Switzerland’s lakes, rivers and waterfalls are a cherished life ... from majestic rivers such as the Rhine and the Rhone and enormous lakes like Lucerne and Geneva, to the towering alpine ...

No fewer than 170 animal and plant species characteristic of the Rhone Valley are threatened, there are very few fish in the river, and only six per cent of the valley can be considered “natural”.

Twenty summers ago, my husband, Matt, and I swam down the Aare River in Switzerland with a dog named Arcas. I don't love dogs, which has always felt like a moral failing. But Arcas was special.