A hike to the headwaters of the Rivers Rhine - Vier-Quellen-Weg

A hike to the headwaters
of the Rivers Rhine, Reuss,
Ticino and Rhone.
Four Headwaters Trail
through the St Gotthard Massif
erhor
n-Gott
1
1
hrs./min.
1500 m
1750 m
2000 m
2250 m
2
2
4
1/50 >
5
5
7
6
8
2314 m
Maighel
Hut
2/50 >
6
4
Source of
the Rhine
2345 m
Lake
Toma
3
3
Source of
the Rhine
5 hrs. 20 min.
Stage 1
2044 m
Oberalp
Pass
2500 m
Vermigel
Hut
Tic
Cruina
ino
5
2042 m
Vermigel
Hut
1
1
2
2375 m
Summermatten
2
3
2701 m
Sella
Pass
Ronco
All’Acqua
Stage 2
3
Tiefenbach
Sidelen
Hut SAC
Furka m
o
(stea unta
m r in
ailw se
ay cti
)
Belvédère
Furka Pass
Piansecco
Hut SAC
Gletsch
Nufenen Pass
Headwaters
of the Ticino
Lake Gries
Maighel
Pass
one
Obergesteln
9
12
4/05 >
11
13
15
2091 m
Gotthard
Pass
hrs./min.
1500 m km
1750 m
2000 m
2250 m
2500 m
3
1/19 >
4
7
2776 m
Giübin
8
5
9
6
2256 m
Lake
Sella
11
12
7
2091 m
Gotthard
Pass
Bedretto Villa
Lucendro Pass
Headwaters
of the
Gotthard-Reuss
5
2/40 >
6
10
4/24 >
Source of the
Gotthard-Reuss
2522 m
2182 m
Alpe di Lucendro
Pass
Lucendro
4
12.8 km > 7 hrs. 30 min.
Stage 3
2701 m 2776 m 2256 m
Sella Giübin Lake
Pass
Sella
5 hrs. 15 min.
Stage 2
2042 m
Vermigel
Hut
5/20 >
14
8
14.4 km >
2421 m
Maighel
Pass
10
7
I N F O R M AT I O N A B O U T
S TAG E S 1- 5
1500 m km
1750 m
2000 m
2250 m
Maighel
Hut
(MGB)
4
Rh
Oberwald
Source of the
Rhone
Rho
Gla necie
r
Lake
Lucendro
2
Andermatt
Lake
Sella
7 hrs.
Stage 4
1982 m
Piansecco
Hut SAC
20.6 km >
2015 m 1996 m
Ri di
Ri di
Cavanna Bedretto
5/15 >
3
4
5
6
2
3
2522 m
Lucendro
Pass
2440 m
Nufenen
road
1925 m
Ladstafel
1/35 >
7
9
10
11
3/35 >
19.8 km >
1355 m
Obergesteln
2/45 >
8
Source of the
Gotthard-Reuss
4
2128 m
Rosso
di Fuori
12
Food
Accommodation
Bus
Train
Shopping
2
1
Village
2182 m
Alpe di
Lucendro
13
14
1982 m
Piansecco
Hut SAC
e
17
18
6
19
20
21
7
1750 m
2000 m
2250 m
2500 m
1982 m
Piansecco
Hut SAC
Stage 4
5/50 >
7/30 >
7 hrs.15 min.
17 km >
Source of
the Rhone
1757 m
2429 m 2271 m
Gletsch
Furka
Hotel
(steam railway) Pass Belvédère
Support from:
1
hrs./min.
1500 m km
former Federal Councilor
5/30 >
1
2
Sedrun
Dr. Christoph Blocher,
16
1368 m
Oberwald
15
Stage 5
4/35 >
5
2015 m
Ri di
Cavanna
1996 m 1938 m
Ri di
Ri di
Bedretto Ronco
Val Maighels
Maighels Pass
1
Tschamut
Maighels
Hut SAC
Rhin
Oberalp Pass
Platinum sponsors:
3e_500cmyk_LT_feb10
House/Hut
Headwaters of
the Ticino
2003 m
Alpe di
Cruina
1
hrs./min.
