Thurweg

Thurweg
Data
length	160 km
Markers	White 24 on a green rectangle
Starting point	Gamplüt mountain station ( Wildhaus SG ) ; 47 ° 12 ′ 47.1 ″ N , 9 ° 20 ′ 36.7 ″ E
Target point	Rüdlingen ; 47 ° 34 ′ 45.4 ″ N , 8 ° 34 ′ 19.7 ″ E
The highest point	1352
Lowest point	348

Map with all coordinates: OSM | WikiMap

The Thurweg is a total of around 160 kilometers long Swiss hiking trail in the cantons of St. Gallen , Thurgau , Zurich and Schaffhausen , which leads from the Gamplüt mountain station above Wildhaus along the Thur to Rüdlingen . The entire section is signposted as regional hiking route No. 24 from Wanderland Schweiz .

The Thur , which gives it its name, is 134.6 kilometers long and the second longest river in eastern Switzerland after the Rhine , to which it flows near Flaach and Ellikon . The name Thur is derived from the Indo-European word dhu ("the hurrying one").

course

The Thurweg was created as close to the river as possible, several bridges are included in the Thurweg. The roughly 60-kilometer section from Wildhaus to Schwarzenbach is marked as a cultural trail and, in certain sections, signs provide information about nature, history and water use on the river. There are inns, managed huts and restaurants along the entire route, some of which are closed during the winter. The hiking route along the Thur can be done in eight daily stages of five to seven hours.

1st stage: Gamplüt - Nesslau

From Gamplüt the route goes via Unterwasser and Alt St. Johann with the eponymous former Benedictine monastery to Starkenbach. Then the path follows over the Giessenfalls to Stein and Nesslau.

2nd stage: Nesslau - Wattwil

The 2nd stage begins in Nesslau. From there the relatively easy to walk path leads along the Thur to the Krummenau train station, past the river island of Helgoland with the Mariahilf chapel. Shortly before Krummenau there was a natural bridge over the Thur, which collapsed in 1976. Since then, the route has followed the railway line to Krummenau station. The path between Krummenau and Ebnat-Kappel was laid out in 2000, it follows the wild Thur, with stairs to climb several meters in altitude. This stage to Ebnat-Kappel is considered the most scenic section. From Ebnat-Kappel to Wattwil, the path follows the canalised Thur.

3rd stage: Wattwil - Schwarzenbach

Wildhaus (here with Säntis )

The third stage begins in Wattwil. The path follows the Thur Canal to Lichtensteig . From there to Schwarzenbach there is no continuous path along the Thur, which is why the Thurweg leads there, with the exception of short sections, a little away from the Thur through villages and landscapes.

4th stage: Schwarzenbach - Bischofszell

The fourth stage runs almost the whole way back along the Thur to Bischofszell. From the beginning of the 4th stage to the mouth of the Rhine, the Thur is largely canalized, and from here onwards, the Thurweg is also part of national and regional bike routes in many sections.