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Aguoglia d'Es-cha as seen from Piz Kesch

Mountain·SwitzerlandSwitzerland

Piz Kesch

3,418m

Albula Alps

Summit weather

Capricorn4049 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Elevation
3,418m
Prominence
1,501m
Isolation
23km
Relief
1,539mabove the lowest point within 5 km
Steepest slope
58°within 1 km of the summit
Snow at the summit
All yearSee month by month ↓
First ascent
1846
Summit
46.6194°N, 9.8761°E

Highest mountain of the Albula Alps in Grisons, Switzerland

Piz Kesch is a mountain in the Albula Alps (Switzerland). Its summit stands 3,418 m above sea level. Its prominence — how far it rises above the highest saddle linking it to a taller summit — is 1,501 m, and the nearest higher ground is 23 km away. It was first climbed in 1846.

From the lowest point within 5 km (1,879 m), it rises 1,539 m. The steepest side is the north face: 31° on average over the first kilometre. In places the ground near the top reaches 58° — terrain for climbers, not walkers.

The nearest town is La Punt Chamues-ch, 6 km away at 1,729 m: 1,689 m below the summit.

Read more on Wikipedia

Scores

Piz Kesch for skiers and climbers

Two scores out of 10, built only from open data — every part is shown. They describe what the mountain offers, not how safe it is.

Hiking & mountaineering

9.2/10

Difficulty to the top

Mountain walk

Most path sections around the top are T3 on the SAC hiking scale. Glaciers around the top.

Indicative only — never a safety assessment. Conditions change: ask local guides and check the forecast.

  • 2.5/2.537 waymarked routes and 91 path sections nearby
  • 1.5/1.56 huts and shelters
  • 1.7/21,689 m of ascent from the valley
  • 1.4/1.51,501 m of prominence
  • 1.5/1.57 months with summit afternoons above −5 °C
  • 0.6/1via ferratas, climbing and glaciers

Ski score

7.5/10

  • 2.9/462 km of downhill runs
  • 1.1/1.529 ski lifts
  • 0.5/1.5477 m between the lowest and highest lift station
  • 3.0/37 months of snow at about 2,212 m

Runs by difficulty

  • Easy 24 km
  • Intermediate 27 km
  • Difficult 8 km
  • Freeride 2 km

Snow season on the slopes (estimate)

Around 2,212 m, in the middle of the ski area: snow from November to May (some years from October to May).

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

29 lifts · lift stations from 1,974 to 2,451 m · 76 km cross-country

How these scores are made

Ski (where OpenStreetMap has skiing within 12 km): up to 4 points for the length of downhill runs (300 km or more = 4), 1.5 for the number of lifts (40+), 1.5 for the vertical between lift stations (1,500 m) and 3 for the snow season — a month counts when the estimated mean temperature at the height of the ski area is −1 °C or lower and snow falls or lies there (NASA POWER, 2001–2020). Hiking & mountaineering: up to 2.5 for waymarked routes and paths, 1.5 for huts, 2 for the ascent from the valley (2,000 m), 1.5 for prominence (3,000 m), 1.5 for the season (months with summit afternoons above −5 °C) and 1 for via ferratas, climbing and glaciers. OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: where few things are mapped, a score can be lower than reality.

Plan your visit

Stay, climb and get there

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Snow

When there is snow on Piz Kesch

At the summit, snow all year round. Month by month below, at different heights on the way up.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Summit3,418 msnow all year round
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Halfway up2,573 msnow from October to June
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
La Punt Chamues-ch1,729 msnow from November to April (some years from November to May)
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow some of the timeNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

Estimate for a normal year: average temperature and precipitation from NASA POWER, carried to each height, in a simple model of snow building up and melting. In a given year snow can come earlier or stay longer. It does not replace the local snow and avalanche bulletin.

Summit weather

Piz Kesch, month by month

Not a forecast: long-term averages (1991–2020), carried up to the summit. The orange line is where an average afternoon reaches 0 °C; above the dashed blue line it freezes even at dawn.

On an average July afternoon the summit reaches about 8 °C; on January nights it falls to about -23 °C. In 7 months of the year it stays below freezing at the top even in the afternoon. In July the 0 °C line climbs to about 4,590 m, above the summit: the top thaws on an average afternoon. Across the region, February is the driest month (47 mm) and August the wettest (144 mm).

0 m1,000 m2,000 m3,000 m4,000 m5,000 mSUMMIT · 3,418 mLA PUNT CHAMUES-CH · 1,729 mJanuary: 1,280 mFebruary: 1,410 mMarch: 1,910 mApril: 2,700 mMay: 3,560 mJune: 4,300 mJuly: 4,590 mAugust: 4,500 mSeptember: 3,900 mOctober: 3,170 mNovember: 2,170 mDecember: 1,450 mJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
0 °C on an average afternoon 0 °C at dawn the summit
MonthSummit high °CSummit low °CLa Punt Chamues-ch high °C0 °C line (m)Rain & snow (mm)Wet daysSun h/day
January-14-23-31,28055114.4
February-13-23-21,41047105.6
March-10-1911,91061126.6
April-5-1362,70081156.1
May1-8123,560120196.1
June6-4174,300129197.5
July8-2194,590129208.1
August7-3184,500144197.3
September3-7143,90099156.3
October-2-1093,17099145.1
November-8-1532,170102133.6
December-13-22-21,45065123.7

Estimate: the NASA POWER climate of a ~55 km cell (average height 2,144 m), adjusted to the summit by −6.5 °C per 1,000 m. Rain, wet days and sunshine are those of the region. Mountain weather changes fast — always check a local forecast. ★ = mildest months at the top.

