Juf

Juf sits at 2,126 metres at the head of the Avers valley, and it is often cited as the highest village in Western Europe with year-round inhabitants - 31 people in 2016, against 20 in 1991. It was settled around 1292 by Walser families, German-speaking migrants who took up high, marginal ground across the Alps under agreements that gave them personal freedom in exchange for holding land nobody else wanted, and the German spoken here still marks the valley off from Romansh-speaking neighbours below. No trees grow at this height - the nearest forest is about five kilometres away - so the economy was and is cattle. The road ends at the hamlet; beyond it are passes on foot toward the Bregaglia and Italy. Winters are long, and the road is ploughed rather than closed.

What's there

• Often cited as Western Europe's highest year-round village - some thirty residents at 2,126 metres.
• A Walser settlement of the 1290s - German-speaking migrants on marginal ground.
• The end of the road - passes onward only on foot.
• Cattle country above the treeline - the nearest forest five kilometres off.

When to go

June to September for walking; the road stays open in winter. Half a day.

Before you go

There is essentially nothing here - a few houses, one guesthouse and pasture. The drive up the Averstal is long and narrow. Weather is severe and can turn in any month. This is a place to see, not a destination with facilities.

Nearby

Avers valley runs back down to Andeer; the Splugen road is west.

Key facts