A small group of travellers look beneath an arc of ominous snow and rain clouds towards the distant sunshine. The St Gothard Pass is one of the main routes from northern Europe over the Alps into Italy. It was famous for its wild scenery and precarious bridges, which Turner first explored and drew in 1802. The Devil’s Bridge, where a narrow road crosses over a deep gorge, was the most dramatic point on the journey. Here the bridge is just shown in the foreground and the foaming river torrent takes centre stage.