from the airport by train
Zürich airport is but an escalator ride away from the Swiss rail network. Here you can buy a ticket to your destination whether it be a Swiss or an Austrian station. You will probably have to change trains at Zürich Hauptbahnhof, then continue to Landquart (for approach to the Swiss side of the mountains) where you change trains again for Küblis (bus to St Antönien) or Klosters.
If you intend to begin your trek from Brand in Austria, take a train from Zürich Hauptbahnhof to Bludenz, with a possible change at Feldkirch. A regular bus service runs from Bludenz to Brand. A branch line feeds through the lower Montafon valley as far as Schruns, giving opportunities to access other Rätikon valleys, while a minibus taxi service operates during the summer from Nenzing (between Bludenz and Feldkirch) to Nenzinger Himmel in the lovely Gamperdonatal west of the Brandnertal.
The onward journey from Innsbruck airport involves a short bus ride to Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof where you take a train to Landeck. From there catch the Bielerhöhe bus with the option of leaving it at either Ischgl or Galtür.
By train
A combination of Eurostar from London’s St Pancras station to Paris via the Channel Tunnel, followed by high-speed trains to Zürich or Innsbruck provides a viable, albeit possibly more expensive alternative, to air travel. For up-to-date information contact www.raileurope.com
Please note that the Switzerland Travel Centre at 30 Bedford Street, London WC2E 9ED ([email protected]) can make bookings for Eurostar, TGV and Swiss rail journeys, and also flights to Switzerland.
Under 26?
Consider purchasing a Billet International de Jeunesse to claim discounts of up to 50 per cent on international rail journeys. Contact Rail Europe (tel 08705 848 848 www.raileurope.com) for details.
Accommodation
Mountain huts
Gathered outside the Carschina Hut, trekkers contemplate their day’s activities
Accommodation on each of the treks described relies largely on mountain huts (hütten), most of which are owned by individual sections of the Swiss, Austrian, German or Liechtenstein Alpine Clubs – a small minority are privately owned but open to all. Details of these, and others in the Silvretta and Rätikon Alps, are given in Appendix B.
Although their size and construction may vary, huts are usually managed by a warden (hüttenwirt) and his team, who allocate bed space and provide meals, snacks and drinks. Facilities on offer follow a similar pattern right across the Alpine chain, with sleeping arrangements being in communal dormitories (matratzenlager) or, where available, in smaller family-size rooms. Most huts will have a boot room (schuraum) or porch in which to leave outdoor footwear, trekking poles and so on; and a simple washroom – perhaps with warm showers (but don’t rely on it) – and some form of drying facility for wet clothes. Unless you are a member of another European Alpine Club, membership of the UK branch (Sektion Britannia) of the Austrian Alpine Club is highly recommended (www.aacuk.org.uk). Not only do members gain a sense of ‘belonging’ when using an Alpine Club hut, they also receive worthwhile discounts on overnight fees, and free worldwide mountain rescue insurance.
Hut conventions
On arrival at a mountain hut remove boots and leave them in the porch or boot room, along with trekking poles. Select a pair of hut shoes, clogs or crocs for indoor wear if available. Boots must not be worn indoors.
Locate the warden, who will normally be found near the kitchen (küche) to announce your arrival, seek a bed for the night and present your Alpine Club membership card if you have one.
Make your bed using a sheet sleeping bag – pillows and blankets or duvets are provided. Keep a torch handy, as the room may not be lit when you need to go there after dark. Respect the lights-out time, and if you leave early in the morning, pack your rucksack outside the dormitory to avoid disturbing others.
A typical hut dormitory in which duvets replace blankets – you provide your own sheet sleeping bag
Snacks and drinks are normally available throughout the day, but meals are served at set times: breakfast (fruhstück) is generally served between about 6.00 and 8.00am; dinner (abendessen) from 6.00 to 7.30pm – but check first. Not every hut offers menu choices, but in Austrian huts a bergsteigeressen will often be available. Literally a mountaineer’s meal, this low-cost alternative is variable in content but it must contain at least 500 calories and is usually good value. Austrian huts also enable users to make their own drinks by providing a litre of hot water (teewasser) for a small charge. If you want to take advantage of this service carry a few teabags or coffee sachets with you. You can borrow cups from the warden. Where needed packed lunches should be ordered the night before you leave.
In most huts it is customary to pay (by cash only) for meals and accommodation the night before you depart.
Before departing fold the blankets at the end of your bed, and write your name in the hut book along with a note of your planned destination.
Berghausen and other options
A few berghausen (mountain inns) are also found in some of the high valleys, and these often provide atmospheric overnight lodging that falls midway between that of a traditional mountain hut and a hotel; some of these give the option of a small dormitory as a slightly cheaper alternative to a twin-bedded room.
In resort villages located in outlying or feeder valleys, more mainstream accommodation is usually plentiful, depending on the size and location of the resort in question. The main resorts here are Klosters (www.klosters.ch) in Switzerland and Brand (www.brand.at) in Austria, both of which have hotels of practically all standards, as well as holiday apartments for rent.
Notes for walkers
Knees aching from the steep descent to Alp Sardasca receive ‘treatment’ (Trek 1, Stage 6)
Getting fit before setting out on any of the treks will be of great benefit, and you should be comfortable with the prospect of walking for five or six hours each day – excluding rests – over rough ground carrying a rucksack weighing up to 9kg (20lb). Although the three main treks are of a modest duration compared with the Tour of Mont Blanc or Chamonix to Zermatt Walkers’ Haute Route, for example, a few stages – especially on the Tour of the Silvretta Alps – cross challenging terrain where for a good part of the summer you may see no-one else for several hours. Navigational skills and good ‘mountain sense’ will be important, and while no technical climbing ability is called for, there are a number of narrow, exposed sections that could be unsettling for first-time trekkers. Often such exposed or difficult areas will be protected by fixed cables or chains, a length of metal ladder bolted to a rock face, or an iron stanchion or rung for foot placement. Check each item of protection before committing your weight on it.
In late spring and early summer snowmelt will invariably raise water levels,
