normal magazin nummer18 sommer

Patrick Emmenegger ist als Bezirksleiter für die Wanderwege in Engelberg verantwortlich. As district manager, Patrik Emmenegger is responsible for Engelberg’s hiking trails.

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dif ferently across the border. In fac t, few municipa lities have a system like Engelberg’s: Patrik and two colleagues are employed by the municipa lity and are exclusively responsible for hiking trails; in other par ts of Switzer- land there are cantona l organisations, tour- ism associations, or teams of volunteers. Patrik of ten star ts his working day at Engelberg railway station. In spring, when warm rays of sunshine gradua lly melt the blanket of snow and nature gets into gear af ter a long winter, preparations for the upcoming

f unds to rebuild the trail, the Aa Gorge Ad- venture Trail interest group was formed. Sepp Hursch ler, who was retired but f it, played a key role in the initiative. His face lights up when he ta lks about it, and the enthusiasm shows in his voice: “It was unbelievable!” he says. More than 30 volunteers put in countless hours to reconstruc t the path and, with the suppor t of the Fritz Carl Wilhelm Foundation, to repair and rebuild nine stone, meta l and hanging bridges.The work was completed in 2011, when the group handed the trail back to the mu-

Zweisprachige Maturität

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International Baccalaureate

www.sportingpark.ch Spor ting Park Engelberg Engelbergerstra sse 11 CH-6390 Engelberg Phone +41 41 639 60 00 info@spor tingpark.ch

(IB World School)

Benediktinerkloster 5 | CH-6390 Engelberg | Telefon +41 (0)41 639 62 11 Telefax +41 (0)41 639 62 13 | info@stiftsschule-engelberg.ch www.stiftsschule-engelberg.ch

hiking season begin in the lower sec tions of the va lley and gradua lly move upwards as the snow melts. Just as foxes and hares shed their winter f ur, the signs change colour – f rom pink in winter

nicipa lity and par ted ways to look for their nex t cha llenge. Patrik and Sepp have a passion for nature and the lo- ca l region, which is ref lec ted in their daily work. Patrik has long been busy digitising

Cantons and municipalities are responsible for the main- tenance of hiking trails.

Kinder

gratis fahren

kiser.ch

*

Erfolg ist, Erfahrung weiterzugeben.

Children travel

free of charge *

to yellow in summer. Some even get white- red-white or white-blue-white markings to show that they are mountain paths or A lpine routes. The outdoorsmen assiduously work their way a long the paths, put ting benches in place, insta lling hand ropes, and rebuilding sma ller bridges. For safety reasons, a lmost eve- r y thing is removed f rom the trails in winter. Patrik and his colleagues a lso rely on volunteers to help them keep an eye on the huge network of trails. The “Wanderweggöt tis” watch over the trails and repor t any problems, e.g. if a tree has fa llen, rocks are blocking the path, or a path is f looded. And without help- ers like this, the trail to Grafenor t across the roaring Aa gorge wou ld be a thing of the past. Engelberg was bad ly af fec ted by heavy rainfa ll across Switzerland in summer 2005; torren- tia l mudslides f rom the Aa river destroyed the road at the entrance to the v illage and thus the hiking trail to the Aa gorge. When the canton and municipa lity failed to supply suf f icient

maps and a ligning loca l, regiona l and nationa l routes. The over v iew of a ll hiking trails must be as clear as possible for users: “It ’s no good knowing that seven routes lead to Rome; they want to know which one is the most beautif u l,” he says. But the new maps won’ t be ready until autumn, which Patrik and Sepp are a lready looking forward to. Autumn is their favourite time of year: the bu lk of the work is done, it ’s not so hot anymore, leaves rustle under foot, the A lps are quiet, and nature is preparing itself for winter. And because they have less work to do, they’re lef t with more time to hunt, take in their surroundings, listen to the sounds of nature and, best of a ll, wa lk across the roaring Aa gorge without a care in the world. Fur ther information on Engel- berg’s hiking trails: www.engelberg.ch Hiking high lights: the Aa Gorge Ad- venture Trail and the Buirebähn li Safari

* in Begleitung eines Erwachsenen

fahren Kinder unter 16 Jahren vom

5. Mai bis 13. November 2016 kostenlos mit Luftseilbahn und Sessellift ( ausgenommen sind Gruppen ). * Children under 16 years, accompanied by an adult, travel free of charge with

Weil Erfolg für alle etwas anderes ist, ist die beste Beratung die ganz persönliche.

cable car and chairlift during the summer season ( except groups).

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