Charles Kuonen Suspension Bridge — Attraction in Randa

Visited this in late June 2019. Took the short train ride from St. Niklaus to Rand, loaded up with water in town (lots of spots to get water early but make sure you have enough as we found no water sources on the trail once outside of town), took a photo of the map at the train station area, and headed up thru town on the trail and into the mountains. Was a pretty warm day. The trail splits early but the path to the right was closed for some reason so all hikers had to take the left branch which we were told is a bit steeper and more challenging. The hike starts off fairly steep up thru the town of Rand and pretty much never lets up the whole way to the bridge. We kept a decent pace and made periodic stops to drink and rest a few minutes and it took us about 2 hours. A few people turned back along the way. It is definitely a pretty challenging hike and in a few places one had to be careful about footing, slipping, etc. Wear good hiking shoes/boots. Can see the bridge at times long before one gets to it. The bridge is a great place to stop and have lunch, etc. and of course everyone needs to walk across it (or at least to the middle if one going back down the same way they came). It is a bit strange at first as the decking of the bridge is sort of an egg crate structure and it is a suspension bridge so it sways and shakes, etc. as people walk across. Great views of the local mountains and glaciers from the bridge and the trail and can also see the town of Rand from the bridge. Few people went all the way across as the trail on the other side was closed. I am guessing 95%+ go back by way of the trail but two of our teenage (17 and 19) sons decided that walking down off the trail and following the creek that runs under the bridge and down into town was the way to go. We watched them walk down the hill to the creek and decided we (wife and I, 54 and 52, and oldest son and girlfriend, 22 and 21) would do it as well. Always up for something different and looked like it might be a nice change from the switchbacks, etc of the trail. Well, the hike down to the creek was not too bad but the hike down from there was pretty challenging as all admitted in the end. Took about 2 hours to get down far enough to hook into the trail shown on the map that is called Variante Alternative. We wound up crossing the creek fairly early on (only advisable when flow is fairly low) so we were on the left side looking down at the town of Rand. About 2/3 of the way down or so the trail to the left was fairly obvious as there is a concrete structure and a small open clearing (see last photo). Missing this would commit one to a fairly steep descent down the rocky valley to the town. After getting on this trail, one had to take a right at a fork (small wooden sign on a tree on the right, cannot remember what it said) maybe 10+ minutes after being on the trail, and we were back in town after about 30 minutes although it was a pretty steep if fairly easy hike down. We were then on the train to Zermatt to walk around and see the sites. Overall, the bridge is pretty cool and worth the effort but be prepared for a pretty solid hike and bring plenty of water, especially on a warm day. ...

1. The google map shows only a part of the trek, upto 22 minutes. Then the map draws black dots to the bridge, which has no useful information. 2) My wife 63, and I, 66, of reasonable health and normal weight, arrived in Randa station at 4.54pm and started trekking right away. We reached the bridge at 6.28pm. We took two breaks of a few minutes and also stopped to fill our water bottles(take empty bottles with you), there are at least three water spouts on the way. Most of the trek to the bridge is difficult climb up. The last twenty minutes is relatively gentle so you feel good by the time you reach the bridge. We walked on the bridge and went upto 75% of the way and returned, took pictures and started back at 6.59pm. Along the way we spotted a beautiful male Ibex and stopped to take pictures. A little later we came across a shy chamois (a type of mountain antelope) and stopped to take pictures. All the way down, inside the town we stopped to take pictures of the unique Valois sheep, they are white bodied but black faced. We reached Randa station at 8.44pm to take 8.54pm back to Zermatt. For us it took a total of four hours and fifty minutes. 3) In summary, it’s a beautiful bridge to see and enjoy but the climb is difficult. 4) Plan ahead and check the train schedule so that you could...

We parked across from the railway station in Randa and took the steep uphill trail to the northern junction of this impressive suspension bridge. It is part of the trail between the villages of Grächen and Zermatt. If you get tired during your ascent, there is a lot to see en route like insects of all sorts and If you are lucky you may cross a family of chamois grazing in the forest. So bring a camera! And hiking sticks to help you through the steep portions of your route. Once up at the bridge, the view towards Weisshorn is magnificent. The crossing is uneventful unless you are afraid of heights or there is a lot of wind, and you should definitely avoid the whole hiking projecct if there are thuderstorms in the area. The hike downhill on the opposite side does not present any difficulties, unless you have bad knees. Never do this trip without good mountain shoes. Once down, there are a couple of places for a well...