Sieben Hengste, Mountain summit in Bern, Switzerland.
Sieben Hengste is a mountain summit of about 1,955 meters (6,415 feet) in the Emmental Alps north of Habkern in the canton of Bern. The mountain has multiple peaks that form a distinctive profile and are visible from the surrounding valleys.
The limestone of the Sieben Hengste was deposited on the northern edge of the Tethys Sea between about 225 and 65 million years ago and was folded into the Alps only around 20 million years ago. A roughly 200-metre layer of Schrattenkalk forms the ridge, with Kieselkalk and Drusberg layers exposed on the steep northwest face. The beds dip southeast, and karst features such as karren fields, dolines and caves developed on the plateau and the adjoining Alp Seefeld.
The name refers to seven closely spaced, overhanging rock summits of identical shape; the resemblance is only seen from the north and west. The ridge is also called Sibe Hängste in dialect, and together with the adjoining crest, Solflue. The massif lies above the Zulgtal in the municipalities of Eriz, Beatenberg and Horrenbach-Buchen.
Various hiking trails lead to the summits with different difficulty levels depending on the route, accessible from spring through fall. Weather can change rapidly at higher elevations, so sturdy footwear and layers are important, especially on windy or misty days.
Beneath the surface lies the Siebenhengste-Hohgant cave system, one of the largest cave systems in the world, formed in the limestone of the massif. The ridge itself is built of about 200 metres of Schrattenkalk, a hard limestone that forms the crest; karren fields and dolines mark the plateau above Alp Seefeld.
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