Bachtel observation tower

VHF broadcasting station Bachtel
Basic data
Place:	Hinwil
Canton:	Zurich
Country:	Switzerland
Altitude :	1115  m
Coordinates: 47 ° 17 '40.9 "  N , 8 ° 53' 10.7"  E ; CH1903:  709 494  /  239211
Use:	Broadcasting, observation tower
Accessibility:	Observation tower open to the public
Owner :	Swisscom
Tower data
Construction time :	1986
Building material :	Steel framework construction
Total height :	75  m
Viewing platform:	30  m
Position map
VHF broadcasting station Bachtel

The Bachtelturm is a 75 meter high observation tower on the summit of the Bachtel ( 1115  m above sea level ) in the area of ​​the municipality of Hinwil in Switzerland. The new Bachtel tower was built in 1986 as a transmission tower for the former PTT .

The border with the community of Wald runs at this point almost 100 meters to the east and 25 meters below the tower.

history

Old Bachtel tower from 1893 in 1957

In the time of the rise of alpine tourism in the middle of the 19th century, restaurants were built on many mountain peaks. In 1854, the forest on the Bachtel was cleared and a drinking hut built. The first tower, which was built on the Bachtel in 1873, was made of wood. It was destroyed by a storm in 1890.

Three years later, after the Swiss Alpine Club had collected money, a new steel tower was built. This tower stood on the summit of the Bachtel until 1985, when it was finally dismantled, renovated and rebuilt seven years later on the pan handle . It is also known there under the name of the Old Bachtel Tower .

The writer Emil Zopfi , who grew up on the east side of the Bachtel in Gibswil , wrote a text called The Sound of the Old Tower , in which he compares the tower with the Eiffel Tower ten times higher .

Ascent and view

The viewing platform on the tower at a height of 30 m can be reached via 166 steps and four intermediate landings. It is equipped with an "alpine pointer" that shows the names of the mountains visible from the Bachtel over a landscape sketch. The table was made by Paul Thalmann from Wernetshauser .

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  Stairs

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  Viewing platform to the east

The tower provides a 360-degree view. Lake Zurich , Greifensee , Pfäffikersee and Lützelsee can be seen in the vicinity . And in the background, various peaks of the Töss Valley , the Glarus and Central Switzerland Alps form the panorama on the horizon.

and display information about the image

360 ° panorama from the Bachtelturm

Arrival and infrastructure

Well-developed roads lead from Hinwil or Wald to the observation tower. However, the route between Orn and the observation tower may not be used by vehicles on Sundays and public holidays.

At the tower there is a restaurant and a playground with various seating options.

Web links

Commons : Bachtel observation tower  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• The Bachtel Tower on bachtelkulm.ch
• The Bachtel tower on bachtel-kulm.ch

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Story of the Bachtel. (No longer available online.) In: Restaurant Bachtel-Kulm. Archived from the original on March 3, 2014 ; Retrieved March 3, 2014 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
2. ↑ The facts about the cooperative and the Bachtel. In: Bachtel-Kulm Cooperative. Retrieved March 7, 2019 . 
3. ^ Emil Zopfi: The sound of the old tower , Transhelvetica, April / May 2016