On the outskirts of Zermatt is the Gorner Gorge. It was opened to hikers as early as 1886-1887 and has been impressing visiting nature lovers ever since.

Gorner Gorge on a hot day

The path through the gorge is quite short, but extremely impressive. And on hot days, it is one of the best places to cool off. Remember, however, that the entrance to the gorge is only payable in cash.

Once out of the gorge, there are great views of Zermatt and the surrounding area at the top.

Zermatt Glacier suspension bridge

The next point on this trail is the 100-metre-long Zermatt Glacierschlucht suspension bridge. It passes over the Gorner Gorge at a height of 90 metres.

Passing on this bridge is not easy. It is only 70 metres wide. But the views from here are fantastic.

The route continues downhill towards the Furi mountain railway station. Along the route you will pass small settlements with houses made of wood and stone. In these regions, it is natural to see stone slabs covering the roofs of houses.

Stone quartzite roofs

These stone roof tiles used to be made from quartzite, which was mined right in the canton of Wallis. It was called Kalpetran quartzite after the name of the Kalpetran railway station in Mattertal, where the stone was loaded onto wagons. Nowadays, the stone roof slabs are largely imported from Italy, and the building material is no longer quartzite but granite.

Even lower, at the Blatten station, there is a white chapel from 1640 which you can look into. After it, turn left where the trail continues through the forest and the Zmuttbach stream, back to Zermatt.