km.

Lunch at:

  • Arina Vnà:  has excellent Nusstorte from our cousin in Ramosch.
  • Val Sinestra:  restaurant open daily 8:45-17:45.   

Slept at Val Sinestra, but would have preferred Arina Vnà.  This hike took forever.  It was snowy and a white-out so no majestic mountain views.  It was cool, but after crossing the gorge and reaching stable ground above it, it took foreeeeeeever to reach Vnà.  Thankfully Arina was open for a nut pie snack for a little fuel and warm up before finally reaching Val Sinestra.

Val Sinestra looks like a castle deep in the woods.  It was built in 1910 as a Kurhaus.  Now it's run by some Dutch people and similar to indoor camping with simple buffet meals.

Mo. 9.9. - Val Sinestra to Scuol

Easy day:  ~1 hour flat walking to Sent, can snack at Bakery Benderer.  Direct walk Sent to Scuol is ~1h or hike on the Via (3h, 8km) from Sent to the Bergstation - Motta Naluns - of the gondola, gondola or walk down to Scuol. 

Food:

  • Bakery & Café Benderer in both Sent & Scuol.  Didn't make it in time to Sent for casual bakery lunch so we ate at the fancy Hotel Aldier, which was tasty and had Tschlinerbier.

Sleeping:  Chasa Valär for 324 CHF (2 nights).  Decent accommodation in a 2-bedroom apt at a good price, but a balcony would've been ideal.  Without a balcony, we decided to hang out at the fountain for happy hour.  We had a decent dinner at Crusch Alba.

Di. 10.9. - Rest day in Scuol

Short and scenic hike up to Saloon San Jon for lunch at the ranch and Tschlinerbier vom Fass!

GuardaVal hotel has Tschlinerbier vom Fass and we stopped here for a drink and aperitivo.  Great pizza dinner for a change from Swiss cuisine, but Pizzeria da Taki charged us a ridiculous 4 CHF for 2 extra plates to share our pizza.

Mi. 11.9. - Anniversary! - Scuol to Ardez

Scuol - Ftan - Alp Laret (lunch) - Chamuera - Brunnen - Ardez.  Bus 921 from Scuol to Ftan every hour, which shaved 4km uphill off our track. 😊 Then it took about 1.5h and 500hm to Alp Laret where the elevation is 2200m.  It was mostly downhill (~10km) from there, but took much longer than anticipated.

Food:  Furnaria/Cafè La Carsuot in Ardez, Ustaria La Stalla in Ardez, Ustaria Crusch Alba in Guarda.

Sleeping:  B&B Chasa Arfusch in Ardez.  Fantastic hotel with delicious food and Tschlinerbier vom Fass.

Do. 12.9. - Ardez - Chamonna Cluozza

Bus from Ardez to Zernez every hour, 3.5h hike to Chamonna Cluozza hut in national park.  Of course, once again, took longer than expected (~4.5h) and my knee was killing me (go figure, the youngest member of the group had the bad knee!).

Fun experience at Chamonna Cluozza.

Fr. 13.9. - Cluozza - Livigno - Ospizio Bernina
  • Hike to bus stop Valluns Chafuol P3 (took ~4.5h),
  • hitchhiked to Punta Drossa P4 (official Livigno bus stop whereas P3 is not),
  • Silvestri Bus to Livigno,
  • lunch at Birreria 1816 in Livigno,
  • Aperitivo at Ca'Noa,
  • bus to Ospizio Bernina. What a cool round!

Slept 2 nights in Albergo Ospizio Bernina.  Ospizio Bernina is a magnificent place, but more so in winter.  Summer - especially at night - is nice too, but there is a plethora of loud, obnoxious motorcyclists.

Albergo OB had fantastic ravioli.

Sa. 14.9. - Ospizio Bernina

Regional train to Poschiavo for lunch.  Valposchiavo has 95% organic farms!  Restaurants in town emphasize 100% Valposchiavo dishes and whenever local ingredients are used.  Excellent pizza at Hotel Ristorante Albrici.  Wanted to get organic gelato at Bio-Bistrò Semadeni, but were too full!  Instead got a cone later at Chalet Stazione.

