Alpine Rhine Valley

The Alpine Rhine Valley (Alpenrheintal) is a glacial alpine valley, formed by the Alpine Rhine (Alpenrhein [ˈalpm̩ʁaɪn]), the part of the Rhine between the confluence of the Anterior Rhine and Posterior Rhine at Reichenau and Lake Constance. It covers three countries, with sections of the river demarcating the borders between Austria and Switzerland and between Liechtenstein and Switzerland. The valley is 93 km long. In the upper 9 km stretch, the valley width is 1.5 km with narrow (60 m) incised channel. For the next 71 km, the valley floor varies between 3 and 4 km; on approach to Lake Constance the valley widens up to 15 km. The Alpine Rhine Valley is flanked by the Alps and its mountain ranges (especially Alpstein, Plessuralpen, Rätikon Calanda, the Albula Alps and the Glarner Alps), some higher than 3,000 m (9, 800 ft). The highest mountain, Ringelspitz, commences next to Tamins. At 3,247 m (10, 653 ft), it is the highest peak of the canton of St. Gallen, bordering the valley to its southeast. From Reichenau, the Alpine Rhine flows east, passing Chur and turning north, before it turns north-east at Landquart, and then roughly north, east of Sargans. From here, the Alpine Rhine forms the border between the canton of St. Gallen of Switzerland on the left, west side, and the Principality of Liechtenstein on the east side. About 28 kilometres (17 mi) further down, the Rhine then meets the Austrian federal state Vorarlberg and finally flows into Lake Constance, south of Lindau (Germany), which is no longer part of the Rhine Valley. The Swiss-Austrian border follows the historical bed of the Rhine, but today the river follows an artificial canal within Austria for the final 5 kilometres (3.1 mi), parallel to the also canalised Dornbirner Ach. The border also still follows the old river bed at Diepoldsau. The Rhine Valley's upper third has the character of an Alpine valley, enclosing a bottom plain of about 1 to 4 kilometres (0.6 to 2.5 mi) across. Downstream of Vaduz, the valley widens considerably, developing into a broad plain, measuring some 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) across at its lower end along the southeastern shores of Upper Lake Constance. T

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