The Töss Valley (German: ''Tösstal'') is a

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers ...

and a

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

of the

canton of Zürich The canton of Zürich (german: Kanton Zürich ; rm, Chantun Turitg; french: Canton de Zurich; it, Canton Zurigo) is a Swiss canton in the northeastern part of the country. With a population of (as of ), it is the most populous canton in the ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Geography

The valley embraces parts of the

Zürcher Oberland The Zürcher Oberland ("Zurich highlands") in Switzerland, is the hilly south-eastern part of the canton of Zurich, bordering on the Toggenburg, including the districts of Uster, Hinwil, Pfäffikon as well as the Töss Valley as far as the dist ...

including the

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

Hinwil Hinwil is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Hinwil (district), Hinwil in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Zurich (canton), Zürich in Switzerland. History The village Hinwil from which the later municipality ...

, Pfäffikon and

Winterthur , neighboring_municipalities = Brütten, Dinhard, Elsau, Hettlingen, Illnau-Effretikon, Kyburg, Lindau, Neftenbach, Oberembrach, Pfungen, Rickenbach, Schlatt, Seuzach, Wiesendangen, Zell , twintowns = Hall in Tirol (Austria), La ...

, in addition to parts of the

Zürcher Unterland The ''Zürcher Unterland'' ("Zurich lowlands") comprises the northwestern part of the canton of Zurich, including the districts of Bülach and Dielsdorf. Geographically, it is located in the Swiss plateau, between the Limmat valley, the city of ...

(lower Töss valley). Usually ''Tösstal'' is the name of the upper Töss valley, i.e. its narrow, valley-like area in the southeast of the city of

. The river

Töss Töss is a district in the Swiss city of Winterthur. It is district number 4. The district comprises the quarters Schlosstal, Dättnau, Eichliacker and Rossberg. It is named after the river Töss which flows through the district. In the Middle ...

rises at ''Tössstock'' mountain (el. 1,154 m) flows along the valley including the municipalities and villages of Steg, Lipperschwändi and Wellenau (villages of

Fischenthal Fischenthal is a village and a municipality in the district of Hinwil in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. Besides the village of Fischenthal, it includes the villages of Gibswil and Steg, as well as nearly 100 smaller settlements. History ...

Bauma The bauma (International Trade Fair for Construction Machinery, Building Material Machines, Mining Machines, Construction Vehicles and Construction Equipment) is the world's largest trade fair in the construction industry. The trade fair, which ...

, Juckern, Blitterswil, Saland, Tablat, Wila,

Turbenthal Turbenthal is a municipality in the district of Winterthur located in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. Geography Turbenthal has an area of . Of this area, 34.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 57.6% is forested. Of the rest of t ...

Zell Zell may refer to: Places Austria * Zell am See, in Salzburg state * Zell am Ziller, in Tyrol * Zell, Carinthia, in Carinthia * in Upper Austria: ** Bad Zell ** Zell am Moos ** Zell an der Pram ** Zell am Pettenfirst Germany * Zell im Fichtelg ...

Rikon is a 1952 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Masahiro Makino. Cast * Ureo Egawa as Shōgo Yamamura * Yuriko Hanabusa as Natsuno Sōma * Chōko Iida as Kikuyo * Michiyo Kogure as Michiko Sōma * Noriko Munakata as Tsuruko Miyawakita ...

Kollbrunn Kollbrunn is a village within the municipality of Zell in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland. Geography Kollbrunn is located in the district of Winterthur within the Töss Valley. Zell-Kollbrunn belongs to the urban area of the northwestern ...