1500 m km
1750 m
2000 m
2250 m
2500 m
2091 m
Gotthard
Pass
Stage 3
Airolo
Vermigel
Hut SAC
La k ea l p
r
Obe
Lake Toma
Headwaters
of the Rhine
tthard- )
rn-Go
M a tterho ailway (MGB
R
Hospental
Göschenen
Gotthard Pass
Realp
Lake Göscheneralp
D AY H I K E S Stages can also be
done as day hikes
E F F O R T Distance: 85 km/Time: about 32 hrs./ G E T T I N G T H E R E / AWAY Starting and end
Ascent: 6,161 m/Descent: 5,932 m
points are serviced by buses or trains
D I F F I C U LT Y Continuous, mostly hiking on
M A P S Switzerland national map 1:50,000,
marked trails (SAC rating: T2/T3)
No. 5001 “Gotthard”. Excerpts reduced
S TA R T Oberalp Pass
15 percent (see pages 10, 16, 22, 28, 34).
F I N I S H Hotel Belvédère
I N F O rmation www.four-headwaters-trail.ch
2044 m
Oberalp
Pass
2500 m
Lake
Toma
h ard- B a h n
Ulrichen
Tote
Grimsel Pass Lake
Lake G
rimse l
Reproduced2345
bym permission
of swisstopo
(BA120056)
2421 m
2042 m
2314 m
Stage 1
Matt
Münster
r
a-
rk
(G
Fu
tu
Ba
s
e
nn
e
ss l
)
re
xp
-E
er
ci
la
l
R
e
u
ss
Got
road thard
tunn
e
Oberaa
Go
t
y tu thard
nne
lS
BB
wa
rail
Lake
lps
Na
ke
La
on
Four Headwaters Trail
through the St Gottard Massif
A hike to the headwaters of the Rivers
Rhine, Reuss, Ticino and Rhone.
Edited by
Four Headwaters Trail through the St Gotthard Massif Foundation
Table of Contents
5 Four Headwaters Trail through the St Gotthard Massif
7 Off to the headwaters!
8 From the Oberalp Pass to the Source of the Rhine
Stage 1: Oberalp Pass – Lake Toma (Source
of the Rhine) – Maighel Pass – Vermigel Hut
14 From the Vermigel Hut to the Gotthard Pass
Stage 2: Vermigel Hut – Sella Pass – Piz Giübin –
Lake Sella – Gotthard Pass
All rights reserved
© 2012 Four Headwaters Trail Foundation, Altdorf
CONTENT MAP AND TRAIL DESCRIPTIONS
Josef Arnold-Luzzani, Schattdorf
D E S I G N A N D L AYO U T
Armin Furrer, Furrer Graphic Design, Lucerne
EDITORIAL AND PRODUCTION
0 From the Gotthard Pass to the Source of the Reuss
2
Stage 3: Gotthard Pass – Lake Lucendro – Source of
the Reuss – Lucendro Pass – Piansecco Hut
6 From the Piansecco Hut to the headwaters of the Ticino
2
Stage 4: Piansecco Hut – Headwaters of
the Ticino – Nufenen Pass – Obergesteln
2
3
38
From the Upper Goms to the Source of the Rhone
Stage 5: Obergesteln – Gletsch – Furka Pass –
Rhone Glacier (source of the Rhone) – Hotel Belvédère
Rivers and Paths Shape Development
The Gotthard Region – A cultural overview
Edith Jörg, pr-work jörg, Lucerne
2 Rich Diversity of Plants and Animals
5
A natural history journey in five stages
T ranslation
0 How Mountains Grow and Recede
6
A five-stage hike through geological history
Tim Neville, www.timneville.net
production and distribution
Gamma Druck + Verlag AG, Medien-Atelier, Altdorf
1st edition 2012
Printed in Switzerland
ISBN: 978-3-906200-49-1
0 Reservoirs of Water Power
7
Harnessing water in the St Gotthard Massif
76 Practical Information
79 Appendix, bibliography and credits
80 Acknowledgements
Four Headwaters Trail through the St Gottard Massif
The Rhine, Reuss, Ticino and Rhone
rivers all begin in the Gotthard region
and that gave Paul Dubacher from Seedorf the idea for the Four Headwaters
Trail. He’s something of a specialist
when it comes to hiking trails and was
instrumental, for example, in forming
routes like the “Swiss Path” around Lake
Lucerne and the “Railway Trails” of the
Gotthard region.
In 2009 Dubacher got to work once
again. That same year the Four Headwaters Trail Foundation was founded
with well-known people from the four
cantons that make up the Gotthard region (see page 78). The inauguration
followed in 2012.
For more information please visit
www.four-headwaters-trail.ch.
Mountain hiking in five stages
The Four Headwaters Trail is a familyfriendly trek of about 85 km through
the alpine country where the Rhine,
Reuss, Ticino and Rhone rivers begin. It
is broken up into five segments, each of
which with starting and end points that
are serviced by public transport.
