Eiger-Mönch-Jungfrau Massif

Eiger-Mönch-Jungfrau Massif

The Jungfrau region of the Bernese Alps contains some of Switzerland’s most dramatic mountain scenery. And the triad of the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau might be said to dominate the scene. Not to say the Eiger-Mönch-Jungfrau massif, with its peaks in the 13,000-ft class diminishes the scenic attraction of all the other mountains in the region, but it is immediately recognizable in any panorama. Indeed, it can be appreciated from so many viewpoints that it is difficult to choose a “favorite.”

My very first sight of the Eiger-Mönch-Jungfrau massif was on a crystal-clear autumn afternoon, when I stepped off the train at Interlaken-Ost (East)…and looked up. It was my first trip to Switzerland, and I actually had no idea as to what I was looking at, except that it was grand—the “perfect” introduction to the Swiss Alps. Only when I finally checked in to the charming Hotel du Lac just across the way from the station, and started getting the lay of the land, did I find out that the splendid scene I was looking at from the station platform was the Eiger-Mönch-Jungfrau massif.

On that and subsequent visits to the Bernese Alps, I would photograph the massif and surrounding grandeur from other viewpoints, including the 6,400-ft. plateau of Schynige Platte and any number of points along the route of the narrow-gauge railway that winds up toward it…the mountain-ledge village of Mürren, affording views across the Lauterbrunnen Valley…the Piz Gloria lookout atop the Schilthorn…

This photo was taken on Kodachrome-25 slide film, on one of those splendid autumn alpine afternoons, from the Harder-Kulm lookout, at the top of a steep incline cog railway that climbs out of Interlaken. This viewpoint, at an altitude of 4,300-ft, affords a splendid view (under clear conditions!) of the mighty triad. I found the bright red geraniums to be an inviting foreground counterpoint to the imposing massif across the valley.

Photo/Text ©Steve Ember