Pers Glacier, Alpine glacier in Grisons, Switzerland
Pers Glacier is a valley glacier in the Bernina Range of the Bernina Alps, in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. It is about 4 km long, up to 1.5 km wide in its upper part, and covers roughly 6 km². It starts from firn fields on the north flank of Piz Palü, on the Italy–Switzerland border, and on Piz Cambrena (3606 m), and flows north with a gentle slope of 10 to 15 percent, turning west at the south foot of Munt Pers (3206 m).
The Pers Glacier remained joined to the Morteratsch Glacier until summer 2015, when its tongue retreated far enough for the two ice masses to separate. Its name comes from the Romansh word pers, the past participle of perder, "to lose", linked to the legend of the lost Munt Pers.
The name Pers comes from Romansh perder, "to lose", and is linked to the legend of Annetta from Pontresina and the herdsman Aratsch: after her death he rode into the glacier, and the alp was cursed and covered by ice, leaving the Munt Pers, the "lost mountain".
The Diavolezza cable-car station at 2973 m, reached from Bernina-Diavolezza, stands on the ridge between Munt Pers and Piz Trovat northeast of the glacier and gives the view over the Pers and Morteratsch glaciers. The Bernina railway stops at Morteratsch station below, from where paths lead toward the glacier snouts. The Pers Glacier itself is not a marked hiking destination; the terrain is crevassed and the ice is only for roped parties with a guide.
The name Pers comes from the Romansh word for "lost", linked to the legend of Annetta of Pontresina: after her death her lover Aratsch rode into the glacier, and the alp was cursed and covered by ice, leaving the Munt Pers, the "lost mountain".
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