Zurich – Planet Walk
Just 20 minutes by train, the S10, from Zurich main station, is the best view of the city and lake you’ll find.
The Uetliberg is at the top of the ridge that runs along the lake, and gives spectacular views in all directions, especially from the observation tower.
It’s a 15 minute walk from the station to the viewing platform, and it is uphill, so can leave you a bit out of breath – but the view may well take your breath away too.
It’s also educational, along the walk are scale models of the sun and the nine planets (eight if you’re a purist and no longer count pluto) of our solar system.
In the photo above, you can see the sun, and Mercury is a tiny ball bearing encased in the blue plastic you can just see mounted in the stone.
The Earth is about a quarter of a mile down the path.
I confess, I’ve never got as far as Pluto.
5 Comments
I like it – how far away is Pluto from the Sun in this planet walk?
Seems like a great walk to take someday. Since my mom is from Zurich I have been planning on visiting the city someday. Perhaps this will help me get there. Thanks for pointing out this walk.
Ooh, just discovered I forgot to answer the question TTT!
The scale of the walk is 1mm represents 1km, so as Pluto is 4,400,000 km away from the sun, the walk is 4.4km (2.75 miles) long. In comparison, the model of the earth is 12mm (0.5 inches) across.
Richard, I’m sure you’d love it if you ever visit Zurich. It’s easy to get to, and a great experience.
What a walk it would be