Disentis is the monastery town of the upper Rhine valley, and the Benedictine abbey that dominates it is one of the oldest in Switzerland, founded, according to tradition, around the year 700 by a wandering monk called Sigisbert with help from a local landowner. The current buildings are mostly baroque, with a huge church and an extensive cloister, and the monks still teach at the school attached to it. The village sits at 1,130 metres where the Medelser Rhine meets the Vorderrhein, and it has the compact feel of a place that was important long before the tourist trade arrived.
For a rider, Disentis is a natural lunch stop between the Oberalp and Lukmanier passes. There are cafes and restaurants along the main street, serving Graubünden dishes such as barley soup, Capuns and dried meats, and a little bakery will usually have a Nusstorte. Fuel is available in the village, and it is a good place to stop for a break before heading up either pass or down the valley to Ilanz. The road from the west follows the Rhine through forests and fields, with long straight stretches and occasional gentle bends.
The language here is Romansh, the fourth national language of Switzerland, spoken by only a small fraction of the population, and you will see it on street signs and shop fronts. Disentis, or Mustér in Romansh, is one of the strongholds of the language, and the abbey played a part in keeping it alive. The valley is also known for its cheese, its snow in winter and its quiet in summer.
Behind the village the mountains rise to glaciers and peaks over three thousand metres, and in winter the area is a popular ski resort. In summer the slopes are covered in meadow flowers and dotted with cows. A visit to the abbey church is worth fifteen minutes, with its white interior and rich decoration, and visitors are generally welcome outside the services. Walk a little further, and you might hear the monks sing the evening office in the half-light.