The Eggishorn is a
mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually highe ...
in the southeastern part 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=
, ...
, located north of
Fiesch in the Swiss 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 ...
. A cable car station is located on a secondary summit named ''Fiescherhorli'' (2,893 m), 500 metres south of the main peak.
The Eggishorn lies within the
Jungfrau-Aletsch-Bietschhorn region, which in 2001 was designated by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
as a
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
. On its northern flank is the
Aletsch Glacier. From the summit the view extends also to the
Lepontine and
Pennine Alps
The Pennine Alps (german: Walliser Alpen, french: Alpes valaisannes, it, Alpi Pennine, la, Alpes Poeninae), also known as the Valais Alps, are a mountain range in the western part of the Alps. They are located in Switzerland (Valais) and Italy ...
(
Dom,
Matterhorn
The (, ; it, Cervino, ; french: Cervin, ; rm, Matterhorn) is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the main watershed and border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of the ...
,
Weisshorn
The Weisshorn (German, lit. ''white peak/mountain'') is a major peak of Switzerland and the Alps, culminating at above sea level. It is part of the Pennine Alps and is located between the valleys of Anniviers and Zermatt in the canton of Val ...
).
Together with Fiescherhorli and
Bettmerhorn, Eggishorn forms a ridge, running in a direction from north-northeast to south-southwest, with steep slopes on both sides, facing
Aletsch Glacier in the west and the mountain plateau of Fiescheralpe above the
Rhone valley in the
east. In terms of its geology, this mountain ridge is part of the metamorphic coat of the
granitic
A granitoid is a generic term for a diverse category of coarse-grained igneous rocks that consist predominantly of quartz, plagioclase, and alkali feldspar. Granitoids range from plagioclase-rich tonalites to alkali-rich syenites and from quartz- ...
Aarmassif; predominant rock types are
gneiss
Gneiss ( ) is a common and widely distributed type of metamorphic rock. It is formed by high-temperature and high-pressure metamorphic processes acting on formations composed of igneous or sedimentary rocks. Gneiss forms at higher temperatures a ...
and
schist
Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock showing pronounced schistosity. This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a low-power hand lens, oriented in such a way that the rock is easily split into thin flakes ...
.
Pictures
Image:Aletch glacier view from Eggishorn observation point.jpg
Image:Eggishorn summit.jpg, Eggishorn Terminus
Image:Eggishorn 83.JPG, Aerial tramway Fiesch Eggishorn (FE)
Image:Eggishorn, Schuttfeld unterr dem Gipfel.jpg, Gipfel des Eggishorns mit Schuttfeld unterhalb
See also
*
List of mountains of Switzerland accessible by public transport
This is a list of mountains of Switzerland above 800 metres whose summits are accessible by public transport. This list includes mountains with a topographic prominence of at least 30 metres that have a station above the height of their key col an ...
References
External links
Eggishorn on SummitpostEggishorn on HikrFiesch Eggishorn cable car (FE)
{{Authority control
Bernese Alps
Mountains of the Alps
Mountains of Valais
Cable cars in Switzerland
Mountains of Switzerland
Two-thousanders of Switzerland