The Matter Valley (German: Mattertal , or sometimes Nikolaital ) is located in southwestern Switzerland , south of the Rhone valley in the canton of Valais . The village of Zermatt is the most important settlement of the valley, which is surrounded by many four-thousanders, including the Matterhorn .
15-660: Located in the Pennine Alps , the Matter Valley is drained by the Matter Vispa , a tributary of the Rhone . The valley itself ends at Stalden where it meets the Saas Valley . The resulting Visp Valley continues for a few kilometres until it reaches the town of Visp on the young river Rhone. The valley starts between the high summits south of Zermatt ( Monte Rosa , Matterhorn ) on
30-545: A list containing many of the independent mountains of the Alps (i.e. only those with a prominence greater than 300 metres (980 ft) and covering all countries, see List of prominent mountains of the Alps . Another, less formal, list of 4000 metre alpine mountains, containing only independent peaks with a prominence of over 100m, and based on an earlier 1990s publications by Richard Goedeke, contains just 51 mountains. The table shows
45-701: Is drained by the rivers Dora Baltea , Sesia and Toce , tributaries of the Po . The Swiss side is drained by the Rhône . The Great St Bernard Tunnel , under the Great St Bernard Pass , leads from Martigny, Switzerland to Aosta . The main chain ( watershed between the Mediterranean Sea and the Adriatic Sea ) runs from west to east on the border between Italy (south) and Switzerland (north). From Mont Vélan ,
60-649: The Regional park of Binn valley (15,891 ha - Valais , CH), have been established on both sides of the main water divide . List of Alpine Four-thousanders This list tabulates all of the 82 official mountain summits of 4,000 metres (13,123 ft) or more in height in the Alps , as defined by the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA). All are located within France , Italy or Switzerland , and are often referred to by mountaineers as
75-846: The Valais Alps (which are just the Northern Swiss part of the Pennine Alps), are a mountain range in the western part of the Alps . They are located in Italy (the Aosta Valley and Piedmont ) and Switzerland ( Valais ). The Pennine Alps are amongst the three highest major subranges of the Alps, together with the Bernese Alps and the Graian Alps that include the Mont Blanc massif . The Italian side
90-498: The 30 metres minimum prominence criterion but are included in the list because of the other criteria. In comparison, the official 14 eight-thousanders recognised by the UIAA have all a prominence of over 600 metres (despite a proposed expansion ). A minimum prominence criterion of 300 metres would reduce the number of Alpine four-thousanders to only 29, whilst a prominence criterion of 100 metres would raise it to 49. The table below gives
105-516: The 82 four-thousanders in the Alps that are recognised by the UIAA . They are located in Switzerland (48), Italy (38) and France (25). Clicking the symbol at the head of the column sorts the table by that column’s data. The following expandable table forms an extended list of 46 ‘lesser summits’ identified by the UIAA. These are either: Since no exact and formal definition of a 'mountain' exists,
120-572: The Alpine four-thousanders . A further table of 46 subsidiary mountain points which did not meet the UIAA's selection criteria is also included. The official UIAA list of 82 mountain summits, titled in English as ' The 4000ers of the Alps' was first published in 1994. They were selected primarily on a prominence of at least 30 metres (98 ft)) above the highest adjacent col or pass. Additional criteria were used to include or exclude some points, based on
135-702: The border with Italy . The upper side is glaciated, the second largest glacier of the Alps , the Gorner Glacier lies at the foot of Monte Rosa (4,634 m), while the Zmutt Glacier lies at the foot of the Matterhorn (4,478 m). Around the village of Randa are located the Weisshorn (4,505 m) and the Dom (4,545 m). The difference of height between the talweg and the summits on both side reaches over 3 km. The total length of
150-699: The end of the nineteenth century the upper end of the valley is connected by rail from Visp ( Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn ). If the main road connect Zermatt from Visp, it cannot be used between Täsch and Zermatt, the latter being completely car-free. Since 1930 the valley is directly connected to St. Moritz by the Glacier Express panoramic train. 46°05′N 7°48′E / 46.083°N 7.800°E / 46.083; 7.800 Pennine Alps The Pennine Alps ( French : Alpes Pennines , German : Walliser Alpen , Italian : Alpi Pennine , Latin : Alpes Poeninae ), sometimes referred to as
165-470: The first high summit east of St Bernard Pass , the chain rarely goes below 3000 metres and contains many four-thousanders such as Matterhorn or Monte Rosa . The valleys are quite similar on both side of the border, being generally oriented perpendicular to the main chain and descending progressively into the Rhône Valley on the north and the Aosta Valley on the south. Unlike many other mountain ranges,
SECTION 10
#1732848277802180-642: The higher peaks are often located outside the main chain and found themselves between the northern valleys ( Grand Combin , Weisshorn , Mischabel , Weissmies ). The chief peaks of the Pennine Alps are: Main glaciers : The chief passes of the Pennine Alps are: Some regional nature parks , like the Parco Naturale Alta Valsesia (6,511 ha - Piedmont , IT), the Riserva Naturale Mont Mars (390 ha - Aosta Valley , IT) and
195-483: The mountain's overall morphology and mountaineering significance. (For example, the Grand Gendarme on the Weisshorn was excluded, despite meeting the prominence criterion as it was simply deemed part of that mountain's ridge.) A further 46 additional points of mountaineering significance, such as Pic Eccles , which did not meet the UIAA's primary selection criteria, were then included within an 'enlarged list'. For
210-405: The number of 4000-metre summits is arbitrary. The topographic prominence is an important factor to decide the official nomination of a summit. The 'Official list' proposed by the UIAA is based not only on prominence but also on other criteria such as the morphology (general appearance) and mountaineering interest. Summits such as Punta Giordani or Mont Blanc de Courmayeur have much less than
225-410: The valley is about 40 km. Zermatt (1,600 m), with approx. 5,600 inhabitants, is the largest and highest town in the valley. St. Niklaus follows with 2,400 inhabitants. Between them are located the smaller villages of Täsch and Randa . The villages of Grächen , Embd and Törbel are located above the valley. Stalden , located at the end of the valley, is the lowest village (800 m). Since
#801198