The Wägital and the Wägitalersee

What to see in the Wägital

• Wägitalersee: the path around the lake is 13 kilometres long, flat and manageable with children. There are bathing spots along the shore.
• Schräh dam: built between 1922 and 1924, it was the highest gravity dam in the world until 1929. The view from the crest down into the valley is striking.
• Innerthal: the only village on the lake, with a church and inns.
• Mountain hikes: from the head of the valley, trails lead up to the Bockmattli, the Zindlenspitz and along the Schwyzer Höhenweg.
• Fishing: the lake is popular with anglers; a permit is required.

The village that made way for the lake

When the Schräh dam was built in the 1920s, the old village of Innerthal vanished beneath the water. Church, houses and farms were abandoned, and the village was rebuilt higher up. Anyone standing on the shore today is looking at a landscape with a piece of the valley's history lying beneath it.

The dam itself is a structure of historic significance. For a short time it was the highest gravity dam in the world, and it changed the character of the valley fundamentally. From the crest the view falls far down into the Wägital.

Walking and quiet

The Wägital is a valley without mountain railways and without large holiday resorts. People come here to walk, to look and to do nothing at all. The path around the lake is the easiest option, largely flat and with plenty of places to linger on the shore.

Things get more demanding at the head of the valley. From there, mountain trails climb to the Bockmattli with its striking rock towers, to the Zindlenspitz and on to the Schwyzer Höhenweg. These routes call for fitness and a sure step, but reward you with a mountain world where you meet few people even on fine days.

The valley is at its most impressive on still autumn mornings, when the mountain forest turns colour and the lake lies mirror-smooth. Because the flanks are so steep, in late autumn and winter the sun reaches the valley floor only briefly.

Tip: The Wägital is at its loveliest in autumn, when the mountain forest turns colour and the water lies mirror-smooth.

Getting there

Bus from Siebnen-Wangen to Vorderthal and Innerthal. By car from Siebnen, with parking by the lake.

The road into the valley is narrow and winding, and correspondingly busy on fine weekends. There is parking at Innerthal and along the lake, though it fills early on summer days. The bus gives you more flexibility and lets you plan the walk as a point-to-point route rather than a loop.

Public transport: Train to Siebnen-Wangen, bus to Innerthal.