Salgesch - St. Léonard

The medieval pilgrimage center Salgesch is the last German-speaking place on the language border. A huge landslide from the Varneralp 13,000 years ago covered the remnants of the former Rhône glacier and the remaining glacier transported the material to today's Sierre. On one of the remaining hills still stands the Gerunden monastery, whose first church was built in the 5th century. In the densely built town of Sierre, Christopher greets on the entrance facade of the former medieval parish church Notre-Dame-des-Marais. To the west of Sierre, we ascend into the vineyard slope. Behind the Château Villa — the epicenter of raclette and wine in Valais — we encounter the chapel St. Ginier, where a Christian sanctuary is said to have existed since the 7th century. We enjoy the path through the vineyard slope to St. Léonard, where at the back in the underground lake, an illuminated Virgin Mary awaits us.