Hiking the Trans Swiss Trail – Stage 22 Wassen to Andermatt
Stage 22 of the Trans Swiss trail is 10 km long with 680 m ascent and 150 m descent and goes from Wassen to Andermatt. We are now entering the Gotthard pass area and the second half of this hike (from Göschenen to Andermatt) which included the Schöllenenschlucht gorge and the Teufelsbrücke (Devil’s Bridge) was particularly dramatic.
| Where: | Wassen to Andermatt Canton Uri, Switzerland |
| Train/Bus: | Zürich HB -> Wassen, Dorf – 2 hr 2 min Andermatt -> Zürich HB – 2 hr 7 min |
| What: | Trans Swiss Trail – Stage 22 – Wassen to Andermatt Red and white trail markers – Trans Swiss Trail Route 2 |
| Skill: | Medium – About 3 hrs Length 10 km, Ascent 680 m, Descent 150 m |
| Stage 1 – Porrentruy to St-Ursanne Stage 2 – St-Ursanne to Soubey Stage 3 – Soubey to Saignelégier Stage 4 – Saignelégier to St-Imier Stage 5 – St-Imier to Chézard-St-Martin Stage 6 – Chézard-St-Martin to Neuchâtel Stage 7 – Neuchâtel to Murten Stage 8 – Murten to Laupen Stage 9 – Laupen to Bern Stage 10 – Bern to Worb Stage 11 – Worb to Lützelflüh Stage 12 – Lützelflüh to Langnau i.E. Stage 13 – Langnau i.E. to Eggiwil Stage 14 – Eggiwil to Schangnau Stage 15 – Schangnau to Sörenberg Stage 16 – Sörenberg to Giswil Stage 17 – Giswil to Flüeli-Ranft Stage18 – Flüeli-Ranft to Stans Stage 19 – Stans to Seelisberg Stage 20 – Seelisberg to Erstfeld Stage 21 – Erstfeld to Wassen Stage 22 – Wassen to Andermatt Stage 23 – Andermatt to Passo del San Gottardo Stage 24 – Passo del San Gottardo to Airolo Stage 25 – Airolo to Osco Stage 26 – Osco to Anzonico Stage 27 – Anzonico to Biasca Stage 28 – Biasca to Bellinzona Stage 29 – Bellinzona to Tesserete Stage 30 – Tesserete to Lugano (Comano) Stage 31 – Lugano (Paradiso) to Morcote Stage 32 – Morcote to Mendriso |
Getting There
The Trans Swiss Trail is best done with public transportation as each stage starts and ends at different points. Stage 22 picks right up where stage 21 left off, at the Wassen, Dorf bus stop.
After getting off the bus, we simply followed the trail along the main road out of town.
The Trail
Although, the trail started out on the main road, it soon took a turn up into the forest. There were several historical signs along the way here about the history of the railroad and a small museum about the quarry. We didn’t stop in at the museum as we needed watch the time on this hike.
As we continued, the views up and down the valley were really lovely.
After we passed over the highway, and the traffic went into the tunnel, it got a lot quieter. We could still hear the river down below, but the forest was too dense to see it. After hiking up out of the forest, the trail followed alongside the train tracks until we reached Göschenen. I loved the green color of the river flowing through Göschenen.
After leaving Göschenen, the trail continued to follow the river. We took our lunch break right by the pretty stone bridge in the fourth picture below.
After lunch the trail continued its ascent towards Andermatt. It was a steady uphill walk but nothing too steep.
The winding road here was also quite a sight.
When we entered the Schöllenenschlucht gorge, the views of the Teufelsbrücke (Devil’s Bridge) were really spectacular.
So, we didn’t actual learn a lesson from watching Dark. When we saw the entrance to a tunnel in the mountain below the Teufelsbrücke, we decided to take a detour from the path and follow it out to the other side. I’m glad we did, no time-travel nonsense, and it gave us a really great view of the gorge and bridges.
After leaving the gorge area, it is a fairly flat walk along the river to the town of Andermatt.
I loved the views here. I definitely need to come back here to do more hiking.
Getting Back
At Andermatt, we got the next train home. From the train, we had another great view of the gorge and bridges as we were leaving. Super nice.
The next stage will take us to the top of the Gotthard pass. It is only September, but it is getting late enough in the year that it could snow and prevent us from continuing until next summer. Fingers crossed the weather cooperates with our schedules and we get to hike it soon.
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