I wrote a book detailing my long-distance hike across Switzerland on the Swiss National Hiking Route #3. This foreigner’s guidebook is available.
I’ve included a section of the Preface below.
“I selected the Swiss Alpine Panorama Trail because it follows along the front edge of the Alps. This is the seam between civilization and nature. Where towns and farms transition to rock and forest. I believe I can learn the most about a culture from its agricultural heritage and this trail is at ‘ground zero’ for that discovery.
I purposely did not hike this trail as a thru-hike. Instead, I hiked each of the 29 segments as individual day hikes. In this way, I could chase the sun around the country to hike in good weather. Day hikes make each segment more accessible to anyone else interested in hiking the Swiss Alpine Panorama Trail. And I was able to return to my home in Zurich at the end of the day.
I filmed my hikes with a 360° GoPro Max camera. My videos are easily found on my YouTube channel @SwissCheeseTrails. I have also posted these 360° VR Videos on various immersive VR platforms such as Pico and Meta. My original motivation for filming was to share my hikes with my friends and family. Since I ‘disappear’ for weeks at a time to Switzerland, this is a way for me to share my overseas life.
As my portfolio of videos expanded and my personal education about each segment was written down, I realized I could share my experiences with a wider audience. This book outlines my adventures and the QR tags link to my website to access more photos and the 360° videos.
Each segment of the Swiss Alpine Panorama Trail is unique with its own challenges and treasures. I tried to capture the challenges and treasures for each segment to help provide personality to the trail. As I moved across the country, I discovered regional personalities as well. I tried to capture some of the discoveries with “Pro Tips.”
I focus a lot of attention on food and provide a list of Alpine Restaurants, “Berggasthaus” in German or “Alp House” as I call them. I find it important to sit and interact with people and food. These restaurants are fun distractions and often lead to welcoming conversations with locals and travelers alike.
I’m a watch person and my Garmin watch provides data points. The maps and elevations are directly taken from my hiking. I provide this data for its relative accuracy about the trail. In some cases, I split segments to best suit my needs, and these splits are shown. I recommend SwitzerlandMobility as the primary source for trail information. It is important to check trail conditions, local construction, detours, and any other up-to-date information. Most of these hikes are near towns and emergency situations should not occur, but there are areas where a lack of local knowledge could lead to problems. https://www.schweizmobil.ch
In the end, I am immensely happy with the Swiss Alpine Panorama Trail and my accomplishment of hiking it.”
