Titlis is a mountain of the
Uri Alps
The Uri Alps (also known as ''Urner Alps'', german: Urner Alpen) are a mountain range in Central Switzerland and part of the Western Alps. They extend into the cantons of Obwalden, Valais, Bern, Uri and Nidwalden and are bordered by the Bernese A ...
, located on the border between the cantons of
Obwalden and
Bern. At above sea level, it is the highest summit of the range north of the
Susten Pass
Susten Pass (German: ''Sustenpass'') (el. 2260 m.) is a mountain pass in the Swiss Alps. The pass road, built from 1938–1945, connects Innertkirchen in the canton of Bern with Wassen in the canton of Uri. A 300-metre long tunnel crosses the pas ...
, between the
Bernese Oberland
The Bernese Oberland ( en, Bernese Highlands, german: Berner Oberland; gsw, Bärner Oberland; french: Oberland bernois), the highest and southernmost part of the canton of Bern, is one of the canton's five administrative regions (in which context ...
and
Central Switzerland
Central Switzerland is the region of the Alpine Foothills geographically the heart and historically the origin of Switzerland, with the cantons of Uri, Schwyz, Obwalden, Nidwalden, Lucerne and Zug.
Central Switzerland is one of the NUTS 2 Stat ...
. It is mainly accessed from
Engelberg
Engelberg (lit.: ''mountain of angel(s)'') is a village resort and a municipality in the canton of Obwalden in Switzerland. Besides the village of Engelberg, the municipality also includes the settlements of Grafenort, Oberberg and Schwand.
The ...
(OW) on the north side and is famous as the site of the world's first rotating
cable car. The cable car system connects Engelberg () to the summit of ''Klein Titlis'' () through the three stages of ''Gerschnialp'' (), ''Trübsee'' () and ''Stand'' (), although somewhat recently, a newer, direct route was created that bypassed Gerachnialp, going directly to Trübsee.
The last part of cable car leads above the
glacier
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...
. At ''Klein Titlis'', it is possible to visit an illuminated
glacier cave from an entrance within the cable-car station, which also includes shops and restaurants. The
Titlis Cliff Walk, the highest elevation
suspension bridge in Europe, opened in December 2012, giving views across the Alps. Many people use Titlis as a cheaper and easier option than
Jungfraujoch
The Jungfraujoch (German: lit. "maiden saddle") is a saddle connecting two major 4000ers of the Bernese Alps: the Jungfrau and the Mönch. It lies at an elevation of above sea level and is directly overlooked by the rocky prominence of the Sphinx ...
.
Geography
Titlis straddles the border between
Obwalden and
Bern. The main summit of Titlis (sometimes distinguished by the name ''Gross Titlis'') and Klein Titlis are both located between the municipalities of
Engelberg
Engelberg (lit.: ''mountain of angel(s)'') is a village resort and a municipality in the canton of Obwalden in Switzerland. Besides the village of Engelberg, the municipality also includes the settlements of Grafenort, Oberberg and Schwand.
The ...
on the north and
Gadmen on the south. The Titlis massif is also partially located in
Nidwalden, where the highest point of that canton is found: the
Rotstöckli
The Rotstöckli (2,901 m) is a peak of the Urner Alps below the Titlis, on the border between the Swiss cantons of Obwalden and Nidwalden. It is Nidwalden's highest point. The summit is split between the municipalities of Engelberg (Obwalden) a ...
(2,901 m). Titlis itself is the highest point in Obwalden and in the valley of Engelberg. East of Titlis is the
Grassen
The Grassen is a mountain of the Urner Alps, located east of the Titlis in Central Switzerland. The summit is the tripoint between the cantons of Berne
Bern () or Berne; in other Swiss languages, gsw, Bärn ; frp, Bèrna ; it, Berna ; rm, ...
, where the borders between the cantons of Obwalden, Berne and
Uri converge. The
geographical center of Switzerland
The geographical centre of Switzerland has the coordinates (Swiss Grid: 660158/183641). It is located at Älggi-Alp in the municipality of Sachseln, Obwalden. The point is the centre of mass determined in 1988 by Swisstopo.
As the point is diff ...
is situated about 15 kilometers west of the mountain.