Relief

The mountain in profile

Two cuts through the summit, 16 km long, from the 30 m Copernicus elevation model. Heights drawn 2× taller than lengths, so the shape can be seen.

West – east
3,418 m1,839 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmWE
South – north
3,418 m1,745 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmSN
Steepness by direction
30°N: 31°NNE: 27°NEE: 29°ESE: 25°SES: 30°SSW: 20°SWW: 29°WNW: 24°NW

Average slope of the first kilometre from the summit. The orange petal is the steepest side.

Around the mountain

Huts, lifts and trails around Piz Kesch

Counted around the summit in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. The satellite plate shows 14 × 14 km.

Piz Kesch seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 5 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 14 × 14 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

A lift reaches Muntatsch at 2,451 m — just 967 m below the summit.

  • 6mountain huts and shelters

    Chamanna d'Es-cha CAS (2,594 m), Chamanna digl Kesch (2,625 m), Scaletta-Schutzhütte (2,600 m), Alp Zavretta and 2 more

  • 5cable cars, gondolas, chairlifts and rack railways

    Sesselbahn Bergün, Sesselbahn Darlux, Chastlatsch, Pizzet and 1 more

  • 8ski areas

    Corviglia, Samedan (St. Moritz), St. Moritz – Zuoz, Bergün - Filisur / Darlux and 4 more

  • 37waymarked hiking routes

    Via Valtellina, Via Albula/Bernina, Crap Alv Parkplatz-Crap Alv Laiets, Crap Alv-Lai da Palpuoga and 33 more

  • —via ferratas
  • 2climbing crags and routes

    Klettergarten "Crap dal's Tor's"

  • 3named glaciers

    Vadret da Porchabella, Scalettagletscher, Grialetschgletscher

  • 7viewpoints

    Fuorcla Crap Alv, Foto-Spot La Punt and 5 more

  • 1campsites

    Camping Madulain

  • 56hotels, B&Bs and chalets

    Hotel Albula, Chesa Orta, Golf-Hotel des Alpes, Donatz and 52 more

  • 53restaurants and cafés

How hard are the paths?

91 path sections within 5 km, by SAC hiking scale (T1 easy walk … T6 difficult alpine).

T1T2T3T4
  • T1 hiking
  • T2 mountain hiking
  • T3 demanding mountain hiking
  • T4 alpine hiking

Towns at the foot

  • La Punt Chamues-ch6 km · 1,729 m
  • Zuoz7 km · 1,718 m
  • Samedan10 km · 1,716 m
  • Celerina12 km · 1,727 m
  • St. Moritz14 km · 1,845 m
  • Pontresina14 km · 1,822 m
  • Zernez19 km · 1,477 m
  • Silvaplana19 km · 1,817 m
Car hire at ACH airport (St. Gallen)Discover Cars · Affiliate link

OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: a low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. Places © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Photos

Seen by climbers and visitors

DJI Inspire Zenmuse X5 PRO hovering over Piz Kesch, picture taken on Älplihorn 1
Capricorn4049 · CC BY-SA 4.0
2011-08-01 14-55-09 Switzerland Piz Corvatsch 14hl
NOTE: This image is a panorama of Piz Corvatsch consisting of 14 frames that were merged o · CC BY-SA 3.0

Recent years

How each month compared at the summit

Afternoon high at the summit (estimate). The first row is the reference, the 1991–2020 average in °C; the years show only the difference.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
1991–2020 average-14-13-10-516873-2-8-13
2020+2.1+2.0±0.0+2.4+1.4−1.4+0.8+0.8+1.0−2.5+3.9−0.2
2021−1.7+2.6−1.0−3.2−2.5+0.9−0.5−0.9+1.8−0.8−0.5+0.9
2022+0.8+1.1+1.3+1.3+2.4+2.3+2.2+1.9−1.1+3.2+0.5+1.3
2023+0.2+1.8+2.8−0.4−0.1+1.1+0.7+1.0+3.8+3.0−2.1+2.3
2024+1.9+3.6+1.2−1.8−0.9−0.6+1.5+2.7−1.6+1.1+2.3+2.0
2025+1.9+2.5+1.6+2.9+0.2+3.9−1.2+1.0+0.6−0.3−0.2+2.6

+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual

Nearby

More mountains nearby

4,048 mPiz BerninaSwitzerlandSwitzerland27 km away3,262 mPiz LanguardSwitzerlandSwitzerland16 km away3,451 mPiz CorvatschSwitzerlandSwitzerland24 km away3,411 mPiz LinardSwitzerlandSwitzerland25 km away3,751 mPiz MorteratschSwitzerlandSwitzerland24 km away3,899 mPiz PalüSwitzerlandSwitzerland28 km away

About these numbers

Names, elevation, prominenceWikidata (Q668594) · CC0
Relief, 3D view, profilesCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020 · CC BY 4.0
Around the mountain© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

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