Holzsteg Rapperswil–Hurden, Wooden pedestrian bridge in Rapperswil, Switzerland

Holzsteg Rapperswil-Hurden is a wooden pedestrian bridge extending approximately 841 meters across Lake Zurich, connecting Rapperswil in St. Gallen canton to Hurden in Schwyz canton. The structure is about 2.4 meters wide and rests on wooden piles driven into the lake bed.

Neolithic and Bronze Age pile-dwelling remains found near the crossing are among the oldest evidence of lake crossings in Europe. The 2001 wooden footbridge follows the line of a Roman bridge built around 165 AD under Marcus Aurelius, and of a medieval bridge first documented in 1358 and destroyed by a storm in 1878. The present structure was opened on 6 April 2001.

The bridge lies on the Schwabenweg, the pilgrim route from Konstanz to Einsiedeln over the Etzel pass, and walkers with the scallop shell of St James can be met on it. Its name is simply the wooden footbridge between Rapperswil and Hurden. The 2001 reconstruction was pushed by the Verkehrs- und Verschönerungsverein Rapperswil-Jona and the Zürichsee landscape protection association.

The 841-metre crossing takes roughly 20 to 30 minutes on foot and is exposed to wind and sun, with no shelter along the way. The deck is made of wooden planks with a low railing, so walkers share the narrow width with oncoming pedestrians and cyclists pushing bikes. The route links the Rapperswil and Hurden shore paths and continues as the Schwabenweg pilgrim trail toward Einsiedeln.

The 2001 reconstruction follows the line of a prehistoric lake crossing: Neolithic and Bronze Age pile fields lie in the lake bed nearby and are listed as UNESCO World Heritage. Look for the rows of modern oak piles beside the walkway, driven to carry the 841-metre deck.