Page Contributor(s): Ard Oostra, Montreux, Switzerland
INTRO
Bettmeralp climbs 15.8 km (9.8 mi) and gains 1,166 m (3,827 ft) at an average grade of 7.2% out of Mörel in Switzerland's Valais, finishing at 1,870 m (6,136 ft) in the car-free resort village of Bettmeralp.
What makes this climb unusual is that it's a private road built for a village cars aren't allowed into - Bettmeralp sits on a high, treeless plateau above Betten and is normally reached by cable car, but a narrow paved lane switchbacks up through open alpine meadow for cyclists and permit-holding residents only, which keeps traffic to almost nothing above the village of Betten. The road holds a steady 8-10% for most of its upper half before easing through the final approach into the village.
The reward at the top is one of the great panoramas in the Valais: an unbroken view across the Rhone Valley to the Pennine Alps' 4,000 m giants - the Matterhorn, Weisshorn, Dom, and Fletschhorn among them - and, a short ride further into the village, the small Bettmersee lake, which mirrors that same skyline on a calm day. The whole area sits inside the Jungfrau-Aletsch-Bietschhorn UNESCO World Heritage Site.
PLAN YOUR ROUTE
We've partnered with Sherpa-Map.com to bring you the best route planning tool. With a PRO Membership you can use this climb as a reference when creating your route. Bettmeralp is one corner of the linked Aletsch Arena (with Riederalp and Fiescheralp), and its own signature feature is the little Bettmersee lake a short ride past the village center - worth the extra 1.5 km and 100 m of climbing to see the Matterhorn and Weisshorn reflected in it on a still day. For the Aletsch Glacier itself, the neighboring Belalp climb out of Naters (also on PJAMM) is the more direct viewpoint - a good pairing if you're basing a multi-day trip in this stretch of the Valais.
Because the upper road is private and only lightly used, this climb rides well even midsummer when other Valais passes get crowded with traffic; it's typically clear of snow from June through September. See our Routes in the Area tool for other nearby Valais climbs, including Breithorn and the Simplonpass, both starting within a few kilometers.
ROUTE MAP
