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Twannbach Gorge

Switzerland Switzerland Canyon

Twannbachschlucht

171 m of rock, cut by the Twannbach.

See the cutWhen to go

GabrielleMerk · CC BY-SA 4.0

The cut

171 metres, to scale.

A slice through Twannbachschlucht where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.

600 m1,252 m171 m13 km rim to rim5.0 kmvertical scale × 1.7600 m1,252 m171 m13 km rim to rim5.0 kmvertical scale × 3.0

Standing on the floor, to scale: Great Pyramid · 139 m

Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is.

171m

Depth

measured on the 30 m relief model

12.6km

Rim to rim

measured on the 30 m relief model

33°

Steepest wall

average over 300 m, from the relief

428m

Floor altitude

Rim to floor

5 °C warmer at the bottom.

In July the afternoon reaches 24 °C on the floor, against 19 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are in June and in September. The rim freezes at night from November to March.

rim · 1,252 mfloor · 428 m
  1. 4°-2°Jan
  2. 5°0°Feb
  3. 10°4°Mar
  4. 15°9°Apr
  5. 18°13°May
  6. 22°17°Jun
  7. 24°19°Jul
  8. 24°19°Aug
  9. 20°15°Sep
  10. 16°10°Oct
  11. 9°4°Nov
  12. 5°-1°Dec
Hike: Jun, SepFrost on the rim: Nov–Mar

Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.

Ravine in Switzerland

Twannbachschlucht is a canyon in Switzerland, cut by the Twannbach river. The relief model measures 171 m from the floor to the lower rim, and 824 m to the higher one. Rim to rim it is 13 km wide where the cut was taken.

Getting there.

  • La Neuvevillenearest town · 5.1 km in a straight line
  • Parking 1,740 m awaynearest car park in OpenStreetMap, straight line
  • Viewpointsnearest viewpoint · 0.3 km from the floor
  • Bern Airport (BRN)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 34 km in a straight lineCar hire at BRN airport (Bern)Discover Cars · sponsored link
  • In June and in Septemberbest months to hike (estimate)

Plan the visit

Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

The river

The Twannbach runs highest from March to August, in October and from December to January.

The Twannbach carries about 61 m³/s on average here.

  1. 56 m³/sJan
  2. 42 m³/sFeb
  3. 67 m³/sMar
  4. 63 m³/sApr
  5. 91 m³/sMay
  6. 71 m³/sJun
  7. 52 m³/sJul
  8. 53 m³/sAug
  9. 31 m³/sSep
  10. 46 m³/sOct
  11. 34 m³/sNov
  12. 46 m³/sDec

From about 31 m³/s in the lowest month to 91 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 2,622 km².

Estimate: long-term flow from the HydroATLAS model (WaterGAP, 1971–2000) shaped by the monthly rain, snow and temperature of the area (NASA POWER). Dams change it. Not a forecast.

From the sky.

The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.

Twannbachschlucht seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 6 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 24 × 24 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Around the canyon.

  • 16viewpoints within 5 kmRiedmatt, Pavillon, Känzeli and 13 more
  • 132marked hiking routes within 4 kmLes Moulins - Lamboing, Lamboing - fixme, sentier des sculptures and 129 more
  • 11footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 kmGeniebrücke and 10 more
  • 6rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 kmSliprampe and 5 more
  • 3swimming spots within 3 km
  • 2caves within 3 km
  • 39car parks within 3 km
  • 7information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
  • 19bus stops within 2 km
  • 26campsites within 8 kmStellplatz Hohmatt, Magglingen, Stellplatz Ancien Débarcadère, Le Landeron, Stellplatz Marais, Le Landeron and 23 more
  • 44hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmSeeblick, Surf, Hotel - Restaurant St. Petersinsel and 41 more
  • 25restaurants and cafés within 4 km
  • via ferrata routes within 4 km
  • climbing crags within 3 km
  • named waterfalls within 4 km

Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Towns nearby

  • La Neuveville5.1 km in a straight line
  • Täuffelen5.2 km in a straight line
  • Erlach7.2 km in a straight line
  • Le Landeron7.3 km in a straight line
  • Bellmund7.6 km in a straight line
  • Nidau7.7 km in a straight line
  • Orvin8.7 km in a straight line
  • Biel/Bienne8.7 km in a straight line

In our other atlases

What else is around Twannbachschlucht.

The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.

Peakyas14 mountains within 15 km
Mont Sujet1,382 m · 7.5 kmChasseral1,607 m · 9.6 kmPetit Chasseral1,557 m · 10 kmLe Houbel1,503 m · 10 kmChasseral Ouest1,552 m · 10 kmLa Cornette1,474 m · 11 kmL'Egasse1,437 m · 11 kmChaumont1,180 m · 15 km
Lakeyas1 lakes within 15 kmComing soon
Lake Biel38 km² · 1.6 km

Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.

Month by month

The weather, at the floor and at the rim.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Afternoon · floor45101518222424201695
Afternoon · rim-20491317191915104-1
Night · rim-7-7-4048101062-3-6
Rain (mm)85668683124112113118831008596
Rainy days121213131716161413131314
Sun hours/day2.23.55.16.56.88.48.57.66.44.32.41.7
Snow on the ground (cm)1615105100002915
Afternoon · floorAfternoon · rimNight · rimRain (mm)Sun hours/day
Jan4-2-7852.2
Feb50-7663.5
Mar104-4865.1
Apr1590836.5
May181341246.8
Jun221781128.4
Jul2419101138.5
Aug2419101187.6
Sep20156836.4
Oct161021004.3
Nov94-3852.4
Dec5-1-6961.7

Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (428 m) and the rim (1,252 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.

Photographs

Seen from the trail.

Findlinge Twannbachschlucht
Arkelin · CC BY 4.0
Naturschutzgebiet Twannbachschlucht + Sunneflue
Arkelin · CC BY 4.0
Twannbachschlucht-20250427-03
MHM55 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Recent years

Wet years, dry years.

Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
202055%187%90%46%92%150%42%94%96%178%31%92%
2021122%73%62%49%128%148%158%64%73%74%63%147%
202254%119%28%124%45%102%36%65%214%88%136%113%
202392%23%137%126%64%40%89%81%55%141%281%160%
2024119%108%113%112%143%132%82%78%228%150%83%113%
2025154%58%50%88%70%107%108%109%189%135%155%28%

130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month

Compare with the neighbours.

Twannbachschlucht

Switzerland

  • 171 mDepth
  • 13 kmRim to rim
  • —Length
  • 33°Steepest wall

Taubenloch Gorge

Switzerland · 11 km

  • 50 mDepth
  • 8.0 kmRim to rim
  • —Length
  • 42°Steepest wall

See the guide

Combe Grède

Switzerland · 13 km

  • 549 mDepth
  • 5.9 kmRim to rim
  • —Length
  • 33°Steepest wall

See the guide

Gorges de l'Areuse

Switzerland · 28 km

  • 162 mDepth
  • 24 kmRim to rim
  • —Length
  • 19°Steepest wall

See the guide

Where these figures come from

Name, type, published depth and lengthWikidata (Q22379979) · CC0
The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D modelCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
River flow and basinHydroATLAS / RiverATLAS v1.0 (Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020
Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons
Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearbyCoastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

The family

Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?

Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.

beachesCoastyaFind your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit
lakesLakeyasEvery lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit
mountainsPeakyasEvery summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit
waterfallsCascadyasEvery waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit
islandsIslandyasEvery island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit riversRiveryasEvery river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit
canyonsCanyonyasEvery canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.You are here