The Bernina Range is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have ari ...

in the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

of eastern

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

and northern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. It is considered to be part of the

Rhaetian Alps The Rhaetian Alps ( it, Alpi Retiche; german: Rätische Alpen) are a mountain range of the Eastern Alps. The SOIUSA classification system divides them into the Western and Eastern Rhaetian Alps, while the Alpine Club classification of the Eastern A ...

within the

Central Eastern Alps The Central Eastern Alps (german: Zentralalpen or Zentrale Ostalpen), also referred to as Austrian Central Alps (german: Österreichische Zentralalpen) or just Central Alps, comprise the main chain of the Eastern Alps in Austria and the adjacen ...

. It is one of the highest ranges of the Alps, covered with many glaciers.

Piz Bernina Piz Bernina ( Romansh, it, Pizzo Bernina, ) is the highest mountain in the Eastern Alps, the highest point of the Bernina Range, and the highest peak in the Rhaetian Alps. It rises and is located south of Pontresina and near the major Alpine ...

(), its highest peak, is the most easterly four-thousand-metre peak in the Alps. The peak in the range which sees the most ascents is

Piz Palü Piz Palü is a mountain in the Bernina Range of the Alps, located between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large glaciated massif composed of three main summits, on a ridge running from west to east. The main (and central) summit is 3,900 metres ...

. The Bernina Range is separated from the

Albula Range The Albula Alps are a mountain range in the Alps of eastern Switzerland. They are considered to be part of the Central Eastern Alps, more specifically the Western Rhaetian Alps. They are named after the river Albula. According to AVE (see map), th ...

in the north-west by the

Maloja Pass Maloja Pass ( Italian: ''Passo del Maloja'', German: ''Malojapass'') (1815m a.s.l.) is a high mountain pass in the Swiss Alps in the canton of Graubünden, linking the Engadine with the Val Bregaglia, still in Switzerland and Chiavenna in It ...

and the Upper

Engadin The Engadin or Engadine ( rm, ;This is the name in the two Romansh idioms that are spoken in the Engadin, Vallader and Puter, as well as in Sursilvan and Rumantsch Grischun. In Surmiran, the name is ''Nagiadegna'', and in Sutsilvan, it is ...

valley; from the

Livigno Range The Livigno Alps are a mountain range in the Alps of eastern Switzerland and northern Italy, around the Italian village Livigno. They are considered to be part of the Central Eastern Alps. The Livigno Alps are separated from the Bernina Range in ...

in the east by the

Bernina Pass The Bernina Pass (el. .) ( it, Passo del Bernina) is a high mountain pass in the Bernina Range of the Alps, in the canton of Graubünden (Grisons) in eastern Switzerland. It connects the famous resort town of St. Moritz in the Engadin valley w ...

; from the

Bergamo Alps The Bergamasque Alps or Bergamo Alps (Italian: ''Alpi Orobie'', sometimes translated into English as Orobic Alps) are a mountain range in the Italian Alps. They are located in northern Lombardy and named after the city Bergamo, south of the mou ...

in the south by the Adda valley (

Valtellina Valtellina or the Valtelline (occasionally spelled as two words in English: Val Telline; rm, Vuclina (); lmo, Valtelina or ; german: Veltlin; it, Valtellina) is a valley in the Lombardy region of northern Italy, bordering Switzerland. Tod ...

); and from the

Bregaglia Range The Bregaglia Range (commonly the Bregaglia) is a small group of mostly granite mountains in Graubünden, Switzerland and the Province of Sondrio, northern Italy. It derives its name from the partly Swiss, partly Italian valley, the '' Val Bre ...

in the south-west by the

Muretto Pass The Muretto Pass ( it, Passo del Muretto) (2,562 m) is a high mountain pass in the Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. It connects Maloja in the Swiss canton of Graubünden with Chiesa in Valmalenco in the Italian region of Lom ...

. The Bernina Range is drained by the rivers Adda, Inn and Maira (Mera in Italy). The term Bernina Alps can also be used in an extended sense to include both the Bernina and Bregaglia ranges; this is the area coloured red on the map (right) and labelled 'Bernina Alpen'.

Peaks

The main peaks of the Bernina Range are: Berninapano

Glaciers

Main

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such a ...

s : *

Morteratsch Glacier The Morteratsch Glacier (Romansh: Vadret da Morteratsch) is the largest glacier by area in the Bernina Range of the Bündner Alps in Switzerland. By area and by volume (1.2 km3), it is the third largerst glacier in the eastern alps, after th ...

Roseg Glacier The Roseg Glacier ( Romansh: ''Vadret da Roseg'') is a 4 km long glacier (2005) situated in the Bernina Range, in the Val Roseg ( Graubünden). In 1973 it had an area of 8.52 km2. See also *List of glaciers in Switzerland *List of glaci ...

Tschierva Glacier The Tschierva Glacier ( Romansh: ''Vadret da Tschierva'') is a long glacier (2005) situated in the Bernina Range in the canton of Graubünden/Grisons in Switzerland. In 1973 it had an area of . See also *List of glaciers in Switzerland *Swiss A ...

Palü Glacier The Palü Glacier ( Romansh: ''Vadret da Palü'') is a 3.5 km long glacier (2005) on the southeastern flank of Piz Palü in the Bernina Range. It belongs to the valley of Poschiavo in the canton of Graubünden. In 1973 it had an area of 6.47 ...

* Scerscen Superiore Glacier * Scerscen Inferiore Glacier * Fellaria Glacier Morteratsch glacier 1

Passes

The main passes of the Bernina Range are:

Mountain huts

There are several manned and unmanned mountain huts in the Bernina Range.

References

Swisstopo Swisstopo is the official name for the Swiss Federal Office of Topography (in German: ''Bundesamt für Landestopografie''; French: ''Office fédéral de topographie''; Italian: ''Ufficio federale di topografia''; Romansh: ''Uffizi federal d ...

External links

Visual day-by-day narrative & photoblog of the Tour of the Bernina hiking trail around the Bernina range
{{Authority control Mountain ranges of the Alps Rhaetian Alps Mountain ranges of Italy Mountain ranges of Graubünden Engadin Limestone Alps