At age 30, Johann Wolfgang Goethe braved the snowy Furka on his second Switzerland trip. Near the pass, a wall bears his words: "I notice that I make little mention of people in my writing; they are also less remarkable among these great objects of nature, especially when passing by." Goethe, drawn to the mountains, conquered Gotthard thrice and visited Andermatt three thimes. In 1797, he returned, expressing a "wondrous desire to repeat and rectify the experiences." For Uri and Valais, he declared, "Of all the regions I know, it is the dearest and most interesting.”
Since the completion of the pass road, both it and the Rhone Glacier have been a tourist magnet. In 1914, 19,102 individuals were counted traveling over the pass in stagecoaches. From 1921, the coaches were replaced by postal buses.
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