On 3 September, the authorities in Appenzell Ausserrhoden issued an official statement: pedestrian access has been closed in certain areas of the Säntis due to a high risk of rockfalls. The volume of unstable rock on the north face of the mountain is estimated at between 10,000 and 15,000 cubic metres. The road passing through the area remains open to cars and bicycles because, according to the statement, “the duration of exposure to danger is considerably shorter” for those travelling by vehicle. In Switzerland, even the criteria for closing a mountain that is at risk of collapse are carefully calibrated.
What’s somewhat ironic is that the north face of the Säntis is precisely where, every 1 August, the world’s largest Swiss flag is hoisted to celebrate National Day. It went well this year. But don’t count on the same scene in 2027 if the rock keeps shifting.
The Säntis is not alone. Near Zermatt, the Weisshorn glacier, at an altitude of 4,505 metres, is also at risk of collapsing, and the authorities in Randa have warned their residents. In the Bernese Oberland, the Spitze Stei rock formation, near Kandersteg, could collapse into the valley. Markus Stoffel, a mountain risk specialist at the University of Geneva, puts it bluntly: thawing permafrost, disappearing snow and melting glaciers are destabilising entire mountains, leading to increasingly frequent rockfalls. The autumn hiking season is a good time to check which routes are actually open before setting off.