- Val Bregaglia
The Val Bregaglia (Italian) or Bergell Tal (German) is an alpine valley of
Switzerland andItaly at the base of which runs the riverMera River (or Maira). It begins at theMaloja Pass (1815 m) which connects it to theEngadin (the valley of the river Inn, which is part of theDanube basin) and extends westwards to Chiavenna shortly after which the Mera joins with the Liro and turns south towardsLake Como . From Chiavenna to Maloja, a distance of 32 km, the valley rises 1482 m. Most of the valley falls within the Swiss district of Maloja in the canton ofGraubünden , the lower part within the Italianprovince of Sondrio .The
Bregaglia Range is the group of mountains to the south of the valley. Curiously, it is only in this valley in the whole Europe where the sources of three important basins (which run to different seas) have their origin: theRhein (which runs to theNorth Sea ), the Inn (which runs toBlack Sea ) and thePo River (running toAdriatic Sea ).The valley includes the Swiss municipalities of
Vicosoprano ,Stampa , Bondo, Soglio andCastasegna ; and the Italian municipalities ofVilla di Chiavenna ,Piuro , and Chiavenna.Elektrizitätswerk der Stadt Zürich (EWZ) operates three hydroelectric power plants in the valley at Vicosoprano, Bondo and Castasegna. The hydroelectric project at Vicosoprano was formed by damming the river Albigna, forming
Lake Albigna . Located approximately 1000 m above the town and set back, the site is reachable by anaerial tramway operated by EWZ.
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