Natural paradises on Thur and High Rhine

During the Rhine correction of 1897, the Old Rhine was separated from the Rhine by a longitudinal dam to reduce bank erosion. In the side arms, an important habitat for endangered animal and plant species was thus created. It is protected as the Eggrank-Thurspitz National Floodplain Area.

An important Rhine crossing has always been the Rüdlingen Rhine Bridge. Its strategic importance went beyond the Cold War. The characteristic data for tank traffic on the bridge are recorded in a Soviet general staff map newly published in 1988.

With the project "Flood protection and floodplain landscape at the Thur estuary" the Canton of Zurich aims to revitalize the Thur floodplains in the estuary area to reduce flood risk in the future and to protect the floodplains. New paths and facilities such as fire pits, observation huts, and viewing platforms have been built for visitors. To inform them, the Thurauen Nature Center was opened in 2011 as a gateway to the largest floodplain protection area in the Swiss Midlands.