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A large debris fan, deposited by a rockslide in the 1990s, can be seen above the village of Randa in the Matter valley.
The Weisshorn above the Matter valley (background).

The Matter Valley (German: Mattertal, or sometimes Nikolaital) is located in southwestern Switzerland, south of the Rhรดne valley in the canton of Valais. The village of Zermatt is the most important settlement of the valley, which is surrounded by many four-thousanders, including the Matterhorn.

Geography

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Located in the Pennine Alps, the Matter Valley is drained by the Matter Vispa, a tributary of the Rhone. The valley itself ends at Stalden where it meets the Saas Valley. The resulting Visp Valley continues for a few kilometres until it reaches the town of Visp on the young river Rhone. The valley starts between the high summits south of Zermatt (Monte Rosa, Matterhorn) on the border with Italy. The upper side is glaciated, the second largest glacier of the Alps, the Gorner Glacier lies at the foot of Monte Rosa (4,634 m), while the Zmutt Glacier lies at the foot of the Matterhorn (4,478 m). Around the village of Randa are located the Weisshorn (4,505 m) and the Dom (4,545 m). The difference of height between the talweg and the summits on both side reaches over 3ย km. The total length of the valley is about 40ย km.

Settlements

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Zermatt (1,600 m), with approx. 5,600 inhabitants, is the largest and highest town in the valley. St. Niklaus follows with 2,400 inhabitants. Between them are located the smaller villages of Tรคsch and Randa. The villages of Grรคchen, Embd and Tรถrbel are located above the valley. Stalden, located at the end of the valley, is the lowest village (800 m).

Transport

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The Glacier Express along the Matter Vispa

Since the end of the nineteenth century the upper end of the valley is connected by rail from Visp (Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn). If the main road connect Zermatt from Visp, it cannot be used between Tรคsch and Zermatt, the latter being completely car-free.

Since 1930 the valley is directly connected to St. Moritz by the Glacier Express panoramic train.

Maps

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Swisstopo map of the Mattertal (Matter Valley) within the canton of Valais. The Rhรดne valley is visible to the north. The Matterhorn can be seen to the southwest of Zermatt, as well as Monte Rosa to the southeast. The thick red line traces the Swiss-Italian border. The Mattertal and Saastal have a confluence towards the north.


References

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46ยฐ05โ€ฒN 7ยฐ48โ€ฒE๏ปฟ / ๏ปฟ46.083ยฐN 7.800ยฐE๏ปฟ / 46.083; 7.800

๐Ÿ“š Artikel Terkait di Wikipedia

Glacier Express

journey from Zermatt starts at the dead end of an Alpine valley, the Mattertal, just below the Matterhorn at an elevation of 1,606ย m (5,269ย ft) before

Matterhorn

Schalbetter map, printed by Sebastian Mรผnster in 1545, the valley is labelled Mattertal, but the mountain has the Latin name Mons Silvius as well as the German

Monte Rosa

Macugnaga in the Valle Anzasca; and the north-western flowing towards the Mattertal with Zermatt, which has one of the largest Alpine glaciers. Its main summit

Schwarzhorn (Mattertal)

canton of Valais. It lies on the range between the Turtmanntal and the Mattertal. Retrieved from the Swisstopo topographic maps. The key col is the Augstbord

Brigโ€“Zermatt railway line

Rhone Valley with Tรคsch and the car free holiday resort of Zermatt in the Mattertal. The line also forms part of the much travelled and admired route of the

Stellihorn (Mattertal)

lies north of the Barrhorn, on the range between the Turtmanntal and the Mattertal. The Stellihorn has two summits: the Inners Stellihorn (3,410 m) and the

Zermatt

the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO). It lies at the upper end of Mattertal at an elevation of 1,620ย m (5,310ย ft), at the foot of Switzerland's highest

Valais

Valais Alps, some of the largest side valleys are (from east to west): the Mattertal (including the Saastal), the Val d'Anniviers, the Val d'Hรฉrens, the Val