Andermatt - Oberalppass
I did this hike on the 16th of August, 2024. I had for some time been wanting to do some hiking around the Gotthard Pass and Andermatt, as I had never been there, and since the weather looked good and not too warm, I decided to go and do the hike below.
Full route: Swisstopo
I went by train from Zürich to Göschenen where I changed to the train to Andermatt. In Andermatt, I started the hike right from the train station, and it was a beautiful morning as I walked out of the town. The trail up through the valley started out as a wider gravel road, but soon changed into a hiking path following the valley floor.
The walk up through the valley was really beautiful and calm, and I took many smaller breaks along the way to enjoy the river and many different flowers. I had started quite early from Andermatt, and I did not meet any other hikers for the first couple of hours.
Half way into the valley, I started the ascent and followed the trail up to Lolenpass. The trail was rather steep, so I quickly made my way up above the valley. It was a beautiful climb up, and closer to the top, I could see some of the mountains high above Andermatt in the distance.
I took a short break just before reaching the top, to relax and stay a bit longer to enjoy the surroundings. I continued over the pass, which was a very pleasant mainly flat walk and the views slowly started opening up into Val Maighels.
The descent into the valley was great, not too steep and with beautiful views to the Maighels Glacier in the distance. There is a trail going up the valley below the glaciers and crossing over down to Airolo, which I would like to do at one point.
I felt quite good so far, so I decided to add a visit to the top of Piz Cavradi to the hike. This little peak lies in the middle of the area, and there is a hut at the bottom, which looked very nice and had quite some visitors when I passed by.
I am really happy that I added this detour to the hike, cause the views walking up and from the top were just stunning. I could see mountains all around me and the color of Lai da Curnera looked almost artificial.
The last part of the trail was over more rocky terrain, which required more focus, but nowhere did I find it problematic or too difficult. As I made it to the top, I walked around and took some pictures, but it got very windy, so after a short while, I decided to continue down again.
Back down, I continued over the valley floor and started the last ascent of the day. I passed by Lai da Tuma Tomasee, which was located in a beautiful area, and I took a break before continuing up. It had started to get warm and there were several people swimming in the lake.
The trail up to the top of the hike was not too steep, but I was still very happy when I made it to Pazolastock. From up here, I once again had amazing views all around me and the clouds made for some really great scenery. I really loved this area and definitely want to come back for some more hiking.
Taking in everything one last time, I started the descent down to Oberalppass. This part wasn’t long, but at parts steep, and I was glad when I finally made it down. From Oberalppass, I took the train back to Andermatt from where I continued my journey back home to Zürich.