Hiking through portions of cantons
Uri, Graubünden, Ticino and Valais
takes you through unique landscapes
4
Paul Dubacher,
­founder and project
leader of the Four
Headwaters Trail
and highlights the central role that water has played for man, animals and
plants.
Things to know about the Gotthard
The hiking guidebook to the Four
Headwaters Trail includes trail descriptions as well as fascinating background
information on the region’s cultural history, flora and fauna, geological phenomena, climate change and the harnessing of water for hydropower.
In this way a hiker can make sense
of and learn more about the area. The
best bits of background information
will become apparent: How have humans throughout the ages impacted the
Gotthard region; why mountains are
never at ease; which plants are worth a
closer look; and how important is it to
turn the region’s water into power.
5
Off to the headwaters!
Water and springs have a magical power of attraction. Springing discretely
from the depths and flowing eventually
into the sea, water lends itself to a
cross-cultural metaphor for the fate of
us all: The lively, happy-go-lucky brook
of youth matures into the wide shipbearing current of adulthood before
fading away into the infinity of the sea.
Water as a creative power
Springs are a reflection of the times: In
moments of uncertainty the call to return to our roots and where it all began
rings loudly. In times of heady optimism it’s easy to forget origins and tradition. Springs are places of power, purity and life. They were even the places
where children came from, according
to some old folk tales.
Water has the two faces of Janus: It
can destroy with a flood and spawn life
with a refreshing rain. Water shortages
spark wars or create laws founded in
peace. The Code of Hammurabi (1850
BC) includes stipulations over water
rights.
6
Hiking lends wings to thoughts
Glaciers have held stores of water for
millennia and have become a symbol
for security, hope and confidence. By
contrast their disappearance triggers a
fear of the future, but fear and hardship
also foster human ingenuity. From that
has sprung an environmentally friendly
and sustainable art of engineering.
Water is a magical power: People
have harnessed its force with mills and
turned it into electricity. Water is a
splendid artist: Its power has formed
marvelous, often bizarre and savage
landscapes, as well as fields that nourish people, plants and animals.
When you head to the four headwaters of the Gotthard massif, maybe
keep this thoughts in mind. Over hills
and down the dales, let yourself separate real everyday problems from those
that are imagined. He who wanders
sifts through his thoughts to find gold
nuggets of insight here and there. Your
body isn’t just the better for it. Your
mind is, too. Now off to the source!
Josef Arnold-Luzzani, Schattdorf
7
stage
1
From the Oberalp Pass
to the Source of the Rhine
The first stage leads from the Oberalp
Pass, past the source of the Rhine
at Lake Toma and concludes at the
Vermigel Hut. The Maighel Pass marks
the highest point of this section of the
hike where the idyllic Lake Portgeren
invites visitors to linger.
A worthy goal – the idyllic Lake Toma.
I N F O R M AT I O N A B O U T S TAG E 1
Distance: 14.5 km/Time: 5 hrs. 20 min./Ascent: 1100m/Descent: 1100 m
Continuous, mostly hiking on marked trails (SAC rating T1/T2).
S TA R T A N D F I N I S H Start at the Oberalp Pass. Finish at the Vermigel Hut.
R oute Oberalp Pass (2044 m) – Lake Toma (2345 m) – Maighel Valley –
Maighel Pass (2421 m) – Alp Portgeren – Vermigel Hut (2042 m)
P R O V I S I O N S Maighel and Vermigel SAC huts (during hiking season).
A C C O M M O D AT I O N S S TAG E 1 Vermigel Hut, reservations recommended, Tel. 041-887-17-73 or
062-534-00-35, [email protected]. Maighel Hut (about halfway through first stage):
Reservations: 081-949-15-51, [email protected].
G E T T I N G T H E R E Train to the Oberalp Pass from Andermatt (Uri) or Disentis Sedrun (Graubünden).
R E T U R N F O R D AY H I K E S Walk to Andermatt from the Vermigel Hut (2.5 hrs.). Train and bus
connections available in Andermatt.
M A P S Switzerland National Map: 1:50,000 No. 5001 “Gotthard” (good for all five stages).
See page 10 for map excerpts of stage 1 (reduced 15 percent).
I N F O R M AT I O N www.four-headwaters-trail.ch; Tourist Info Uri: www.uri.info;
Andermatt-Urserntal Tourismus GmbH: www.andermatt.ch;
Graubünden Tourism: www.graubuenden.ch; Leventina Tourism: www.leventinaturismo.ch;
Tessin Tourism: www.ticino.ch; Train and bus connections: www.sbb.ch
EFFORT
D I F F I C U LT Y
8
The Matterhorn-Gotthard Railway (MGB)
runs to the top of the 2044-meter-high
Oberalp Pass from canton Graubünden
from the east or from Andermatt in the
Ursern Valley from the west.
