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47-665: The Aletschhorn, the second highest mountain of the Bernese Alps after the Finsteraarhorn , is the only one of the higher peaks that lies completely in Valais . It is the culminating point of a chain running parallel with the dividing ridge, and surpassing it in the height of its principal peaks. Standing thus between the principal range of the Bernese Alps and the Pennine chain , it shares with

94-502: A mountain range of the Alps located in western Switzerland . Although the name suggests that they are located in the Berner Oberland region of the canton of Bern , portions of the Bernese Alps are in the adjacent cantons of Valais , Fribourg and Vaud , the latter being usually named Fribourg Alps and Vaud Alps respectively. The highest mountain in the range, the Finsteraarhorn ,

141-625: A chalet to the north of Lake Geneva in 1976, which inspired him to take up painting and informed the first stages of the " Berlin Trilogy ". Pop singer Phil Collins lives in a home overlooking the lake. Rock band Queen owned and operated Mountain Recording Studios (which is still in use today) in Montreux , and a statue of lead singer Freddie Mercury , who also owned a second home in Montreux, stands on

188-425: A few large glacier-covered mountains (notably Dent de Morcles, Grand Muveran , Diablerets , Wildhorn and Wildstrubel ) around 3,000 metres (9,800 ft), and the chain east of Gemmi Pass, consisting mainly of summits around 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) on several subranges, with large valley glaciers between them. The latter section, contrary to the former, has very few foothills and is the most glaciated part of

235-523: A little "chalet" at the French bank, near Geneva. Actor Charlie Chaplin spent his final years and died in Vevey (there is a memorial statue of him along the promenade; his home at Corsier-sur-Vevey is now a museum of his life and career). Actors Noël Coward , James Mason , Sir Peter Ustinov , Richard Burton , and Audrey Hepburn all lived in villages on the shores of or in view of the lake. David Bowie moved to

282-465: A loud underwater sound that could be measured at a distance. The flash of the exploding gunpowder provided the visual starting cue for the timepiece, and the underwater explosion sound striking a bell provided the finish cue. The lake is rich in wildlife, especially birds: both the common buzzard and the red kite breed here in considerable numbers. Yacht racing is a popular sport, and high-performance catamarans have been developed specifically for

329-411: A scientific footnote, in 1827, Lake Geneva was the site for the first measurement of the speed of sound in (fresh) water. French mathematician Jacques Charles François Sturm and Swiss physicist Daniel Collodon used two moored boats, separated by a measured distance, as the transmitting and receiving platforms for the sounds of exploding gunpowder. The loud airborne sound coupled into the lake, establishing

376-548: Is a deep lake on the north side of the Alps , shared between Switzerland and France . It is one of the largest lakes in Western Europe and the largest on the course of the Rhône . Sixty percent (345.31 km or 133.32 sq mi) of the lake belongs to Switzerland (the cantons of Vaud , Geneva and Valais ) and forty percent (234.71 km or 90.62 sq mi) to France (the department of Haute-Savoie ). While

423-567: Is again considered safe to swim in the lake. Major leisure activities practiced include sailing, wind surfing, boating (including water skiing and wake-boarding), rowing, scuba diving, and bathing. A total of four submarines have plied the depths of Lake Geneva. In 1964, Jacques Piccard launched a tourist-oriented submarine, the Auguste Piccard (named for his explorer father ), for the Swiss National Exhibition, meant to honor

470-771: Is also the highest point in the canton of Bern. The Rhône valley separates them from the Chablais Alps in the west and from the Pennine Alps in the south; the upper Rhône valley separates them from the Lepontine Alps to the southeast; the Grimsel Pass and the Aare valley separates them from the Uri Alps in the east, and from the Emmental Alps in the north; their northwestern edge

517-564: Is called Lavaux and is famous for its hilly vineyards. The average surface elevation of 372 m (1,220 ft) above sea level is controlled by the Seujet Dam  [ fr ] in Geneva. Due to climate change , the average temperature of deep water (more than 300 metres or 980 feet deep) increased from 4.4 °C (39.9 °F) in 1963 to 5.5 °C (41.9 °F) in 2016 (an increase of 1.1 °C or 2.0 °F in 53 years), while

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564-606: Is not well defined, describing a line roughly from Lake Geneva to Lake Thun . The Bernese Alps are drained by the river Aare and its tributary the Saane in the north, the Rhône in the south, and the Reuss in the east. The Bernese Alps are amongst the three highest major subranges of the Alps, together with the Pennine Alps and the Mont Blanc massif . One of the most prominent Alpine ranges,

