Sihlwald

One of the two rivers of Zürich, the Sihl, flows from the Sihlsee (or Sihl Lake) and then alongside the Zürichsee until it joins the Limmat River in downtown Zürich.  According to my German instructor, the Sihl River is much colder and more quick-running; bathers will spend summers on manmade beaches along the Limmat and float trips down the river are popular, but playing in the Sihl is not advised.

Today, however, Ella and Alex proclaimed the shores of the Sihl to be their best place, ever.

After Ella's early out, we packed up our granola bars and water bottles and hopped on a train to the Hauptbahnhof.

Most of the train lines in the Zürich canton are operated by the Zürcher Verkehrsverbund, or VBZ, but two lines, the S4 and the S10 (which runs a block from our apartment), are operated by a separate consortium, the Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn (SZU), which is jointly owned by the local, cantonal, and federal governments, and fills the need for transportation to the west of the Zürichsee.  Lucky for us, because we can get downtown in 6 minutes flat (one end of the S10) or to the top of our Üetliburg mountain (the other end).  The S4, which is on the adjacent track to our S10, also ends at the Hauptbahnhof, and terminates at the other end 25 minutes away in the Sihlwald, or Sihl Woods.  Actually, to be perfectly accurate, one train an hour goes clear to the middle Sihlwald; the other two trains that run each hour (and during rush hour, there are six trains an hour) end at the northern tip of the Sihlwald.

But we wanted to go all the way to the end, today, so we got timed our trip and snuggled up for a train trip through the suburbs and the woods.

Unfortunately, the clouds broke during our train ride, and, remembering the lessons I learned on the Bannalp Trail, we almost didn't get off the train at the end of the line, since the next train, the one that could rescue us from the downpour, wouldn't run for another hour.  But the kids (showing more foresight than me and noticing the gray skys) had insisted on bringing their umbrellas, and they were thrilled at the prospect of using them.

Fools. I'm taking my picture safe from the shelter of the
train station.

You'd think, coming from Seattle, that umbrellas wouldn't be such a novelty, but I can count on one hand the number of times we actually opened our umbrellas while living in Seattle.  It doesn't really rain in Seattle.  It just kind of spritzes. When we moved from dry California, Ella steadfastly refused to get our feet wet for several months, but she and the boys grew into excellent puddle jumpers.

I never would have believed it, but the rain lasted all of ten minutes, and the day metamorphosed into one of the prettiest we've seen here, with that additional, amazing lighting that you get after a good rain.  With the wildflowers out, and the woods and the river, well, it was a little bit of paradise.

The train station is right on the shore of the Sihl; we crossed a bridge to the far shore, and didn't go any further.  In the two hours that we spent in the woods, we may have traveled all of 400 meters.  But after having to push and cajole Joey for so long yesterday, I was more than happy to travel at his pace.  And all three kids loved playing on the bank of the river, collecting their mossy findings.

Alex spent ages throwing sticks and rocks into the water.
Joey wanted to join the fun, but only with the biggest sticks.

My hope: that seven or eight decades from now,
someone will take a similar picture of these sweet
brothers.  I love how close they are now.

Ella, furiously collecting sand and clay.
"This will really come in handy, Mom!"

After an hour on the shore (me with my book), we recrossed the river to the Sihlwald Visitors Center.  There was a small cafeteria counter inside and a picnic area and play area outside.  

Bridge across the Sihl

A labyrinth that, I suspect, will be more impressive in
mid-summer 

Play place with giant tangrams.

Picnic area, with firewood (lots of
it!) free for the taking

A bee hive

Wo ist der Biber?

In addition to the picnic grounds, there was a little nature preserve with two animal enclosures, one for river otters and the other for beavers.  Elsewhere in the Sihl woods is a large Tierpark (or animal park) that is free to the public and houses over a dozen different species, from ungulates to bears, their enclosures speckled through the woods, with an hour-long trail wandering through them.  I think these little enclosures are an extension of the Tierpark, taking advantage of the proximity to the water.  The beavers weren't out today, but we got to watch the otters play before catching our train home.


Just a few more pictures from today...

Joey and I had breakfast with Dennis this
morning: as we approached the building,
Joey happily chirped "Look! Our house!"
He definitely makes himself at home, there.
This is he on their new bicycle-powered
smoothie blender (the blender container
fits onto the front.)

German lesson: Ella and Alex are practicing
body parts, and mommy is taking one for
the team.