| Kleine Scheidegg | |
|---|---|
View from the northern side |
|
| Elevation | 2,061 m (6,762 ft) |
| Traversed by | Rail |
| Location | |
| Location | Switzerland |
| Range | Bernese Alps |
The Kleine Scheidegg (elevation 2061 m) is a high mountain pass below and between the Eiger and Lauberhorn peaks in the Bernese Oberland, Switzerland. It connects Grindelwald with Lauterbrunnen. The name means "minor watershed", even though it is actually higher than the neighbouring Grosse Scheidegg. Possibly this is because Kleine Scheidegg is a watershed between the two arms of the Lütschinen river, while Grosse Scheidegg divides the Lütschinen valleys from the Reichenbach.
On the Kleine Scheidegg are hotels, as well as the station which serves the two rack railways, the Wengernalpbahn (since 1893) and the Jungfraubahn (since 1896). The Wengernalpbahn has two branches: one begins at Grindelwald; the other commences at Lauterbrunnen and climbs to the pass via Wengen. The Jungfraubahn climbs steeply through tunnels inside the Eiger and Mönch mountains up to its terminal at the Jungfraujoch.
In winter, the Kleine Scheidegg is the centre of the ski area around Grindelwald and Wengen. In summer it is a popular hiking destination, and is one of the passes crossed by the Alpine Pass Route. The Jungfrau Marathon, a mountain race that takes place every year in early September, ends in Kleine Scheidegg.
The advantage of the position of the pass, which has made it celebrated beyond almost any other in the Swiss Alps, arises from the fact that it stands just north of the point where the Bernese range makes a salient angle, whose apex is the Eiger. From thence a series of high peaks rise in line towards the north-east, ever on the left hand of the traveller who follows a direct route from Meiringen, south-west across the Grosse Scheidegg, to this point. On the south side of the apex at the Eiger the still higher summits of the Mönch, Jungfrau, Gletscherhorn, and Mittaghorn follow in succession from north to south. Concealed by the Eiger from the neighbourhood of Grindelwald, and but imperfectly seen from the Faulhorn, some 10 km to the north-east, the Mönch and Jungfrau here break upon the traveller in full grandeur, rising from the narrow gorge of the Trümmletental. Three comparatively large glaciers, with several minor accumulations of ice, are found in the hollows and on the shelving ledges of the three peaks that rise above the Trümmletental. The Eiger Glacier lies in the recess between the Eiger and the Mönch. This is separated by a huge projecting buttress of the latter mountain from the Guggi Glacier. Farther on is the Giessen Glacier, formed, at a higher level than the two last, on a shelf of the north-west side of the Jungfrau.[1]
The hiking track in the area is the basis for the fictional Eiger Nordwand tracks in Gran Turismo HD, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue and Gran Turismo 5.