On the return trip to OB, we checked out the glacier park at Cavaglia stop and enjoyed the view for a bit at Alp Grüm.  Ate at Cambrena to change it up, which has local Pontresina Bier, seasonal menu, and homemade pasta.

So. 15.9. - Home

Rode the train together to Morteratsch.  We loaded up at the Albergo breakfast, which was included in the room price, otherwise we could have had brunch in Morteratsch at the Alp-Schaukäserei.  With our hunger satisfied, we simply had Apfelwein and Pontresina Bier while Dad checked out the glacier trail.

To bring:
  • Passports & tickets
  • Backpack with waistbelt
  • Stable hiking shoes
  • Light shoes for evening
  • 1L water bottle
  • Underwear
  • Socks
  • Sports bra, normal bra
  • T-shirt/Baselayer
  • Long-sleeve shirt (red & green Patagonia shirts, M&D)
  • Light jacket (your purple fleece, Mom)
  • Rain shell (orange Patagonia one, Mom)
  • Hiking pants
  • Pants for evening
  • 2 shirts for evening
  • Toothbrush
  • Sunglasses
Additional for J&C to bring:
  • Toothpaste
  • Saline solution
  • Kytta cream
  • Cards
  • Laundry barsoap
  • DAV cards
  • iPod & charger
  • GPS
  • Teatree oil
  • Bandaids

 

Summer '21

Chasing the ☀️

Finally reuniting with Mommy & Daddy! ❤️

Saturday 10.7.:  Meet in Kandersteg! Stay 2 nights at Hotel Blümlisalp.

Daytrip possibilities from Kandersteg:

Blatten:  2 nights at Hotel Nest- & Bietschhorn + Lötschenpasshütte = Hüttenschmaus & Hotelzauber for 150pp, each with Halbpension, sauna at hotel.

Hike down to Leukerbad, 10km / 4h40m. Lunch at Fluhalp. 👣 Track.

Leukerbad:

On the way from Leukerbad to wine country, we could stroll the the village of Albinen and possibly eat (and sleep) at Godswärgjistubu.

🍇 Varen seems to be a nice, small village with plenty of wineries and an accessible location.

Ticino

Ticino Top Ten

Fusio is a tiny, remote alpine village. Could sleep at Antico Osteria Dazio, Villa Pineta, or Hotel Fusio.

In this NE part of Ticino, remote yet easily accessible from Locarno, there a few restaurants scattered around such as Slow Food spot La Froda near the Foroglio waterfall and Trattoria Unione in Cevio.

Ascona on the lake! Accommodation: *Hotel Polo in downtown or Garni Dolce Vita (uphill w view).

Tschlin

Looking for a way to break up the journey back to Prien, I came across Tschlin... "ruhigsten Ort der Schweiz" - da wollen wir hin!

The tiny mountain village has everything we need:

  • Restaurant Macun with regional products, slow food style.  Käsefondue made with the local beer is outstanding.  Macun is also a nice hotel.
  • Alpenbrauerei Girun with brewmaster Florian Geyer (Girun is romansch for Geier) and Küchenfee Susanne who makes pestos and Kräutersalz with garden and wild herbs from Tschlin, open Di.-Do. 13:30-17:30 and Fr. 15:00-23:00. Frische Weisswurst + Brezeln und hausgemachte Käse- & Speckknödel.
  • Käserei Tschlin or Che Chaschöl
  • Biera Engiadinaisa is a brewery out of Martina that is available throughout the valley, especially in Scuol and in some huts in the ski resort!
  • Bun Tschlin ist ein loser Verbund von über 20 Valsoter Kleinunternehmen mit dem Zweck gemeinsamer Werbung und Verkaufsförderung. Seine Botschaft ist, wie’s der romanische Name sagt: "Tschliner Produkte sind einheimisch und gut"
  • Relatives in Ramonsch?! Bakery Furnaria-Pastizaria Häfner bakes everything from Roggenbrot to Engadiner Nusstorte, open Mo.-Fr. 8-12, 14-18:30 on Schilana by the post office.
  • Ferienwohnung Caviezel in das Blockhaus Engadin

We have to come back for the Bergbierfestival in Oktober!!

