Gauli Glacier, Alpine glacier in Bernese Alps, Switzerland

Gauli Glacier is a glacier in the Bernese Alps that stretches across several kilometers and displays deep crevasses throughout its surface. The ice terminates in a region dotted with small lakes that formed as the ice has retreated over time.

The glacier was the site of an aircraft crash in 1946 when a military plane made an emergency landing on the glacial surface. This incident led to one of the first successful rescue operations involving an aircraft landing on glacial terrain.

The glacier's name appears in the 1946 crash story: an American C-53 Skytrooper came down on the ice, and survivors were flown out by Fieseler Storch aircraft landing on the glacier. The rescue drew worldwide attention and is remembered as the first alpine air rescue. The Gaulihütte of the Swiss Alpine Club, at 2205 m north of the tongue, serves as a base for glacier and mountain tours.

The glacier sits at roughly 2150 meters elevation and is difficult to reach, so proper mountaineering gear is necessary. Visitors should understand alpine conditions and potential hazards like crevasses before approaching the area.

The glacier's tongue ended around 2150 m in the early 2000s, calving into two small lakes that had formed during the 20th century retreat; these later merged into the Gaulisee, whose outflow, the Ürbachwasser, reaches the Aare at Innertkirchen. North of the tongue stands the Gaulihütte of the Swiss Alpine Club at 2205 m, a base for glacier and mountain tours.