(Simon writes:) Continuing our mission on the Alpine Pass Route, I spent a few days in the East of Switzerland. This September was unusual for the amount of rain! We advise that early September is often a good time to be in the Alps for stable weather - not so in 2017! Here I began at Sargans and made my way along the easier paths of the Alpine Pass Route East, making good use of the buses and trains to skip about.

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The high street of Sargans under the castle. Sargans is an everyday Swiss town far from any tourism, and quite attractive.

The APR starts with a climb up into woods, to gain a side valley. Here is the view back to Sargans.

Near Weisstannen, the valley and barns.

Sun this morning, having taken the train to Linthal and bus to the Klausenpass. Now I'll walk downhill to Altdorf.

The faint path drops into the valley.

The descent was quite steep into this valley, now looking back up. I'm at Asch, a village underneath an impressive waterfall that jets out from the cliff.

Water works in the valley.

The centre of Altdorf, a pretty Swiss town in the valley floor. This is one of the larger places visited by the APR with several hotels and restaurants. In terms of placing within Switzerland, we are on the train route North-South to Italy.. the Gotthard tunnels.

Back on the buses to the Klausenpass. A vintage tractor rally was in full swing!

Walking down to Linthal in the other direction, on a day of steadily increasing rain, I stopped for lunch.

With the rain set in I dropped quickly down the final mule track, well constructed and leading into Linthal.

I took the funicular railway to Braunwald, a small resort on a shelf above Linthal.

Back in Linthal and it's time for pudding.

Taking the train to St Gallen, the university town in the North East of Switzerland, here is a typical shot of a rural Swiss train. Region by region the trains differ, all following the linked timetable. We are waiting at Uznach.

St Gallen cathedral on a quiet Sunday. Most of the Swiss cities are very quiet on Sundays: almost all shops and many cafes and bars stay closed.

Flying back on a Swiss plane, an unexpected lunch!

 Alpine Pass Route East - walk self-guided with us