A beautiful hike into the unknown nature paradise next to Bad Zurzach.

Text and pictures by Marc Gottwald

Nature paradise near Bad Zurzach

We know Bad Zurzach mainly from its thermal baths. But would you have thought that there is a nature paradise hiding here?

The rare sand martins are just in the mating season and fly to their refuge. A swan proudly shows off its white robe. And the mallard is eagerly looking for food.

But the contrast is great. On the other side, intensive agriculture is practiced. Further back you can see the tower of the Bad Zurzach spa. Houses line up there, one after the other.

Start of the “Nature Paradise Hike” near Bad Zurzach

Our hike starts in the village next to Bad Zurzach called Rietheim. Rietheim is easily accessible by train and bus from Bad Zurzach or Koblenz. But even those who want to travel by car will find parking spaces in Rietheim.

For example, there is a car park directly at the nature reserve car park (1CHF / h and payable in coins only). Now there are two variants. One is a short walk in the nature reserve along the paths, which is also perfect for families as an excursion near Zurich.

We do the longer hike, which takes about 1.5h. First you walk from the village of Rietheim to the nature reserve. On the way you will see a canalised stream. Since the whole creek is made out of cement, only very few animals can survive in this artificial stream. But the beaver is back and automatically turns the area into a nature paradise. He cuts down trees and dams up the water to create more habitat.

This is also evident here at Bad Zurzach: Nature reclaims.

When you arrive at the car park, walk towards the Rhine with the fireplace. Although it only takes 5 minutes to reach the front, there is a detour worth mentioning. A bunker has been converted into a viewing platform. From here you can watch birds and other animals.

If you like, you can have a barbecue or picnic by the Rhine.

We walk back to the car park and then turn left. After a while, turn left again, where we come to the observation tower. Then we walk along the Rhine until we turn right and walk back towards Rietheim.

Rhine – river straightening

“Chly Rhy Aue Rietheim” is our nature paradise near Bad Zurzach. It lies directly on the border to Germany. Germany? Yes! The Rhine is the border between Germany and Switzerland. And it runs uninterrupted after Eglisau all the way to Basel. Only in the area between Stein am Rhein and Eglisau are sometimes both river banks of the Rhine partly on Swiss territory.

Today, the “Chly Rhy” floodplain is both a natural paradise and a nature reserve. But the floodplain near Bad Zurzach is man-made. You heard right.

To prevent flooding and, above all, to gain land, practically all rivers in Switzerland were straightened in the 19th and 20th centuries! This is called ” watercourse correction “. For example, after storms the rivers carried a lot of driftwood that came from the mountains. The driftwood could easily get caught and a natural dam was created that flooded fields and villages.

But epidemics could also be eradicated. For example, there was also malaria in Switzerland, which was eradicated when the wetlands were drained.

Sounds all well and good now, but the watercourse corrections are a disaster for the environment. Most of the wetlands and floodplain landscapes have been lost. Exactly those landscapes that are responsible for the greatest biodiversity.

Chly Rhy Aue Rietheim – Renaturation

Now this is being reversed with the help of Pro Natura. The floodplain in Rietheim near Bad Zurzach is a fine example of renaturation.

Although Bad Zurzach and Rietheim are so close to Zurich, both places belong to the canton of Aargau. And here we have it. The canton of Aargau is a model canton when it comes to revitalization. It wants to revitalize 152 kilometers of waterways in 20 years between 2015 and 2035. In the process, agricultural land such as fields will also be “partially taken away” from the farmer.

How does that work? The canton has issued a contract to the owners for 99 years. After this expires, 3% of it will not be renewed. There is no obligation to compensate in the contract.

That’s a total of 32 hectares of fields. Sounds like a lot. But if you look at the figures that over 1000ha were wetlands and water bodies before 1880, this is again minimal.

The contrast is also clearly visible on this “Bad Zurzach Hike”. On the one hand, the revitalized nature reserve, on the other hand, intensive agriculture where poison is intensively sprayed and fertilized. That is about 3% of the previous area.

Sand fill for sand martin

As already mentioned, floodplains are biodiversity hotspots. However, most of the flood plains were lost due to bank corrections. An artificial sand block was heaped up for the very rare sand martin . In April, when the swallows return from Africa, they breed here. It is a natural spectacle that you must have seen once.

Note, however, not to leave the paths throughout the nature reserve. This also applies to the sand martins. This way the animals are not disturbed.

Conclusion

Bad Zurzach doesn’t always have to be just the spa. This hike in the “Chly Rhy Aue Rietheim” is probably the most beautiful hike near Bad Zurzach and takes you into a natural paradise. During the hike you can see from Switzerland across the Rhine to Germany. The area is an ideal example of successful renaturation, where the canton of Aargau is a model canton. A big thanks also goes to Pro Natura for their tireless efforts in Switzerland.

More tips about Switzerland are available in the free Switzerland by Locals e-Book you can find here.