Swiss passes

[foxyrider]

Has anyone been over any of the following Swiss passes:-

Susten
Furka
Oberalp
Grimsel
St Gotthard
Lukmanier
San Bernadino

I'm looking at doing a bunch of these next summer so i'm looking for some info about riding them, i might be riding light or carrying full camp kit so anyone experiences greatly appreciated.

[ChrisButch]

Plenty of info on all of these at http://www.climbbybike.com

[andrewleck]

I have only ever toured these roads on four wheels,but here you go,

Furka is quite narrow on the East side, and tourist traffic busy on the West, (heading for the Glacier at the Belvedere hotel)
Grimsel can see a lot of traffic from motor bikes to HGV
St Gothard - Very long tunnel, or long tunnel or cobbles (La Tremola) take your pick, but certainly wouldn't want to ascend
San Bernadino - possibly the greatest driving road I have ever had the pleasure to hoon on, would love a crack on the roadie.

Have a look at the Nufenen to the south of the Furka, thats a nice road as well.

[foxyrider]

Thanks, i'm going south on the Gotthard which shouldn't be too bad, couldn't work out how to include the Nufenen in my plans without multiple crossings of the Furka (i'll be stopping at Andermatt after coming from Meiringen).

Whilst the traffic can be a bugger if HGV's are going over it indicates theres nothing too desperate for me to drag the camping kit up!

The plan is to tackle the big passes mid trip over three days, Grimsel/Furka, Gotthard/Lukmanier or Bernardino/Oberalp, Susten the middle day unloaded.

Alternatively i could b&B 2 nights at Andermatt and leave the camp stuff at Meiringen, anyone any thoughts on that? are there left luggage facilities at the SBB there? it would certainly make things easier not carting the tent to the top!

[andrewleck]

Alternatively i could b&B 2 nights at Andermatt and leave the camp stuff at Meiringen, anyone any thoughts on that? are there left luggage facilities at the SBB there? it would certainly make things easier not carting the tent to the top!

Not sure but I am sure you could find somewhere willing to store your gear for a couple of nights. Lots to do and see in Meiringen. It is well worth the effort to climb the Reichenbach Falls even if you aren't a Holmesian, iirc it is possible to buy a double ticket and also include the Aereschluct, at a discount, certainly a full day is required to do them justice. If you stay the night I believe they also do fantastic surreal lightshow in the gorge after dark.

Between Meiringen and the Grimsel pass is Handegg,and close by to there is the Gelmer Bahn, the steepest funicular railway that as a gradient of 106% (try that on a bike) this takes you up to a hydro electric dam that is particularly spectacular. It is also possible to walk up but does take a while. At the funicular station there is also 'rope' bridge that spans the gorge with the road bellow 00's of ft.

View along part of the aereschluct walk



Funicular/ropebridge/ dam





Hope you have a great time, not jealous in the slightest

[soton]

1. The postal buses can help carry you over if needed because of bad weather, mechanical failure, illness etc. You'll pass the stops on the routes, and there are timetables at the bus stops. Don't know if there are buses for all the passes. The buses have bike hooks on the back: remove everything loose from the bike (panniers, bottles etc), hook on the bike and hurry on. They're running to a timetable controlled by a Swiss clock.
2. The bus service for some passes doesn't start until well into June. Check their timetables.
3. for San Bernadino, with luggage and average fitness, the ride from Hinterrhein to San Bernadino pass is 480m up in 10km and could take 2 hours. Down the 'other' side, there's a hostel at Bellinzona, but there's a long flat ride at the bottom of the valley to get to it. It's a pretty town with a castle. Beware the top floor where the hot water pressure is inadequate.
4. Oberalp pass has a train up one side.

[burroc]

A few years ago I took the European Bike Express to Basel, then headed south along one of the Swiss national cycle routes to catch the bus back from Como (just in Italy). The route included cycling over the St Gotthard pass. Most vehicles use the tunnel, but there were a few groups of cars obviously belonging to various "owners clubs" who took the more scenic alternative. No problems with traffic though. Most cars seemed to stop every few hundred yards to admire the view. Several sections of cobbles, mainly on the way up (heading south) but long rather than steep. Looking down on the hairpin bends disappearing into the distance caused me to get my camera out. Rather a cold descent - this was mid September. A well signposted cycle route, but I could have suggested a few improvements to the route.