Switzerland resources

Switzerland

Switzerland contains some of Europe’s finest walking among the most dramatic and challenging of all the Alpine ranges. Most people will have heard of the Eiger, the Matterhorn and Zermatt, but away from the crowds lie valleys almost untouched by modern life, crystal-clear lakes reflecting magical peaks, a landscape uncompromisingly carved by great glaciers, and welcoming mountain inns.

In the north-west the rolling Jura hills are wooded, but with open meadows that provide extensive views to the highest of the Alpine peaks. The Bernese Alps, with peaks such as the Eiger, Schreckhorn and Jungfrau, are heavily glaciated but also feature gentle valleys, pastoral ridges and alp hamlets with numerous well-marked trails.

The Pennine Alps are also a mountain group covered by snow and glaciers, but walkers’ paths weave round these icy regions, providing close-up high-mountain experiences on safe paths. By contrast the mountains of Ticino projecting south into Italy are almost completely snow- and ice-free in summer. Perhaps the best of all the regions is the Engadine, tucked into the south eastern corner of Switzerland, an area of exquisite lakes and mountains and home of Switzerland’s only national park.

(Photo by Kev Reynolds from 'Tour of the Jungfrau Region')