611-502: Is protected from it. As a consequence, agriculture consists essentially of dairy farming and cattle breeding on the northern foothills, while on the sunnier southern foothills (Rhone Valley) it also consists of vineyards. Gemmi Pass is the most central of the major passes through the main chain. It also marks the separation between two distinct sections of the Bernese Alps: the chain west of Gemmi Pass, consisting mainly of foothills with

658-512: Is situated west of the main-summit. In the south-ridge are located the southeast-ridge-gendarm pt 3,948 m (12,953 ft), a prominent double-tower (ca. 3,744 m (12,283 ft)) and the quadruple-tower pt 3,716 m (12,192 ft). The Aletschhorn was first climbed almost 50 years after the first ascent of the Jungfrau . When the Jungfrau was first climbed, the climbers used base camps on

705-412: Is the lowest point of the cantons of Valais and Vaud. The culminating point of the lake's drainage basin is Monte Rosa at 4,634 metres above sea level. The beauty of the shores of the lake and of the sites of many of the places near its banks has long been celebrated. However, it is only from the eastern end of the lake, between Vevey and Villeneuve, that the scenery assumes an Alpine character. On

752-593: The Aletsch Glacier and the two summits of the Jungfrau and Bietschhorn , which constitute some of the most impressive features of the site. The actual site (after the extension) includes other large glacier valleys such as the Fiescher Glacier and the Aar Glaciers . The chief peaks of the Bernese Alps are: Main glaciers : The chief passes of the Bernese Alps are: Lake Geneva Lake Geneva

799-484: The Alps . A characteristic in the orography of the Bernese Alps is, that whereas the western portion of that chain consists of a single series of summits with comparatively short projecting buttresses, the higher group presents a series of longitudinal ridges parallel to the axis of the main chain, and separated from each other by deep valleys that form the channels of great glaciers. Thus the Tschingel Glacier and

846-641: The Bietschhorn the advantage of occupying a central position in relation to the high peaks around it. The Aletschhorn is often thought to command the finest of all the panoramic views from Alpine summits. On its northern flank lies the Aletschfirn, which is part of the Aletsch Glacier . On the southwest lies the Oberaletsch Glacier and, on the southeast, lies the Mittelaletsch Glacier . Both are in

893-652: The Expo 64 theme of accomplishments by Swiss engineers and industry. After operating through to 1965 in Lake Geneva, Piccard used the vessel for scientific exploration in other parts of the world. Piccard later built the F.-A. Forel , launched in Lake Geneva in 1978 and used primarily for scientific research until it was retired in 2005. In 2011, in a collaborative operation led by École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne , two Mir submersibles were used for ten weeks to conduct extensive scientific research in Lake Geneva. On

940-804: The Kander Glacier , separate the portion of the main range lying between the Gemmi Pass and the Mittaghorn from the equally high parallel range of the Doldenhorn and Blümlisalp on its northern side. To the south, the same portion of the main range is divided from the still higher parallel range whose summits are the Aletschhorn and the Bietschhorn by the Lötschental and the Lötschenlücke . To this again succeeds

987-549: The Schreckhorn , and the still more arduous enterprise of crossing the range bypasses, such as the Jungfraujoch and Eigerjoch , which are considered among the most difficult in the Alps. The Jungfrau-Aletsch area is located in the eastern Bernese Alps in the most glaciated region of the Alps. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site ( Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch ) in 2001 and further expanded in 2007. Its name comes from

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1034-577: The Aletschfirn, at the foot of the Aletschhorn. The Aletschhorn was climbed first in 1859 by Francis Fox Tuckett , J. J. Bennen, V. Tairraz and P. Bohren . The party passed the night in some holes in the rocks above the Mittel Aletsch Glacier (on the east side of the mountain), and on the following morning, on 18 June, started the ascent and reached the snow arête connecting the Dreieckhorn with

1081-415: The Bernese Alps extend from the gorge of Saint-Maurice , through which the Rhône finds its way to Lake Geneva, to the Grimsel Pass or, depending on the definition, to the river Reuss (thus including the Uri Alps ). The principal ridge, a chain that runs 100 kilometres (62 mi) from west ( Dent de Morcles ) to east ( Sidelhorn ), whose highest peak is the Finsteraarhorn , forms the watershed between

1128-488: The Rhône and the north, where the Bernese Alps extends through a great part of the canton of Bern ( Bernese Oberland ), throwing out branches to the west into the adjoining cantons of Vaud and Fribourg . There the mountains progressively become lower and disappear into the hilly Swiss Plateau . The Bernese Alps have a large influence on the climate of Switzerland: while their north side is very exposed to weather, their south side

