“We’re meeting at the start of the first trail,” writes Dani Schoch. “Don’t I have to ride up there first?” I ask. No, I don’t, because the TopTrail Tannzapfenland trail center also includes several built-up uphill sections. The president of the club of the same name has brought along his 17-year-old son and fellow rider Stefan Kümin, as well as his slightly younger boys. Together we pedal up the first newly built trail. There are switchbacks, nicely arranged stones; we chat, I look around a bit in the spring-like forest, and before we know it, we’re at the top.&

Of course, in the age of e-mountain bikes, such more or less technical uphill sections are a given, but it’s also true for “organic” bikers that here, in the municipality of Fischingen TG, you hardly feel the elevation gain because the climb is so varied. 

Now we stand before the showpiece of the TopTrails: Nordloop is the name of this playful flow trail with its many jumps. It’s a structure, the kind now found in some forests, that with its meter-high berms and tables looks like a channel of earth sculpted by giants with shovels. Dani admits he was speechless when he saw the construction site. A lot of earth had been moved there. The trail is definitely fun, even if you don’t fly as beautifully or land as cleanly as the 17-year-old. Everything is rideable—except for the two drops, next to which there’s an alternate route where the wheels stay on the ground. The Nord Trail is also handbike-friendly, as mountain handbiker Andi Gautschi and three colleagues confirmed after a test ride.

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by @handbike_andi

Jumpline Becomes a Hangout Spot

Via a forest road and another uphill section, we reach the Enduro Trail. It’s a bit rougher, but closer to the forest’s natural terrain. A few drops, some boulders, roots, and off-camber sections make this singletrack—just over 300 meters long—a bit more challenging. This is followed by an easier singletrack, then the Jumpline. Although the trail center isn’t officially open yet and not all trails have been released, the Jumpline has already established itself as a local hangout, Dani explains. His son is one of the main users. Those who prefer jumping can also use a steeply ascending logging road to get right back to the start of the jump line. It’s clear that laps will be done here in the coming months and years.

Instead, we take the two remaining single-track sections. At the end of the last one, a noose dangles. Galgenhügel is the local name. None of those present know whether people were actually hanged here in the past. A final highlight is a rock garden with several steep steps. “The trail builders from vast came up with the idea for this over a beer one evening,” Dani reveals. This section, too, will give many the opportunity to take their riding technique to the next level. Those who dare to tackle all the steps from the start can search for and optimize the fastest line. When asked about his strategy, the 17-year-old simply says: “I keep the brake open.” That works, too.

“Hinterthurgau is the Davos of Thurgau. Even without this facility, the region offers plenty of biking fun. Nevertheless, the construction of the TopTrail adds significant value.” What Stefan from the core team means by this: There are countless single trails in this area at the border of the cantons of Thurgau, Zurich, and St. Gallen, and, according to locals, few people on them—and therefore hardly ever any arguments. The idea for the trail center originated at an anniversary event for the ski lift—Fischingen has one of those, too. The event took place without snow; instead, a few bike obstacles were set up on the meadow, and the desire for a permanent biking facility grew. 
 

It took a lot of patience

The trails, which will be officially opened this coming Saturday, are located just under a kilometer away, and the project has taken a few other twists and turns along the way. “At the first meeting, everyone staked out their turf—the hunters, the conservationists, the forestry office, and so on,” Dani recalls, “but things already sounded much more constructive during the first site visit in the forest with the head of the cantonal forestry office.” Nevertheless, it took more than five years from the initial inquiry to the building permit decision. Just as Dani pedals uphill while chatting away, he doesn’t seem to run out of steam so quickly when it comes to administrative matters either.

Only one thing left him speechless a few days before the opening: One of the last trails to receive its sign above the trailhead was named SchochWerk without the president’s knowledge. A tribute to the man who drove this project forward. He says: “After every setback, we seriously asked ourselves whether we should keep going, but then someone else would always step in and say, ‘We’re not giving up now; let’s try the next step!’”

One major roadblock was the Thurgau canton’s mountain biking concept, which emerged at the same time and threatened to severely restrict mountain biking. “Time and again, the cantonal authorities hesitated during the approval process because it wasn’t clear which rules would come into effect under the concept,” Dani explains. Ultimately, the trail center and the cantonal mountain biking concept were completed practically at the same time. Ride reported on this. An interesting detail is that TopTrail Tannzapfenland is not considered cantonal infrastructure, which is why, according to the logic of the concept’s accompanying measures, there is still no risk of fines in the forest surrounding it.

Open to Everyone – Grand Opening on April 25, 2026

This coming Saturday, the trails in Tannzapfenland will be officially opened with a celebration featuring a bike orienteering event, an uphill challenge, a jump airbag, a panel discussion, and much more.

The trails are freely accessible to everyone during the day. If you want to improve your jumping technique on small to medium-sized kickers and also ride a few singletrack trails, the Fischinger Trailcenter is the place for you. The Nordloop is handbike-friendly. The various sections can be combined into a longer figure-eight loop or two separate smaller loops. It won’t get boring anytime soon.

After the sightseeing lap, the locals take the Ride authors along toward the S-Bahn. On the root-covered forest trails and tight switchbacks, it quickly becomes clear why this area has long offered ideal conditions for cycling.

More info: toptrail.ch