Werdhölzli

Geschichte

Werdinsel, also known as Limmatauen Werdhölzli, is an island and protected area in the Limmat in Switzerland.GeographyLocated in the former independent municipality of Höngg, today the river island is a popular recreation area, public park and bath in the Limmat, situated in the northernly suburban area of the Limmat Valley in Zürich. The island has a maximum length of about 550m and a maximum width of about 125m. Its highest point is about 403m above sea level, a few metres above the river level at Zürich-Höngg. The minimum distance from the river bank is about 10m, and the island is also separated by the artificial Giessen channel.RecreationThe so-called Flussbad Au-Höngg is one of the four public river baths situated in the Limmat within the city of Zürich. The entrance is free, but there is just a limited infrastructure. The Zürich tram line 17 (stop Tüffenwies) and the local Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich VBZ bus lines 80 and 89 (stop Winzerhalde) provide public transportation. The island also houses a restaurant and grill stations, family gardens, sand beaches and a forested area, the adjoint Limmat-Auen Werdhölzli protected area.Since decades, the river island may called a 'conflict zone' related to its public use; so claim the holders of dogs, FKK and LGBT enthusiasts, as well as families the area for their own purposes. Another problem is the intensive use, so on peak days, up to 4,500 visitors search for recreation, almost half a million a year, among them also people from neighboring cantons, and therefore causing additional road transport traffic. The city police, however, legally alloweds to move any naked people in public, and even outdoor sex is not illegal as long as no one raise indictment. The city police forces regularly patrols on the ground, and the municipal authorities started to assign beware of the naked signs in August 2015.