Top 9 Gorges around Haldenstein

Ice-cold refreshment

Tamina Gorge near Old Bad Pfäfers - 36.5°C, 8,000 liters per minute. Source of our thermal water The Tamina spring is not only the namesake of our thermal spa, but also the source of our healing spring water. Europe's most abundant thermal spring rises in the Tamina Gorge near Bad Ragaz and was discovered in the early Middle Ages (in 1242). Mysterious Tamina Gorge In the Tamina Gorge between Valens and the hamlet of Bonadivis, the water of the Tamina River carves its way up to 200 meters into the earth. The narrow rock crevice of the Tamina Gorge is approximately 750 meters long and 70 meters deep. Near Old Bad Pfäfers, the gorge widens, and a road now connects Old Bad Pfäfers with the town of Bad Ragaz. Deep within the mystical Tamina Gorge beats its heart: the inexhaustible spring from which healing, body-temperature thermal water has bubbled for centuries. Among others, the physician and alchemist Paracelsus praised the healing properties of the spring water in the 16th century, which is considered an acratotherm due to its low mineral content and temperature of 36.5°C. Text / Source: TAMINA THERME AG, Hans Albrecht-Strasse, Bad Ragaz https://www.taminatherme.ch/thermalwasserwelt/taminaschlucht-thermalwasser

Tamina Gorge - 36.5°C, 8,000 liters per minute. Two hunters from the nearby Pfäfers Monastery discovered the healing Tamina spring in 1240. Therefore, the healing properties of Pfäfers' spring water were recognized early on. Initially, the sick bathed in rock depressions, and from 1350 onwards, in wooden bathhouses across the roaring Tamina. Access to the gorge was difficult: those who could climbed ladders. The rest abseiled into the gorge in baskets – blindfolded to combat their fear. Today, the Tamina Gorge can be explored much more comfortably. From Bad Ragaz, a leisurely one-hour hike leads to the Old Baths of Pfäfers. Halfway through, you pass under the largest arched bridge in Switzerland, the Tamina Bridge. Those who don't want to walk can take the post bus or the Rösslipost (horse-drawn carriage). The entrance to the mystical gorge is located just behind the historic building. A tunnel secures the 450-meter-long path through the rock to the spring water grotto. Here, the Tamina spring bubbles continuously from the rock, day and night, at a temperature of 36.5°C, and 8,000 liters per minute. Text / Source: Switzerland Tourism https://www.myswitzerland.com/de-ch/erlebnisse/tamina-schlucht-und-altes-bad-pfaefers/

The lower, wide section of the gorge from Bad Ragaz to the old town of Bad Pfäfers, marked in this highlight, is freely accessible. Only the narrower section that follows requires admission. Both sections are absolutely worth seeing.

The Tamina Gorge is definitely worth seeing and also the healing spring

Fantastic geological phenomenon. After a long dry spell, the water is a bit greasy from the sun cream used by the bathers. ;-)

The Tamina Gorge is located above Bad Ragaz in the northern part of the Tamina Valley in the canton of St. Gallen. Between Valens and Bonadivis, the water of the Tamina has dug itself up to 200 meters into the rock for 15,000 years. The narrowest part of the crevices is 750 meters long and 75 meters deep. It is covered at the natural bridge. In the rear part of the Tamina Gorge is the thermal spring, which has water at a temperature of 36.6 degrees. From 1350 to 1969, the thermal water was used in Bad Pfäfers, in the Valens medical clinic and in the thermal baths in Bad Ragaz, for example to cure rheumatism. The water was piped there via long pipes.

The Tamina Gorge is located above Bad Ragaz in the northern part of the Tamina Valley in the canton of St. Gallen. Between Valens and Bonadivis, the water of the Tamina has dug itself up to 200 meters into the rock for 15,000 years. The narrowest part of the crevices is 750 meters long and 75 meters deep. It is covered at the natural bridge. In the rear part of the Tamina Gorge is the thermal spring, which has water at a temperature of 36.6 degrees. From 1350 to 1969, the thermal water was used in Bad Pfäfers, in the Valens medical clinic and in the thermal baths in Bad Ragaz to cure rheumatism, for example. The water was piped there via long pipes.