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Gletscherhorn - img 23506

Mountain·SwitzerlandSwitzerland

Gletscherhorn

3,982m

Gletscherhorn-Blümlisalp-Balmhorn Group

Summit weather

Pmau · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Elevation
3,982m
Prominence
355m
Isolation
2.5km
Relief
2,855mabove the lowest point within 5 km
Steepest slope
62°within 1 km of the summit
Snow at the summit
All yearSee month by month ↓
Summit
46.5128°N, 7.9656°E

Mountain

Gletscherhorn is a mountain in the Gletscherhorn-Blümlisalp-Balmhorn Group (Switzerland). Its summit stands 3,982 m above sea level. Its prominence — how far it rises above the highest saddle linking it to a taller summit — is 355 m, and the nearest higher ground is 2.5 km away.

From the lowest point within 5 km (1,127 m), it rises 2,855 m. The steepest side is the north-west face: 50° on average over the first kilometre. In places the ground near the top reaches 62° — terrain for climbers, not walkers.

The nearest town is Lauterbrunnen, 10 km away at 787 m: 3,195 m below the summit.

Read more on Wikipedia

Scores

Gletscherhorn for skiers and climbers

Two scores out of 10, built only from open data — every part is shown. They describe what the mountain offers, not how safe it is.

Hiking & mountaineering

9.4/10

Difficulty to the top

Alpine climb

Most path sections around the top are T5 on the SAC hiking scale. Glaciers around the top.

Indicative only — never a safety assessment. Conditions change: ask local guides and check the forecast.

  • 2.5/2.549 waymarked routes and 31 path sections nearby
  • 1.5/1.513 huts and shelters
  • 2.0/23,195 m of ascent from the valley
  • 1.1/1.5355 m of prominence
  • 1.2/1.55 months with summit afternoons above −5 °C
  • 1.0/1via ferratas, climbing and glaciers

Ski score

9.2/10

  • 3.9/4262 km of downhill runs
  • 1.5/1.557 ski lifts
  • 0.8/1.5789 m between the lowest and highest lift station
  • 3.0/37 months of snow at about 1,972 m

Runs by difficulty

  • Beginner 1 km
  • Easy 103 km
  • Intermediate 101 km
  • Difficult 37 km
  • Expert 2 km
  • Freeride 8 km

Snow season on the slopes (estimate)

Around 1,972 m, in the middle of the ski area: snow from November to May.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

57 lifts · lift stations from 1,578 to 2,367 m · 0 km cross-country

How these scores are made

Ski (where OpenStreetMap has skiing within 12 km): up to 4 points for the length of downhill runs (300 km or more = 4), 1.5 for the number of lifts (40+), 1.5 for the vertical between lift stations (1,500 m) and 3 for the snow season — a month counts when the estimated mean temperature at the height of the ski area is −1 °C or lower and snow falls or lies there (NASA POWER, 2001–2020). Hiking & mountaineering: up to 2.5 for waymarked routes and paths, 1.5 for huts, 2 for the ascent from the valley (2,000 m), 1.5 for prominence (3,000 m), 1.5 for the season (months with summit afternoons above −5 °C) and 1 for via ferratas, climbing and glaciers. OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: where few things are mapped, a score can be lower than reality.

Plan your visit

Stay, climb and get there

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Snow

When there is snow on Gletscherhorn

At the summit, snow all year round. Month by month below, at different heights on the way up.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Summit3,982 msnow all year round
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Halfway up2,384 msnow from October to June
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Lauterbrunnen787 msnow from December to March
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow on the ground all month
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

Estimate for a normal year: average temperature and precipitation from NASA POWER, carried to each height, in a simple model of snow building up and melting. In a given year snow can come earlier or stay longer. It does not replace the local snow and avalanche bulletin.

Summit weather

Gletscherhorn, month by month

Not a forecast: long-term averages (1991–2020), carried up to the summit. The orange line is where an average afternoon reaches 0 °C; above the dashed blue line it freezes even at dawn.

On an average July afternoon the summit reaches about 3 °C; on January nights it falls to about -26 °C. In 9 months of the year it stays below freezing at the top even in the afternoon. In July the 0 °C line climbs to about 4,410 m, above the summit: the top thaws on an average afternoon. Across the region, February is the driest month (69 mm) and August the wettest (165 mm).

0 m1,000 m2,000 m3,000 m4,000 mSUMMIT · 3,982 mLAUTERBRUNNEN · 787 mJanuary: 1,220 mFebruary: 1,350 mMarch: 1,840 mApril: 2,580 mMay: 3,390 mJune: 4,130 mJuly: 4,410 mAugust: 4,350 mSeptember: 3,750 mOctober: 3,050 mNovember: 2,070 mDecember: 1,390 mJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
0 °C on an average afternoon 0 °C at dawn the summit
MonthSummit high °CSummit low °CLauterbrunnen high °C0 °C line (m)Rain & snow (mm)Wet daysSun h/day
January-18-2631,22081144.1
February-17-2641,35069125.5
March-14-2271,84089156.4
April-9-17122,580103165.9
May-4-12173,390154205.7
June1-8224,130151207.4
July3-6244,410148197.9
August2-7234,350165187.1
September-2-10193,750106166.1
October-6-14153,050107154.7
November-12-1982,070114163.4
December-17-2441,39092153.4

Estimate: the NASA POWER climate of a ~55 km cell (average height 1,854 m), adjusted to the summit by −6.5 °C per 1,000 m. Rain, wet days and sunshine are those of the region. Mountain weather changes fast — always check a local forecast. ★ = mildest months at the top.

