The monastery at Einsiedeln has seen a great many people pass through, and a few of them became famous. Paracelsus, the Renaissance physician and alchemist, was born in 1493 in a hamlet nearby, the son of a doctor, and spent his early years in the shadow of the abbey. Huldrych Zwingli, who would become the leader of the Reformation in Zurich, served as a priest here for two years from 1516, and it was in Einsiedeln that he began to preach against the sale of indulgences to pilgrims. The abbey he criticised is still working, with Benedictine monks living by the old rule of prayer and work.
Inside the abbey, one of the highlights is the library, a Baroque hall with tall shelves and a ceiling decorated with painted scenes, holding many thousands of volumes and manuscripts, among them medieval texts of great value. The monks also run a school, a publishing house and a farm. The church can be visited freely, with its dazzling interior, but the library and some other areas have limited hours, so check before you set out. A short walk away, the town's main street runs gently uphill from the square, lined with shops and cafes.
The ride from Hirzel to Einsiedeln is a delight on a calm evening. The road crosses the high ground south of Lake Zurich, passing farmland and woods, then runs beside the Sihlsee, a large reservoir built in the 1930s, whose blue water and wooded shores reflect the late sun. Corners are easy and flowing, the surface is good, and there are views of the Mythen peaks to the south. At sunset, the water turns copper and the hills go purple, and the cowbells and church bells drift across the valley.
The Sihlsee has several places to stop, with small beaches and cafes, and sailing boats on the water, and the shoreline road is popular with cyclists and walkers. In Einsiedeln itself, there is fuel, food and parking, and the pace is leisurely, with pilgrims, tourists and locals sitting in the sun. A coffee on the monastery square before the final stretch home is the perfect way to end the day. Wrap up warm if the evening is cool, because the air near the lake can be sharp.