Lenzerheide is the common name of a passage past a high mountain pass 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, ...

in the

canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ent ...

of Graubünden in Switzerland, reaching summit at 1549 m between Valbella and Parpan, approximately 5 kilometers south of the resort of

Lenzerheide Lenzerheide ( Romansh: ''Lai'') is a mountain resort in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland at the foot of the Parpaner Rothorn. The village lies in the municipality Vaz/Obervaz in the district of Albula, sub-district Alvaschein. The ...

. The road connects

Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Lux ...

in the valley of the

Rhine The Rhine ; french: Rhin ; nl, Rijn ; wa, Rén ; li, Rien; rm, label=Sursilvan, Rein, rm, label=Sutsilvan and Surmiran, Ragn, rm, label=Rumantsch Grischun, Vallader and Puter, Rain; it, Reno ; gsw, Rhi(n), including in Alsatian dialect, Al ...

and Tiefencastel in the valley of the

Albula Albula may refer to: Places *Albula, an old (possibly legendary) name of the Tiber river Switzerland *Albula Range, a mountain range *Albula (river), a tributary of the Hinterrhein *Albula District, a district in canton Graubünden until 2017 ** ...

, which is actually a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainag ...

to the Rhine. The pass nevertheless offered a shortcut which additionally avoided the gorge "Schinschlucht" with its difficult

terrain Terrain or relief (also topographical relief) involves the vertical and horizontal dimensions of land surface. The term bathymetry is used to describe underwater relief, while hypsometry studies terrain relative to sea level. The Latin w ...

in the past. Nowadays most traffic to Tiefencastel would use the A13 motorway to Thusis to get to Tiefencastel on a main road. The Lenzerheide road has a maximum grade of 11 percent and is open year-round, though road conditions frequently necessitate winter tires, especially between December and March. Due to the local settlements nobody ever bothered to call the summit near Lenzerheide a mountain pass nor would an official document call it a pass. It will also not appear on road pass opening charts. The mountain ''Piz Scalottas'' (el 2321 m.) offers a good view to overlook both routes via Lenzerheide or the Schinschlucht gorge. If you climbed the Lenzerheide pass road by mountain bike, the chairlift to Piz Scalottas will transport your mountain bike for free to the summit.

References

Mountain passes of Switzerland Mountain passes of the Alps Mountain passes of Graubünden Vaz/Obervaz Churwalden {{Graubünden-geo-stub

See also

References