Relief

The mountain in profile

Two cuts through the summit, 16 km long, from the 30 m Copernicus elevation model. True scale: no vertical exaggeration.

West – east
3,982 m1,537 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmWE
South – north
3,982 m1,966 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmSN
Steepness by direction
30°N: 44°NNE: 22°NEE: 31°ESE: 29°SES: 23°SSW: 4°SWW: 28°WNW: 50°NW

Average slope of the first kilometre from the summit. The orange petal is the steepest side.

Around the mountain

Huts, lifts and trails around Gletscherhorn

Counted around the summit in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. The satellite plate shows 14 × 14 km.

Gletscherhorn seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 5 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 14 × 14 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

A lift reaches Riggli at 2,367 m — just 1,615 m below the summit.

  • 13mountain huts and shelters

    Spielbodenalp, Guggihütte (2,791 m), Berggasthaus Tschingelhorn (1,678 m), Berghotel Obersteinberg (1,778 m) and 9 more

  • 26cable cars, gondolas, chairlifts and rack railways

    Stechelberg – Gimmelwald, Wixi, Fallboden, Eigernordwand and 22 more

  • 6ski areas

    Mürren/Schilthorn, Jungfraujoch Snow Fun Park, Aletsch Arena, Grindelwald - Wengen and 2 more

  • 49waymarked hiking routes

    Schwendriwald - Wasserbrücke, Schwendriwald - fixme, Stechelberg / Rütti - Schwendriwald, Stechelberg / Rütti - Stechelberg / Post and 45 more

  • 15via ferratas

    Mürreflue - Klettersteig, Nepalbrücke (3 Seile), Hängebrücke (ein Halteseil), Klettersteig Rotstock and 11 more

  • 1climbing crags and routes

    Klettergarten Eigergletscher

  • 33named glaciers

    Chielouwenengletscher, Schmadrigletscher, Kalligletscher, Nollengletscher and 29 more

  • 26viewpoints

    Panorama-Webcam Jungfraujoch, Tanzbödeli, High Ultimate Basejump and 23 more

  • 2campsites

    Rütti, Breithorn

  • 45hotels, B&Bs and chalets

    Hotel Restaurant Stechelberg, Mittagshorn, Schützen, Silberhorn and 41 more

  • 49restaurants and cafés

How hard are the paths?

31 path sections within 5 km, by SAC hiking scale (T1 easy walk … T6 difficult alpine).

T1T2T3T4T5T6
  • T1 hiking
  • T2 mountain hiking
  • T3 demanding mountain hiking
  • T4 alpine hiking
  • T5 demanding alpine hiking
  • T6 difficult alpine hiking

Towns at the foot

  • Lauterbrunnen10 km · 787 m
  • Grindelwald13 km · 1,047 m
  • Fiesch18 km · 1,052 m
  • Wilderswil19 km · 598 m
  • Matten20 km · 576 m
  • Bönigen20 km · 569 m
  • Interlaken20 km · 570 m
  • Naters21 km · 720 m
Car hire at BRN airport (Bern)Discover Cars · Affiliate link

OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: a low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. Places © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Photos

Seen by climbers and visitors

Gletscherhorn aerial view
T. Kennedy · Public domain
Gletscherhorn seen from Jungfraujoch 2022-10-02 04
Leonhard Lenz · CC0

Recent years

How each month compared at the summit

Afternoon high at the summit (estimate). The first row is the reference, the 1991–2020 average in °C; the years show only the difference.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
1991–2020 average-18-17-14-9-4132-2-6-12-17
2020+2.2+2.9+0.4+2.8+1.8−1.7+0.9+0.7+1.0−2.5+3.5−0.6
2021−1.4+2.2−0.3−1.8−2.5+1.0−0.6−0.9+1.7−0.4−0.2+1.2
2022+1.2+1.6+2.1+1.2+2.8+2.8+2.8+2.3−0.5+3.8+0.7+1.0
2023+0.2+2.6+2.9−0.7+0.3+1.1+1.6+1.4+4.0+3.1−1.1+1.8
2024+1.7+4.1+1.4−0.8−0.6−0.1+1.8+2.9−1.6+1.1+2.4+1.9
2025+1.7+2.4+1.4+2.7+0.5+4.1−0.8+1.4+0.7−0.2−0.1+2.4

+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual

Nearby

More mountains nearby

4,158 mJungfrauSwitzerlandSwitzerland3 km away4,110 mMönchSwitzerlandSwitzerland6 km away3,967 mEigerSwitzerlandSwitzerland8 km away4,194 mAletschhornSwitzerlandSwitzerland6 km away4,274 mFinsteraarhornSwitzerlandSwitzerland12 km away3,961 mEbnefluhSwitzerlandSwitzerland1 km away

About these numbers

Names, elevation, prominenceWikidata (Q674403) · CC0
Relief, 3D view, profilesCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020 · CC BY 4.0
Around the mountain© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

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