Engelbergertal
The Engelbergertal is a 25 km long valley in central Switzerland .
geography
The valley extends over the three Swiss cantons of Obwalden , Nidwalden and Uri and is traversed by the Engelberger Aa . The actual beginning of the valley is at the yoke of the Surenen Pass at 2291 m above sea level. M. From there runs to the village Engelberg at 1000 m above sea level. M. the Surenen and unites there with the Horbistal. These valleys are usually no longer counted as part of the Engelbergertal. From Engelberg the actual Engelbergertal then runs northwards to the Stanser Boden at 455 m above sea level M. , where the Engelberger Aaflowsinto the Lake Lucerne near Buochs (NW).
Attractions
Engelberg, at the top of the valley, is the largest summer and winter sports resort in Central Switzerland. The Engelberg monastery, founded by Benedictines , has made the place known since the 12th century.
In the lower valley, in the modest village of Grafenort, you can visit a remarkable baroque group of buildings, consisting of the manor house (1690), the chapel of the Holy Cross (1689) and the inn (1778). The St. Joder chapel from 1482, which was enlarged in 1601 and renovated in 1789, is located in the hamlet of Altzellen . The Bettelrüti chapel on the slope of the Wellenberg was built in 1689. The baroque high altar originally comes from the Beromünster collegiate church .
Before you reach the small village of Wolfenschiessen , you pass the Dörfli part of the municipality, where a medieval residential tower from the 13th century has been preserved. Next to it is the chapel from 1620, known for its beautiful frescoes and consecrated to the plague saints Sebastian and Rochus.
About two kilometers further down is Wolfenschiessen with its many large residential buildings. Among them is the Hechhuis, which, as the most important Swiss wooden building of the Renaissance, represents the ideal type of the central Swiss manor from the 16th century.
tourism
The Engelberger Valley is very well developed for tourism and attracts numerous winter sports enthusiasts, especially in the winter season . The Titlis ski area is particularly popular.
Numerous small and large cable cars bring paragliders and hang-glider pilots to the many launch sites high above the valley on nice days . Thanks to its central location and the interesting topography , the valley is ideal for flight schools as well as for ambitious cross-country pilots. Aviation competitions of national and occasionally international importance take place regularly in the valley, which is relatively safe from the foehn .
The 2005 flood
During the flood in August 2005 , the Engelbergertal made the headlines because the Engelberger Aa destroyed the only road and rail link to Engelberg and the village was cut off from the outside world for several weeks. The Engelberger Aa devastated the entire valley between Engelberg and Dallenwil to a considerable extent. Footpaths, bike paths and hiking trails between Engelberg and Obermatt (in the so-called Engelberger Aaschlucht ) were also completely destroyed. The elaborately renovated Aaschlucht hiking trail from Engelberg to Grafenort has only been accessible again since spring 2009.
literature
- Erika Schumacher: Lake Lucerne & Central Switzerland - Dumont travel paperback. Dumont Buchverlag, Cologne 2000, ISBN 3-7701-4311-6 , p. 125