Einsiedeln is a town built around a single building, the Benedictine abbey, whose white baroque towers rise above the rooftops from every approach. The monastery grew from a hermit's cell. Meinrad, a monk from Reichenau, settled in the forest here in the ninth century and was murdered by thieves in 861, and in 934 a community was founded at the site. For a thousand years since, pilgrims have come to the Black Madonna, a dark wooden statue in the Chapel of Grace within the church, and the town sits on the old pilgrim road toward Santiago de Compostela, with a yellow shell on a blue sign marking the way.
The present church, finished in the 1730s, is a riot of stucco, gilt and ceiling frescoes, one of the great baroque interiors of Switzerland. Outside, the huge curved forecourt, the Klosterplatz, is used every few years in summer for the Einsiedeln World Theatre, an open-air performance of Calderón's play that has been staged since 1924. The abbey also keeps a stud farm, and the monks have bred horses on the meadows nearby for centuries, a feature that explains the horse tradition in the area.
For a rider, Einsiedeln is a handy and agreeable stop on the way between the Sihlsee, the Ibergeregg pass and the lakes of Zurich and Zug. At 882 metres, the air is fresh and clear, and the town has a lively main street of cafés and pastry shops. Many riders stop for a coffee and a pastry on the street facing the abbey, and the bike can be parked in the town's squares. The roads in and out are smooth, with gentle gradients and broad curves, although traffic through the town centre can be busy, and coaches fill the pilgrim season.
Fuel is easy in town, and there are plenty of places to eat, from simple cafés to gasthofs with Swiss specialities. In winter, snow and ice may linger on the pass roads, and the town can be cold and foggy. Take ten minutes to step inside the abbey, since the interior is worth it.