It’s possible to reach the pass on foot
from Göschenen, Andermatt, Sedrun or
Tschamut (see map overview, page 1).
Get your bearings at the yellow hiking
sign and head out on the trail toward
Lake Toma.
Those who prefer a longer, more
sporty variation to reach the lake can
follow the signs to the Pazolastock
(2740 m). After a short, sloping section
along the pass road 1 a path climbs
gently across the flanks of the Pazolastock. The imposing wall of the dammed
Curnera reservoir is visible for a short
while to the south. At a fork in the trail
at Trutg (2056 m) 2 a path winds upwards along a gravel road to the
Maighel Hut 6 . The hut, at 2310 meters,
is run by the Swiss Alpine Club (SAC)
and offers room and board. But to complete this section of the hike continue
to climb southwesterly for about 300
meters up some switchbacks through
steep pastures that become increasingly
T he stage in four sections
The young Rhine flows toward Tschamut.
The source of the Rhine at Lake Toma.
Lake Urlaun in the Maighel Valley.
The Vermigel Hut, the first day’s goal.
9
F R O M T H E O B E R A L P PA S S TO THE SOURCE OF THE RHINE stage
1
2
3
4
5
8
6
littered with large boulders and natural
stone steps. Up here the invasive noises of civilization – namely motorcycle
traffic on the nearby pass road – fade
into silence.
After this first, steep ascent the brilliant waters of a mountain lake tucked
in a basin at the foot of the Badus begin
to gleam: The Lai da Tuma or Lake Toma (2345 m), the source of the Rhine 3 .
The lake’s Rhaeto-Romansh name recalls the lake’s features: it’s located behind a Tuma or hill – so Lake Hill, if
you will.
Those who have the time, strength
and will can opt to do an additional
loop either along the lake or over the
summit on the right to the Badus Hut
(2503 m) at the foot of the Pazolastock.
A refreshing plunge from a protruding
boulder at the back of the lake into the
chilly pool is only recommended for
the hardiest of hikers.
After taking in a pleasant panoramic
view of the upper Surselva and Calmot,
behind which loom the Oberalpstock,
Tödi and other imposing peaks, two
small steps is all you need to cross the
young Anterior Rhine which rumbles
1
T H E “ R E A L” S O U R C E O F T H E R H I N E
The source of a river is generally considered
to be the highest or farthest point (along the
river) from its mouth. In the high mountains
many nameless streams from various directions all converge in a small lake, which is
why the word “headwaters” is often used.
Lake Toma was dubbed the source of the
Rhine by Placidus A. Spescha (1752-1833),
a Benedictine father and a naturalist who
made the first ascent of the Badus. If you go
by the point farthest from the Rhine’s outlet,
the Medelser Rhine would actually be the
river’s source since it flows through both
the Cadlimo and Medel valleys and is a good
5 km longer than the Toma Rhine.
through a narrow, steep trough down
toward Tschamut through the Plaun
Verdastch. (To read more on the name
“Tschamut” and early settlements in the
valley please see page 42.) Be careful
crossing the stream: snow can last well
into summer here.
Following a newly built path that replaces the rough descent to the dusty
road leading to the Maighel Hut, the
trail leads to a sunny saddle (2358 m) 4
above Lake Urlaun. The path then in-
Stage 1
S T A G E 1 > Distance 14.5 km > Time 5 hrs. 20 min. > Ascent 1100 m > Descent 1100 m
1
2044 m
Oberalp
Pass
7
2345 m
Lake
Toma
2421 m
Maighel
Pass
2314 m
Maighel
Hut
2042 m
Vermigel
Hut
2500 m
3
2250 m
2000 m
1
7
4
6
5
Source of
the Rhine
2
8
1750 m
1500 m km
1
hrs./min.
2
3
4
1/50 >
5
6
7
2/50 >
8
9
10
11
12
4/05 >
13
14
15
5/20 >
11
From the Oberalp Pass to the S ource of the R hine stage
T H E WAY O F T H E R H I N E
After a long, 1,230-km journey the Rhine
flows into the North Sea near Rotterdam,
­Europe’s largest port. Along the way, many
tributaries transform the feisty little stream at
Lake Toma into a wide river that has become
the most heavily used waterway in Europe.
