Alpine Panorama Route Lustenau - Montreux TO

Uphill and down dale in rolling Appenzell, where it’s said that «every second house is a tavern».

Friendly farming country with its own character, a finely structured landscape at the foot of the Säntis, marked by a quaint dialect and a dry wit.

Toggenburg more forested and rugged, a land of nooks and crannies where water once provided work and death.

Below the alluvial Linth plain, «Zigerland» with mighty limestone cliffs, Glarus once a textile region of international importance.

On the climb to the Klausenpass: the Urnerboden, the largest Swiss alp. On the other side of the 1948m pass the Schächental, a mountain landscape with the traditional farming method of moving livestock from one grazing ground to the next.

The mighty Vierwaldstättersee with its impressive panorama. In contrast, the shallow Sarnersee in Obwalden. A treat for pedal-pushing fans: the Glaubenbielen Pass (1611m),a steep pass into the Entlebuch.

After the alpine marshland in rain-rich Glaubenbielen now the biosphere reserve around Schrattenfluh. No less enchanting: the hills and dales of the Emmental, classic, pre-alpine rolling countryside.

From «cabbage country» through the rugged Sense ravines to Fribourg im Üechtland. The old city with its cathedral and 200 gothic house facades enjoys a picturesque position in a loop of the Saane.

Delightful landscape and a man-made lake: Lac de la Gruyère, land of «Crème de la Gruyère» and black and white cows. On a hill, the tiny castle town of Gruyère with its busy mass of tourists.

Quieter in Obergreyerz and uphill through lonely, rugged Alpine pastures to Hongrin, occasionally resounding with army artillery fire. Intoxicating 1000m descent to the mildness of the Rhonetal, a sensuous downhill run through all climate zones.