Leukerbad, the warmest winter in Switzerland among hot springs

The glacial valley of the Rhône, the only river that connects the Mediterranean with Northern Europe, has served as a true communication highway since Antiquity.

All kinds of merchandise, armies and travelers have been exchanged through it, and the Roman legions consolidated it as a strategic trade route while, crossing the Alps, they introduced the wine culture to Switzerland.

So it's not hard to imagine —when they weren't fighting or plotting immortal engineering feats— their enjoyment of the culinary excellence and the thermal waters that emerge in the heart of what is now the Pfyn-Finges Nature Park, on the right bank of the Upper Rhône, considered of national importance for its extraordinary variety of flora and fauna and its high landscape value, with territorial and climatic diversity taken to the limit.

In a short distance you go from 600 to 3,000 meters of altitude, from the mild climate of its river wetlands and sunny slopes covered with the highest vineyards of the old continent to high peaks where thermal waters coexist with glaciers.

Wooden scales, one of the hallmarks of popular architecture in Leukerbad.Carma Casulá

Its gateway is the small and thriving medieval city of Leuk (3,700 inhabitants), nestled between terraces with vines and fruit trees overlooking the Rhône.

The old town, which smells of barrels and tradition, was built around the Viztumschloss castle (11th century), the current town hall, and the Bischofsschloss episcopal palace, recognizable by its glass dome by Mario Botta, the same great Swiss architect who designed it in the nearby massif of Les Diablerets the Glacier 3000 station and its iconic suspension bridge

Peak Walk.

Among noble ancestral mansions, the church of San Esteban (15th century) stands out, which, in addition to wall paintings, hides the Beinhaus chapel, an ossuary discovered in 1981 by some works that unearthed an authentic scenery of orderly arranged skulls and stone sculptures from the 13th centuries. to the XVI among the remains of a previous Roman building.

Medieval village of Leuk, in the Swiss canton of Valois.

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From here opens the magnificent valley gorge that leads to Leukerbad, with the last vines and small clusters of houses and wooden barns so classic of popular high mountain architecture.

Among the clearings reclaimed from the dense forest are the villages of Inden and

Albinen, with narrow streets to shelter from the inclement weather.

And if anyone feels seduced, the barely 250 inhabitants of the latter approved in 2017 as an initiative to stop depopulation paying each person who moves to their town 25,000 Swiss francs (about 25,200 euros), and another 10,000 additional Swiss francs for each child;

that yes, with a permanence of at least 10 years.

From here you reach the Leukerbad glacial cirque, a town of 1,500 inhabitants located in a spectacular geothermal caldera surrounded by forests and sheltered by the sheer rock face of the Gemmi mountain.

A destination where the offers of snow sports and unbeatable walks are multiplied, converted into the alpine spa of reference for

, or wellness, and natural healing.

Because under these ice and snow-covered peaks there are large pockets of thermal water from which no less than 3.9 million liters of water gush out daily at 51 °C from its 65 sources.

Strongly mineralized waters with high proportions of calcium, sodium, strontium, iron or fluoride, among others, which makes them especially suitable for bone and joint, nerve and skin ailments.

They are used in spas and modern clinics such as

Walliser Alpentherme Burgerbad & Spa Leukerbad, which has an outdoor pool among its pools with the rocky wall as a backdrop, which has become one of the iconic images of the country.

Or Leukerbad Therme, the largest thermal complex in the Alps, which at night with its

proposal becomes a

under the stars, with water games and light effects and music between clouds of steam due to the contrast with the icy atmosphere.

The spas are the main hallmark of this destination run by veins of water.

Through the streets of the old town, with houses with elaborate façades made of scales or wooden feathers, like creatures from some fable, and topped with windows decorated with dolls and lace curtains, walked Jules Verne, Picasso, Goethe, Mark Twain, Herbert von Karajan or Lenin himself.

The Leukerbad Thermes, with the possibility of night baths.

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Near your square part

the path that leads to the Dalaschlucht gorge, where the hot waters of the Dala River flow in their natural state.

The path is designed and maintained by the Thermalquellen (Thermal Springs) guild itself and is only open to the public from May to October, weather permitting, like so many other routes.

Two cable cars connect the town with its two peaks, which rise face to face: Torrent (2,998 metres), very popular among ski lovers for its 55 kilometers of slopes, and Gemmi (2,350 metres), for cross-country skiing.

And always with impressive views of several four thousand, such as the well-known Matterhorn or Monte Cervino;

the opposite neighbor across the Rhône is the valley leading to Zermatt.

The journey to the historic Gemmipass is made

in a few minutes and allows you to see the almost vertical and zigzag trajectory of the old mule trail and also the Gemmi Daubenhorn via ferrata, one of the longest and most demanding in Switzerland.

Perched high above, Gemmi's panoramic suspension platform,

a rhomboid steel and glass balcony suspended over the precipice with breathtaking views, hovers over Leukerbad, 920 meters below our feet.

From here starts a circular path that skirts the frozen Daubensee lake

with its great blanket of snow.

Also for winter hikers, the nine kilometers of the path to Sunnbüel (two and a half hours) are kept open, weather and wind permitting.

The panoramic café-restaurant Gemmi Lodge 2350 has joined the Sunnbüel mountain lodge, where you can also pamper your palate.

And it is that all the spaces within the 277 square kilometers of the Pfyn-Finges natural park

They are committed to "conserving and enhancing traditional cultural and natural landscapes, promoting and perpetuating the sustainable development of the economy, raising awareness and training its inhabitants and producers", according to the website of this protected area.

Therefore, to its natural proposal is added, for the delight and pleasure of the traveler, the gastronomy, in restaurants and canteens, favoring the wide variety of local seasonal products that its unique landscape produces.

From

made with grape seed flour to pear and apple juices, cherry, elderberry or plum jams, cheeses, herbal teas, wines and spirits, handicrafts and other items that can be bought on the main street (Kirchstrasse) of Leukerbad or directly to their producers.

When the last rays of sun fall, after the sports activity, it is time to relax in its warm thermal waters.

The silence of the mountain is broken only in its lively pubs, on Swiss time to regain strength for the next day.

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