- Ascent
- 923 hm
- Distance Ascent
- 13.2 km
- max. gradient
- 8.8 %
- ø gradient
- 7 %
The Gotthard Pass (Passo del San Gottardo) via the Tremola from Airolo is an HC climb of 13.2 km with 923 m of elevation gain at an average of 7 %, peaking at 8.8 %. The old pass road climbs from the Leventina to 2,091 m and drops on the north side to Andermatt. Only one climb in our list has a lower peak gradient.
The Gotthard Pass via the Tremola is the old road from the Leventina up to the Gotthard. From Airolo it is 13.2 kilometres and 923 metres of climbing up to 2,091 metres. The 7 % average and the 8.8 % peak are unusually close together. That makes it one of the most even climbs in our list.
The Gotthard Pass at a glance
The key figures from Airolo: category HC, 13.2 km, 923 m of climbing, 7 % on average and 8.8 % at its steepest. The old pass road climbs from Airolo in the Leventina up to the pass at 2,091 m. On the north side it drops down to Andermatt. In our list the Gotthard belongs to the Western Alps region.
The climb from Airolo
From the very first kilometre the gradient sits at 7 to 8 %, and it stays there for a long time. There is no warm up and no single hard section, just an even, constant load. One or two kilometres come out slightly above, two others slightly below at around 4.5 %. The picture remains the same: steady work at one pace.
Towards the top the road gets calmer, and the last kilometre before the pass is almost flat. So the finish is the easiest part of the whole climb. Anyone who rode evenly lower down arrives at the top with something left. The key is not to start too fast on the first kilometres.
How it compares to our 100 climbs
The 8.8 % peak is the lowest of all 30 Western Alps climbs in our list, and across all 100 climbs only one has a lower one. Only the Col du Noyer has its average and peak even closer together. At 7 % on average the Gotthard sits in the middle, 48 climbs are steeper. The Nassfeldpass has almost the same elevation gain at 929 m, but at 7.7 % with a peak of 10 %.
Practical tips
The Gotthard needs no special gearing, 8.8 % at the steepest is easy to handle on a compact chainset. More important is an even pace from the first metre, because the climb starts right away. At 2,091 m it is noticeably colder than in Airolo, so bring a jacket for the descent. Heading north you roll down to Andermatt, the way back to Airolo is the same road.