1175-598: The Swiss Federal Office of Topography, Swisstopo , Lac de Genève designates that part of the Petit Lac which lies within the cantonal borders of Geneva (excluding the cantonal exclave Céligny ), so about from Versoix – Hermance to the Rhône outflow in Geneva. The Chablais Alps border is its southern shore, and the western Bernese Alps lie over its eastern side. The high summits of Grand Combin and Mont Blanc are visible from some places. The lake lies on

1222-471: The area are named after Agassiz and the other explorers . The works of Desor and Gottlieb Studer have been followed by several other publications that bear testimony to Swiss mountaineering activity. Notwithstanding the activity of their predecessors, the members of the English Alpine Club have found scope for further exploits, amongst which may be reckoned the first ascents of the Aletschhorn and

1269-476: The average temperature of surface water (five metres or 16 feet deep) increased from 10.9 °C (51.6 °F) in 1970 to 12.9 °C (55.2 °F) in 2016 (up 2 °C or 3.6 °F in 46 years). Lake Geneva (and particularly the lakeside parts of the city of Geneva) can be affected by the cold Bise , a northeasterly wind. This can lead to severe icing in winter. The strength of the Bise wind can be determined by

1316-459: The bed of the lake, and it appears that within the historical period, the waters extended about 2 km (1.2 mi) beyond the present eastern margin of the lake. The greatest depth of the lake, in the broad portion between Évian-les-Bains and Lausanne , where it is just 13 km (8.1 mi) in width, has been measured as 310 m (1,020 ft), putting the bottom of the lake at 62 m (203 ft) above sea level . The lake's surface

1363-460: The brother Meyer of Aarau and Franz Joseph Hugi . They have explored most of the mountain ranges not very difficult to access, and have climbed most of the higher summits. In 1841, Louis Agassiz , with several scientific friends, established a temporary station on the Unteraar Glacier , and, along with scientific observations on the glaciers, started a series of expeditions. Several mountains in

1410-457: The cantons of Bern and Valais . Except for the westernmost part, it is also the watershed between the Rhine ( North Sea ) and the Rhône ( Mediterranean Sea ). This chain is not centered inside the range but lies close (10 to 15 km) to the Rhône on the south. This makes a large difference between the south, where the lateral short valleys descend abruptly into the deep trench forming the valley of

1457-714: The catchment area of the Massa river, which originates in the Aletsch Glacier and ends up in the Rhone river. Its remote location in the middle of glaciers means that the Aletschhorn, despite its height, is less frequently visited and less well known than the summits of the Jungfrau and the Eiger , which lie about 10 km on the north. The Aletschorn has four significant sub-peaks: the Kleines Aletschhorn (3,745 m (12,287 ft))

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1504-609: The course of the Rhône . The river has its source at the Rhône Glacier near the Grimsel Pass to the east of the lake and flows down through the canton of Valais , entering the lake between Villeneuve and Le Bouveret , before flowing slowly towards its egress at Geneva . Other tributaries are La Dranse, L'Aubonne, La Morges, La Venoge , La Vuachère, and La Veveyse. Lake Geneva is the largest body of water in Switzerland, and greatly exceeds in size all others that are connected with

1551-486: The death warrant of English King Charles I , was granted on 16 April 1662 protection in and continued to live at Vevey until his death in 1692. Mary and Percy Shelley and Lord Byron holidayed by the lake and wrote ghost stories, one of which became the basis for the novel Frankenstein . The Empress Elisabeth of Austria (Sisi) was stabbed to death on the quayside in Geneva in September 1898. Vladimir Lenin rented

1598-548: The deep trench through which the lower part of the Aletsch Glacier flows down to the Rhône, enclosed by the minor ridge that culminates at the Eggishorn . It is in the central and eastern portions of the range only that crystalline rocks make their appearance; the western part is composed almost exclusively of sedimentary deposits , and the secondary ridges extending through Bern and the adjoining cantons are formed of jurassic , cretaceous , or eocene strata . The beauty of

1645-484: The difference in air pressure between Geneva and Güttingen in canton of Thurgau . The Bise arises when the air pressure in Güttingen is higher than in Geneva. In 563, according to the writings of Gregory of Tours and Marius Aventicensis , a tsunami wave swept along the lake, destroying the fort of Tauredunum and other settlements, and causing numerous deaths in Geneva. Simulations indicate that this Tauredunum event

1692-505: The exact origins of the name are unknown, the name Lacus Lemanus was in use during the time of Julius Caesar . Lemannus comes from Ancient Greek Liménos Límnē ( Λιμένος Λίμνη ) meaning "port's lake". It became Lacus Lausonius , although this name was also used for a town or district on the lake, Lacus Losanetes , and then the Lac de Lausanne in the Middle Ages . Following

