BERNINA EXPRESS
This is one of the two or three most famous scenic rail journey’s of Switzerland. I traveled the route from Chur to Tirano Italy, and then back to Chur. (As the rail line says, from glaciers to palms) It is one of only 3 rail lines that are classified as a Unesco site for its historical and engineering aspects. In less than 100 miles, it travels over 196 bridges and through 55 tunnels and includes the highest elevation rail mountain pass in Europe. It goes from 1500’ at Chur to the pass at 7,500’ and down to Tirano at 1300’ all without the use of any cogs or other support systems. Just a very creative use of spiral tunnels and such to get up and down. It takes 4 hours each way to do all of this, so the term “Express” is a bit of a stretch.
The shots with this blog are not the best as it is tough to do good photography inside the train due to the glass and it’s reflections. But, I think you can see that the scenery was quite astounding, even with the weather issues.
If you want to see better shots or learn more about this travel experience, go to their site, www.rhb.ch.
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| Yes, it is really that green here. |
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| The famous Landwasser Viaduct |
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| Higher up the first pass in the area of repeated spiral tunnels used to gain altitude without cogs or other helpers. |
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| At Alp Gum near the Bernina pass. Waterfalls running straight from glaciers. |
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| A close up of the glacier at Bernina pass. |
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| Lago Blanco at Bernina pass. The white water is due to the glacial sediment in the water. |
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| Alpine view from the train. |
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| Overlooking a beautiful valley going down from Bernina Pass. |
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| Another village heading into Italy |
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| The Brusio Circular viaduct uses a full 360 degree loop to change altitude in a limited amount of space. |