In our village of Richterswil there's a large hill just to the south of us that overlooks the town. Evidently, the hill is called "Etzel Kulm," and yesterday the kids and I found a trail that leads to the summit. After a 20 minute drive to the trailhead we started our hike. The hike takes you up the hill through a farm pasture dotted with traditional Swiss cows (complete with their customary bells clanging.) This is pretty typical. Hiking in Switzerland usually takes you through a family's farmland or a small country town, whereas in the States hiking is usually more remote or rustic. Anyway, at the top we were surprised to discover a restaurant complete with outdoor seating and a playground. The restaurant happened to be closed yesterday but the kids still enjoyed the playground, and Glacier and I just enjoyed the amazing scenery. To the north you get great views of Lake Zurich and the surrounding city, while to the south you get great views of the Sihlsee Alps and the Glarner Alps, as well as some of the Swiss countryside around Einsiedeln. All in all I would say we hiked around 1.5 miles total. The kids did great, and seemed to enjoy themselves. They really enjoyed the playground at the top. As for me, I'm so happy we found such a great hike, complete with national park views, right in our own backyard. For being so close to our house this hike has loads of scenery.
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