Alpine Pass Route

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The Alpine Pass Route is a long-distance hiking trail through the Alps in Switzerland. It starts in Sargans in eastern Switzerland, and crosses the heart of country westwards to finish in Montreux on the shore of Lake Geneva. The total route covers over 350km (220 miles), crosses 16 mountain passes, and takes around 20 walking days to complete.

[edit] The Route

There are a number of variations on the precise route, but the following stages are fairly standard:

From Sargans over the Foopass to Elm
Over the Richetlipass to Linthal
Over the Klausenpass to Flüelen
Over the Surenenpass to Engelberg
Over the Jochpass to Meiringen
Over the Grosse Scheidegg to Grindelwald
Over the Kleine Scheidegg to Lauterbrunnen
Over the Sefinenfurgge to Griesalp
Over the Hohtürli to Kandersteg
Over the Bunderchrinde to Adelboden
Over the Hahnenmoospass to Lenk
Over the Trütlisbergpass to Lauenen
Over the Krinne to Gsteig
Over the Col des Andérets to Col des Mosses
Over the Col de Chaude to Montreux

The central portion of the route through the Berner Oberland is the most spectacular, with many hikers choosing to hike a few passes rather than the whole route in one go. The excellent transport connections give many possibilities for breaking it up.

[edit] Signposting

The signposting along the route is excellent, with countless signs, markers and arrows. However, none of the signs carry the name of the Alpine Pass Route, but rather the name of the next pass or town.