The Red Bulletin December 2019 (UK)

Ski Switzerland
02 Bern
region
The colossal peaks of Eiger, Mönch and
Jungfrau dominate the Interlaken-Jungfrau
region, which has been at the centre of skiing
and mountaineering for more than 200 years.
The 4,158m-high Jungfrau was first climbed in
1811, which kick-started tourism in the Swiss
Alps. Almost 150 years on, Heinrich Harrer
released The White Spider, his legendary book
describing the first successful ascent, in 1938,
of the North Face of the Eiger – nicknamed
‘Mordwand’ or ‘death wall’. Sir Arnold Lunn
organised the first ski slalom race in the village
of Mürren in 1922, while the first men’s World
Cup downhill took place in Wengen in 1967. The
region now draws 30,000 spectators every
year for the FIS World Cup’s Lauberhorn races,
one of the best-attended events on snow.
Winter sports
in Interlaken
Viewpoints
from the top
of the world
There are some ski resorts you
visit where the add-ons – the
extra stuff you can do when not
on skis – are a bit half-baked.
This is not the case in Interlaken.
The region boasts an abundance
of temptations to draw you off
the slopes for the day, or at least
a few hours. Top of Europe ICE
MAGIC is a little winter paradise
sandwiched between mountains
and lakes, which consists of six
icefields connected by winding
paths. There’s skating ahoy, and
you can try curling and ice hockey
on the fields. For an adrenalin
hit, the paragliding and skydiving
options are extensive, too. But
perhaps the pick in Interlaken is
the winter kayaking on Lake
Brienz. Think air as crisp as it
can get, and reflections of snowcovered
mountains on the water.
Nearest airport:
Zürich (133km)
Elevation:
800m–3,454m
Total piste
distance:
266km
Longest run:
14.9km
Difficulty:
38% blue (101km);
48% red (128km);
14% black (37km)
Number of lifts:
54
More info:
jungfrau.ch/en;
interlaken.ch/en
Skiing in the Jungfrau region
In the shadow of legendary mountains
Don’t let the history scare you.
The Jungfrau region may have
seen some of the most gnarly
mountaineering since humans
began climbing, but the ski slopes
offer something for everyone.
The resorts of Grindelwald and
Wengen are linked and great for
beginners and intermediates,
but Wengen also has the 4.5km
Lauberhorn – the pick of the
expert pistes and the longest
downhill World Cup race on the
circuit. There’s tough skiing in
Mürren, too, including the 14.9km
Schilthorn to Lauterbrunnen run.
It hosts the annual ‘Inferno’ event,
the world’s biggest amateur ski
race, with downhill racing, giant
slalom and cross country.
Float on: take a break from the slopes and paddle across Lake Brienz
Forty-eight of the Alps’
82 four-thousander
peaks (higher than
4,000m) are in
Switzerland, as well
as many of the most
famous summits in
the world, from the
Matterhorn and the
Dufourspitze to the
legendary Eiger.
118 THE RED BULLETIN