Altels, Mountain summit in Bernese Alps, Switzerland

The Altels is a pyramidal summit of 3,630 m in the Bernese Alps, rising at the end of the Kandertal south of the Gasterntal and joined to the slightly higher Balmhorn by a narrow firn ridge. Its northwest flank is a huge, smooth surface, and the cantonal border between Bern and Valais runs over the top.

The Altels forms the border between the cantons of Bern and Valais, a boundary that runs over the summit. Its northwest flank, a smooth hanging glacier inclined at about 44°, has twice sent ice avalanches onto the Spittelmatte on the Gemmi path: on 18 August 1792, four people and about 100 animals died; on 11 September 1895, about 4 million cubic metres of ice killed six people, including Joseph Roten, vice-president of Leukerbad, and 158 cattle. A memorial plaque at the Spittelmatte commemorates the disaster.

The mountain's name appears in the story of the 11 September 1895 ice avalanche, when about 4 million cubic metres of ice slid from the northwest flank onto the Spittelmatte on the Gemmi path. Six people died, including Joseph Roten, vice-president of Leukerbad, along with 158 cattle, nine pigs, a mule and a dog. A memorial plaque at the Spittelmatte commemorates the disaster.

The peak is accessible via established climbing routes from Kandersteg and Leukerbad, with the best season being June through September. Visitors should prepare for Alpine conditions and high altitude.

The Altels is 3,630 m high, and although its south side lies in Valais, the whole mountain drains into the Aar basin. Its northwest flank is a huge, smooth surface, an ice-covered slope inclined at about 44°.