which are in the nearby area of Hoch-Ybrig and Brunni. The Schwedentritt cross-country skiing trail starts next to the Einsiedeln Abbey. The nearby reservoir, Sihlsee, is used in summer for swimming, surfing and sailing, and in the winter for ice-skating. The dam, which retains the lake, produces electricity for the trains and protects the city of Zurich further down the valley from the flood of the Sihl. These days, fewer pilgrims come to Einsiedeln. For that reason, some of the former hotels have now closed. At the same time, the village has experienced a boom with day tourists, owing to the clear air and mountain views. Because of the high quality of life locally, the population is growing faster than is normal in Switzerland. Notable people Paracelsus (1493 in Egg – 1541) physician, alchemist and astrologer of the German Renaissance Albrecht von Bonstetten (c.1443 – c.1504) a Swiss humanist, entered Einsiedeln Abbey at a young age, made deacon of Einsiedeln in 1469 Johann Baptist Babel (1716 – 1799) preeminent sculptor of Baroque era, settled in Einsiedeln in 1746 Joseph Charles Benziger (1762–1841) founded the Catholic publishing house RCL Benziger Gall Morel (1803 - Einsiedeln Abbey 1872) a poet, scholar, aesthete and educationist Joseph A. Steinauer (1834 – 1907) Swiss Immigrant to America, who, with his two brothers, founded Steinauer, Pawnee County, Nebraska Aloysius Maria Benziger (1864 – 1942) a Swiss Catholic bishop and pioneer missionary Meinrad Lienert (born in 1865 – 1933) a Swiss writer, poet, journalist and editor Artur Beul (born in 1915 – 2010) a Swiss songwriter Lee Scratch Perry (1936 – 2021) Jamaican record producer and musician Eric Honegger (born 1946) a Swiss politician and business man, lives in Einsiedeln Milica Pavlović (born 1991) Serbian pop-folk singer Sport Josef Wehrli (born 1954) a Swiss former professional racing cyclist Marcel Fässler (born 1976) a Swiss professional racing driver. Andreas Küttel (born 1979) a Swiss former Ski Jumper "World Champion 2009" References External links Einsiedeln - Place of Culture and Pilgrimage at visit-einsiedeln.ch Cities in Switzerland Municipalities of the canton of Schwyz Districts of the canton of Schwyz