The Fiescher Glacier (''Fieschergletscher'' in German) is a valley

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 ...

on the south side of the

Bernese Alps , topo_map= Swiss Federal Office of Topography swisstopo , photo=BerneseAlps.jpg , photo_caption=The Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau , country= Switzerland , subdivision1_type= Cantons , subdivision1= , parent= Western Alps , borders_on= , ...

in the canton of

Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the S ...

, Switzerland. in length, it is the second longest glacier in the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

. The glacier covers an area of . The starting point of the Fiescher Glacier is above sea level, on the eastern slope of the Fiescherhorn, it is flanked to the west by the

Grünhorn The Grünhorn (or ''Gross Grünhorn'') (4,044 m) is a mountain in the Bernese Alps range of the Swiss Alps. It is located on the ridge between the two largest glaciers of the Alps: the Aletsch Glacier to the west and the Fiescher Glacier to t ...

and

Gross Wannenhorn The Grosses Wannenhorn is a 3906-metre mountain in the Bernese Alps, in the Swiss canton of Valais near the village of Fiesch. It is part of the Walliser Fiescherhörner. The mountain separates the Aletsch Glacier to the west from the Fiescher Gl ...

and to the east by the

Finsteraarhorn The Finsteraarhorn () is a mountain lying on the border between the cantons of Bern and Valais. It is the highest mountain of the Bernese Alps and the most prominent peak of Switzerland. The Finsteraarhorn is the ninth-highest mountain and thi ...

. In the lower section, the Fiescher Glacier flows south through a deep valley between the

and the

Wasenhorn The Wasenhorn ( German, it, Punta Terrarossa; ) is a mountain of the Lepontine Alps, located on the border between Switzerland and Italy. It lies halfway between Brig (Swiss canton of Valais) and Varzo (Italian region of Piedmont), just nor ...

. In summer, when the snow layer melts, it has a grey colour as it is covered with rocks coming from the steep slopes of the mountains around. The end of glacier tongue is at around above sea level. On the south western slope of the Finsteraarhorn, about above the Fieschergletscher, the Finsteraarhornhütte of the Swiss Alpine Club ( above sea level) is often used as an intermediate station on the route from

Lötschental The Lötschental is the largest valley on the northern side of the Rhône valley in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. It lies in the Bernese Alps, with the Lonza running down the length of the valley from its source within the Langgletsche ...

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 ...

to the

Grimsel Pass The Grimsel Pass (german: Grimselpass; french: Col du Grimsel; it, Passo del Grimsel) is a mountain pass in Switzerland, crossing the Bernese Alps at an elevation of . The pass connects the Haslital, the upper valley of the river Aare, with the ...

This glacier is not to be confused with the like-named Grindelwald-Fieschergletscher on the north of the Fiescherhörner located near

Grindelwald , neighboring_municipalities = Brienz, Brienzwiler, Fieschertal (VS), Guttannen, Innertkirchen, Iseltwald, Lauterbrunnen, Lütschental, Meiringen, Schattenhalb , twintowns = Azumi, now Matsumoto (Japan) Grindelwald is a village and ...

External links

Swiss glacier monitoring network
Glaciers of Valais Glaciers of the Alps {{Valais-glacier-stub

See also

External links