Andermatt sits in a high, flat valley called the Urseren, at 1,444 metres, where four of the great Swiss passes meet. The Gotthard heads south to Ticino, the Oberalp runs east toward Graubünden, the Furka climbs west to the Valais, and the road north follows the Reuss down through a gorge to Lake Lucerne. People have crossed here for at least eight hundred years, ever since the Devil's Bridge was thrown across the gorge to make the Gotthard route practical, and the village has served travellers and soldiers ever since.
In 1799, the Russian general Suvorov fought his way through the gorge here with an army, losing many men, an episode remembered in a monument carved into the rock. The Swiss army has a long presence in the valley, and the barracks and fortifications are part of the scene. More recently, Andermatt has been remade with new hotels and apartments and a golf course, which sits oddly with the plain old village centre. It is still a quiet place, with a population of just over a thousand, and a good base.
For motorcyclists, this is an obvious starting point. In a single day you can do Furka at 2,429 metres, Grimsel at 2,164, Susten at 2,224 and Nufenen at 2,478, if the weather and the traffic allow, and all four are open only from about June until October, depending on snow. Starting early is important, because by ten the roads are busy and by noon the tour buses arrive. The old Tremola road, paved with cobbles, drops down the south side of the Gotthard and is a different experience, slower and bumpier.
There is fuel in the village, along with bakeries and restaurants, though prices are higher than in the lowlands. Weather changes fast at this altitude, so a warm layer and a rain jacket belong in the luggage even in July.