1739-517: The lake originally extended, the shores are enclosed by comparatively high and bold mountains, and the vista terminates in the grand portal of the defile of St. Maurice , cleft to a depth of nearly 2,700 m (8,900 ft) between the opposite peaks of the Dents du Midi and the Dent de Morcles . The shore between Nyon and Lausanne is called La Côte because it is flatter. Between Lausanne and Vevey it

1786-553: The lake. The design of the Alinghi 5 , the defender of the 2010 America's Cup , was influenced by those racing catamarans. The best-known event, the Bol d'or  [ fr ] (not to be confused with other events having the same name) runs from Geneva to the end of the lake and back. The Tour du Lac rowing event also takes place on Lake Geneva. Competitors row once around the entire lake, making this 160-kilometre (99 mi) event

1833-779: The longest non-stop rowing regatta in the world. Several competitions for swimmers are organised yearly, the longest of which spans the length of the lake from Chillon Castle to Geneva (70km) and is known as The Signature . Other events include the crossing of the lake from Lausanne to Evian (13km), from Montreux to Clarens (1.8 km), in Geneva (1.8 km), all in summer, and the Coupe de Noël , 125m in Geneva in December. Canton of Valais (VS): Haute-Savoie : Canton of Vaud (VD): Haute-Savoie : VD: ( * Lac de Genève, see also Geography ) Haute-Savoie: Canton of Geneva (GE): VD: GE: Edmund Ludlow , famous as one who had signed

1880-413: The main peak. The passage along this arête at a so early period of the year, before the snow has become well consolidated, involved some risk and a slope of névé lying at an angle of 50°, required care and good step-cutting. But the summit could be reached without too much difficulty. Like many other climbers, Tuckett took with him a barometer and made scientific observations. He noted the icy temperature and

1927-409: The main valleys of the Alps . It is in the shape of a crescent, with the horns pointing south, the northern shore being 95 km (59 mi) and the southern shore 72 km (45 mi) in length. The crescent form was more regular in a recent geological period, when the lake extended to Bex , about 18 km (11 mi) south of Villeneuve. The detritus of the Rhône has filled up this portion of

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1974-479: The rise of Geneva it became Lac de Genève (translated into English as Lake Geneva ), but Le Léman was the common name on all local maps and is the customary name in the French language. In contemporary English , the name Lake Geneva has become predominant. Lake Geneva is divided into three parts because of its different types of formation (sedimentation, tectonic folding, glacial erosion): According to

2021-584: The scenery and the facilities offered to travellers by the general extension of mountain railways make the northern side of the range, the Bernese Oberland , one of the portions of the Alps most visited by tourists. Since strangers first began to visit the Alps, the names of Grindelwald , Lauterbrunnen , and Interlaken have become famous. But unlike many other Alpine regions, which have been left to be explored by strangers, this region has been long visited by Swiss travellers and men of science. Among them were

2068-665: The south side, the mountains of Savoy and Valais are for the most part rugged and sombre, while those of the northern shore fall in gentle vine-covered slopes, thickly set with villages and castles. The snowy peaks of the Mont Blanc Massif are shut out from the western end of the lake by the Voirons mountain, and from its eastern end by the bolder summits of the Grammont , Cornettes de Bise , and Dent d'Oche , but are seen from Geneva, and between Nyon and Morges . From Vevey to Bex, where

2115-564: The very strong wind, blowing the snow and threatening to knock over the climbers. After they reached the summit, Tuckett separated from Bennen and descended via the north face with Bohren and Tairraz. He wanted to descend directly to the Lötschental , but soon after they began the descent, an avalanche started right under the feet of the climbers. They cautiously went back and descended on the Mittelaletsch. Northeast ridge Southwest ridge Bernese Alps The Bernese Alps are

2162-460: Was most likely caused by a massive landslide near the Rhône delta, which caused a wave eight metres (26 ft) high to reach Geneva within 70 minutes. In 888, the town was part of the new Kingdom of Burgundy , and, with it, was absorbed into the Holy Roman Empire in 1033. In the late 1960s, pollution made it dangerous to swim at some beaches of the lake; indeed, visibility underwater

2209-433: Was near zero. By the 1980s, intense environmental pollution ( eutrophication ) had almost wiped out all the fish. Endemic whitefish species Coregonus fera was last recorded in the lake in 1920 and is now extinct. Although the name fera is still used for the only coregonid present in the lake, this is not the original species but the introduced C. palaea . Today, pollution levels have been dramatically cut back, and it

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