, and Sennhof near Winterthur. The Tösstal is a popular recreation area and well known for

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

tours in the surrounding mountains as

Schnebelhorn The Schnebelhorn is a mountain located near Fischenthal in the Töss Valley, between the cantons of Zurich (west) and St. Gallen , neighboring_municipalities = Eggersriet, Gaiserwald, Gossau, Herisau (AR), Mörschwil, Speicher (AR), Ste ...

and

Hulftegg Hulftegg Pass (el. 954 m.) is a mountain pass between the cantons of Zürich and St. Gallen in Switzerland. It connects Mühlrüti in the municipality of Mosnang and Steg in the municipality of Fischenthal in the Töss Valley. The pass lies be ...

pass, and for skating and biking along Töss. The lower Töss valley includes the widely flattened parts in the west of Winterthur; it compromises the quarters of Winterthur called

and

Wülflingen Wülflingen is a district in the Swiss city of Winterthur, situated in the lower Töss Valley. It is district number six, and comprises the quarters Weinberg, Oberfeld, Lindenplatz, Niederfeld, Neuburg, Hardau, Härti and Taggenberg. Wü ...

, the municipalities

Neftenbach Neftenbach is a municipality in the district of Winterthur in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. Besides the village of Neftenbach itself, the municipality includes the settlements of Hünikon, Aesch, Riet and Irchelhöfen. History Neftenbach i ...

Pfungen Pfungen is a municipality in the district of Winterthur in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. History Pfungen is first mentioned in 993 as ''Funginga''. Geography Pfungen has an area of . Of this area, 32.3% is used for agricultural purposes ...

Dättlikon Dättlikon is a municipality in the district of Winterthur in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. History Dättlikon is first mentioned in 1241 as ''Tetelinkhoven''. Geography Dättlikon has an area of . Of this area, 43% is used for agricultu ...

Embrach Embrach is a municipality in the district of Bülach in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. Coat of arms Blazon '' Gules, two keys argent in saltire.'' Until the middle of the 16th century seals with the image of St. Peter were used. Today's ...

Rorbas Rorbas is a municipality in the district of Bülach in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. Geography Rorbas has an area of . Of this, 35.7% is used for agricultural purposes, 46.6% is forested and 15% is settled (buildings or roads). The rema ...

Freienstein Freienstein-Teufen is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Bülach (district), Bülach in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Zurich (canton), Zürich in Switzerland. History Freienstein-Teufen is first mentioned in ...

and Teufen where the Töss joins the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

at Tössegg.

History

First settlement of the upper Töss valley by Celts is considered probable. After the Romans had withdrawn from the area of Winterthur (Vitudurum), the Alemanni advanced into the Töss valley. In the 19th century, water power was the basis of a flourishing textile industry that settled along the course of the river. The poor

smallholder A smallholding or smallholder is a small farm operating under a small-scale agriculture model. Definitions vary widely for what constitutes a smallholder or small-scale farm, including factors such as size, food production technique or technology ...

population earned money by carving wooden spoons in addition to working in the factories, which earned the region the name Chellenland (Swiss German: Chelle = English: cooking spoon). The water power of the Töss, however, also repeatedly caused flooding and brought much destruction to the region. In 1876, the Töss Valley Railway was completed, connecting the cities of Winterthur and Rapperswil. The driving force behind its realisation was the Swiss railway builder Adolf Guyer-Zeller, who also initiated the construction of the Jungfrau Railway. Until 1956, the steam railway was one of the last still in operation in Switzerland; to this day, the Dampfbahn-Verein Zürcher Oberland still runs steam locomotives on the Hinwil-Bauma line.

Transportation

The ''Tösstalstrasse'' (

motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...

) was built in 1837, the ''Tösstalbahn'' ( S26) opened in 1872/76.

Literature

* Hans Bernhard: ''Wirtschafts- und Siedelungsgeographie des Tösstales''. In: Jahresberichte der Geographisch-Ethnographischen Gesellschaft in Zürich, Vol. 11, 1910-1911
Digitalisat
* Kurt Hutter ''et al.'': ''Das Tösstal''. Birkenhalde Verlag, 2007. .

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toss Valley River valleys of Switzerland Regions of Switzerland High Rhine basin Landforms of the canton of Zürich