Titlis is the highest mountain in the portion of the Uri Alps north of the
Susten Pass
Susten Pass (German: ''Sustenpass'') (el. 2260 m.) is a mountain pass in the Swiss Alps. The pass road, built from 1938–1945, connects Innertkirchen in the canton of Bern with Wassen in the canton of Uri. A 300-metre long tunnel crosses the pas ...
. This part of the range is located between the valleys of the
Hasli (west) and the
Reuss (east), thus separating the waters feeding the basins of the
Aare
The Aare () or Aar () is a tributary of the High Rhine and the longest river that both rises and ends entirely within Switzerland.
Its total length from its source to its junction with the Rhine comprises about , during which distance it descen ...
and Reuss respectively. On the north side, the valley of Engelberg (''Engelbergertal'') is drained by the
Engelberger Aa, a tributary of the
Lake Lucerne
__NOTOC__
Lake Lucerne (german: Vierwaldstättersee, literally "Lake of the four forested settlements" (in English usually translated as ''forest cantons''), french: lac des Quatre-Cantons, it, lago dei Quattro Cantoni) is a lake in central S ...
. The valley is located southwards from Lake Lucerne.
The northern side of the massif is covered by the Titlis Glacier (german: Titlisgletscher). Due to the
global warming
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
the glacier has been receded dramatically; it is expected to disappear in about twenty years. The south steep and rocky face rises above the
Wenden Glacier. The east side overlooks a glacier named ''Firnalpeligletscher''.
History
In earlier times, Titlis was known under the names ''Wendenstock'' or ''Nollen''. The
Reissend Nollen and the
Wendenstöcke are the nearest western neighbours to the mountain, slightly lower than Titlis, but with sharp rugged peaks.
[Titlis](_blank)
brauchtumschweiz.ch. Retrieved 16 February 2010 In a document of 1435 the mountain is called ''Tuttelsberg'' (''Tutilos mountain''), referencing to a man named ''Tutilos'', who was probably a local farmer. The name, from ''Tutilos Berg'', became ''Titlisberg'' and later ''Titlis''.
The first ascent of Titlis was probably made in the year 1739. It was done by Ignaz Hess, J. E. Waser and two other men from Engelberg. The first written evidence of an ascent is found in the ''Engelberger Dokumente''. They mention a party of four men that reached the summit in 1744.
On 21 January 1904 the first ski ascent of Titlis was made by Joseph Kuster and Willi Amrhein.
In March 1967 the cable car to Klein Titlis (3,032 m) was inaugurated.
In December 2012, the
Titlis Cliff Walk opened to commemorate the 110th anniversary of the
Engelberg-Gerschnialp cableway.
Telecommunications
Klein Titlis hosts a significant telecommunications site, used for high capacity point-to-point
microwave radio
Microwave transmission is the transmission of information by electromagnetic waves with wavelengths in the microwave frequency range of 300MHz to 300GHz(1 m - 1 mm wavelength) of the electromagnetic spectrum. Microwave signals are normally limi ...
links and VHF/
UHF repeaters. Licensed band radio links are regulated by the Swiss Federal Office of Communications.
Weather
The summit of Titlis is located above the
snow line, thus it has a cold, snowy climate with permanent snow cover and freezing temperatures.
Gallery
File:Engelberg-Titlis cableway wallpaper.JPG, Stand-Klein Titlis cableway (July 2010)
File:Titlis.jpg, Titlis Glacier (October 2005)
File:Titlis Rotair.jpg, Stand-Klein Titlis cable car, old version (March 2008)
See also
*
List of mountains of Switzerland
This article contains a sortable table of many of the major mountains and hills of Switzerland. The table only includes those summits that have a topographic prominence of at least above other points, and ranks them by height and prominence. T ...
References
*
Swisstopo maps
External links
Titlis webpage on the Swiss national tourist officeTitlis Tourism homepage
{{Authority control
Mountains of Switzerland
Mountains of the Alps
Alpine three-thousanders
Tourist attractions in Switzerland
Cable cars in Switzerland
Highest points of Swiss cantons
Engelberg
Mountains of Obwalden
Mountains of the canton of Bern
Bern–Obwalden border