At Reichenau/Tamis the Anterior and Hinter
Rhine join together to form the so-called Alpine Rhine, which flows into Lake Constance.
From there it becomes the High Rhine until
Basel, with the Aare River flowing into it at
Koblenz. After Basel, the river is known as
the Upper Rhine, which runs to Bingen, Germany, and is joined by the Neckar and Main
rivers along the way. From there the river becomes the Middle Rhine until Bonn, a stretch
joined by the Lahn and Mosel rivers that
flows around the mythical Loreley cliff near
St Goarshausen. Finally the wide and placid
Lower Rhine begins after Bonn, flowing
through the north German lowlands and
forming the Rhine-Meuse Delta at the German-Dutch border. It then eases through a
large natural region to spill into the North Sea
near Rotterdam.
tersects the access road just mentioned
(2263 m) 5 . A few meters beyond the
intersection a trail branches off to the
right toward Lolen Pass (Pass Tagliola,
2399 m), and a bit further to the south,
a spur trail heads toward the manmade
Curnera reservoir.
Stay on the access road that soon
ends with a well-beaten, often mucky
path that leads into the wide, flat area
of the Maighel Valley and its many tadpole-choked ponds. The valley boasts
the typical flora and fauna of a wetland
with cottongrass, sedges and yellow-orange blossoming saxifrage. The moors
are green in summer and spring, yellow and brown in autumn. In a few
12
places peat has formed over the centuries. (For more on the flora and fauna
see page 53).
At the “Piogn Crap” (roughly translated as “Bridge by the Rock”), behold a
magnificent masterpiece of nature: a
several-meter-deep gorge, narrow at the
top, carved by centuries of water flowing down from the Maighel Glacier and
the Bornengo Pass. It is so narrow at
the top that one is almost lured into
leaping over it. Later the trail crosses
the terminal moraine that the eastern
Maighel Glacier left behind after its last
advance around 1850.
Soon the trail arrives at another fork
at Plaunca Portgera (2374 m) and climbs
to the right up to the Maighel Pass
(2421 m) 7 , where the idyllic Lake
Portgeren twinkles. North American
lake trout, brown trout as well as rainbow trout make this a popular place for
anglers. The view spreads to the north
with the Portgerenstock, to the southwest over the slopes of the Alp Wildenmatten and up to the Piz Giübin near
the Sella Pass. The Maighel Pass marks
the end of canton Graubünden and the
Rhaeto-Romansh-speaking regions.
Traditionally five dialects of RhaetoRomansh are spoken and written in
canton Graubünden of southeast Switzerland: Sursilvan (in the Anterior
Rhine region), Sutsilvan (in portions of
the Hinter Rhine region), Surmiran (in
the Upper Engadine and Al­bula valleys), Puter (in the Upper Engadine)
and Vallader (in the Lower Engadine).
In order to create consistency out of
the truly different dialects for bureaucratic matters, a standard dialect called
“Rumantsch Grishun” or “Romansh of
1
Shy marmots are always around.
Lake Toma, or Lai da Tuma in Rhaeto-Romansh, at the
base of Piz Badus, means “lake behind the hill.”
Graubünden” was developed and has
been used as the official dialect since
2001. On the way from the Oberalp
Pass to the Maighel Pass, one can learn
a few words of Sursilvan: plaunca
(slope or flank), piogn (catwalk-like
bridges often running along the sides
of cliffs), trutg (mountain path), crap
(rock or crag).
The route then zig-zags along a path
(that’s also an official mountain bike
trail) over alpine meadows, past ponds
and down to a bridge over the Unteralp
Reuss river (1978 m). A short but steep
climb brings you to the goal for the
day, the Vermigel Hut (2042 m) 8 .
which can sleep 40 people.
D AY H I K I N G This section can be done as a
day hike by wandering down through
Scheuchzers cottongrass,
a ­common wetland plant.
the tranquil Unteralp Valley for a good
2.5 hours to reach Andermatt. Watch for
chamois on the eastern slopes of the
Gafallengrat and the Gurschenstöckli,
particularly during mornings and evenings. On the right you’ll probably see
marmots with their shrill whistles. To
avoid bike and vehicular traffic, you can
cross the Unteralp Reuss near Heuplangg and wander through lonely
meadows, passing a rest area, to reach
the center of Andermatt directly. Save a
little energy for a visit to the Mariahilf
Chapel above the village. After a hard
winter in 1720 the priest is said to have
attached a picture of the Virgin Mary to
a tree. The townspeople started to put
their faith in this small wayside shrine
and in 1724 build a chapel there.
13