Zermatt

Essen und Trinken
  • Zermatt Bier:  ja, endlich!  Available vom Fass at:
    • Little Bar:  die kleinste Bar von Zermatt
    • Bistro Fuchs on Getwingstraße by Gornergratbahn is the perfect brunch spot; bakery and café with delicious food, friendly Portugese waitresses, and great prices. 
    • Theodor's Stuba at Hotel Walliserhof:  good concept with all local ingredients, but food was less than stellar last time I was there in January 2019.
  • 🗻 Fluhalp:  the classic lunchtime fave, now with online table reservations.
  • 🗻 Rifugio del Guido:  the new-ish lunchtime fave in the €-zone.
  • Opa's old standbys:  Walliserkanne, Stockhorn, and downstairs at Stockhorn for raclette.
  • Sparky's has pitchers of Eichhofbier (from Lucerne, but belongs to Heineken since 2008) for CHF18 and some indian flavors on the Speisekarte.
  • Graham, whom I met while he was the Sparky's chef, opened his own joint - Grizzly's - in June 2015.  Zermatt's first and only craft beer pub with their own special beer - Grumpy Pumpy - brewed by Haarige Kuh Brauerei in Interlaken.  Grizzly's also has La Tresca birra on draft from Suno - ~100km SE of Zermatt.
  • North Wall Bar:  where "skiers and climbers meet" ...or telemarkers and alpinists for 🍕 & 🍺
☀️ Summer

Summer in Z can get hot these days so look for those swimming lakes.

Accommodation & Logistics

Zurich

Switzerland is more than Calanda, which I was happy to learn during our numerous trips to the city in the fall and winter of 2014.  Our favorite spot is Turbinenbraeu Rampenverkauf.

  • Turbinenbraeu:  Badenerstrasse 571.  Brewing since 1997 and selling beer at the source for CHF 1.15 or 1.33 for 0.33l Pfandflasche.  Rampenverkauf: M-F: 8.30-18.30 Uhr; Samstag: 10.00-16.00 Uhr.  I think the Rampenverkauf is cool - sit on the curb, mill around the parking lot, or sit at the huge wooden communal table and drink your bottles.  It could only be better if they had it vom Fass.  However, I like the bottle & Pfand system there because then it's like drink 3, get 1 free!
  • Bier Paul is brewed about 20-25 km west of Zurich, but is nonetheless a regional microbrewery with a Zuercher brewmaster.  The brewery has its own little bier paul Brauereiladen at Idastrasse 28, 8003 Zürich.  Öffnungszeiten: Di.-F: 11.00-19.00 Uhr; Samstag: 10.00-16.00 Uhr.
  • SUDWERK ist eine kleine Schweizer Brauerei mitten im Zürcher Oberland in Pfäffikon/ZH.
  • Amboss is so hot right now.  Like Bier Paul, at least part of the brewing process is outside the city limits, but the locals still love it.  A lot of these Rampenverkaufs seem to be only open during busiess hours and a little bit into happy hour, whereas Amboss has a full on bar at Zollstrasse 80 with Öffnungszeiten M.- Do.: 17 Uhr bis 24 Uhr & Freitag schon ab 15 Uhr.  CHF 8 for 0.5l vom Fass.
  • Steinfels:  Heinrichstrasse 267.  Das Züri West Bier!  Seems too chicky mickey.  Hausbrauerei - Restaurant - Bar.  Teuer wie alles in der Schweiz... CHF 8 for 0.5l vom Fass.
  • For a Blick of the city, lake and Alps, hike up Uetliberg starting at Albisguetli, which is last stop on tram 13 and takes about an hour.  It's really a very nice view - not so much of the city - but of the lake and Alps.  Bring a picnic.
  • South of the city is Baar and its namesake brauerei: Brauerei Baar at Langgasse 41 with a restaurant.  Mo.–Fr.: 8.00–24.00; Samstag: Ruhetag; Sonntag: 17.00–23.00.  Manchmal ist Älper Makkaroni auf der Tageskarte.

Übernachtungsmöglichkeiten:  Hotel St. George, Pension für Dich, Zum Guten Glück,