Tucked away in the Swiss countryside is a gorge. But it’s more than just two rock cliffs with a waterway cutting through. With the aqua colored water, greenery, grey and brown rock formations, a waterfall, and blue sky to frame it, the beauty of the gorge is breathtaking.
So much so, we decided to do one of our first live social media broadcasts along the entire one mile trail and share our experience with everyone else! (see it here)
The Gorge
Open to the public since 1888, Aare Gorge Trail is almost a mile (over 1.4 kilometers) long, swiftly cutting its way through the rock with its copper blue-green water. As it snakes its way through the gorge, the rushing water almost meditative in nature. The color of the water? Due to the copper up in the mountains that oxidizes in the water.
Inside the gorge and out of the sun, the temperatures are significantly cooler as one might expect. While we were there, in the sun it was the mid 80s. In the shade? A refreshing low 70s.
We started on the west side of the gorge from Meiringen. There’s the typical gift shop and pay station on the way to the queue line.
At times the gorge is incredibly narrow, mostly on the west side. In those locations, the rock is carved out so one walks through a cave like tunnel. Satellite connection is difficult to maintain in the tunnels. We found this out when we were live on Facebook and the signal cut out. Twice. The views were still extraordinary.
The path/boardwalk traverses the south side of the gorge. There is an old walkway that was built on the north side at one time, but it has been abandoned in order to maintain the continuous walkway.
In the middle of the trail, there’s a waterfall flowing over the edge of the gorge. It seems like it’s coming from nowhere, shooting into the river below.
At about two-thirds of the way (1 km) from the west side, on the north face of the gorge, there’s a tunnel through the rock where a WW II outpost was carved into the rock between the train tunnel and the gorge.
The path itself is almost flat and easy to walk, like a narrow boardwalk. There are some steps, most of which are at the east end, near the village of Innertkirchen. There is also an occasional gravel path.
The Cafe
At the east end, there’s a small cafe offering some basic foods, and a little wine for those who want to enjoy their day and look out over the gorge.
Close By is What?
An interesting side note is that the gorge is located near another landmark that has been in the public spotlight for over 100 years. Reichenbach Falls. The very place where Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty fell from the ledge at the falls.
The Practical
We went earlier in the day and noticed as it came closer to noon, there were more and more people, so if you want to go when there’s less people, the morning hours seem best. If you want to see the lights, obviously the evening hours are better, and offer a whole different perspective.
There are several ways to get to Aareschlucht West (the west entrance to the gorge). Should you feel inclined, it’s easy to walk or bike from Meiringen, it’s only a mile.
At the east end of Meiringen Train Station, you’ll find a dedicated rail, where a local train the runs back and forth from Meiringen to Innertkirchen throughout the day. There are various stops along the way. The stops include the east and west ends of the gorge, along with Reichenbach Falls (from the Sherlock Holmes books).
The train operates similar to a bus. You must push the button to notify the drivers that you want to stop, otherwise the train keeps going. The train utilizes an old WW II railroad tunnel, so note that the Aareschlucht East lets you out underground.
Photo from Google Maps©
There’s a good sized parking lot on both the west and east sides of the gorge, the west side having space for bus tours as well as cars.
Similar to the west side, the trail less than a mile (1.4km) from Innertkirchen to the gorge. On the east side however, there’s an elevation change with switchbacks rising up as you hike to the entrance.