Crowds gather to see chunk fall off Eiger

[muriel_volestrangler]

A vast chunk of Europe's most ill-famed mountain threatens to break loose and crash down in the next few days, a geologist monitoring the situation told the Guardian on Friday.

Hans-Rudolf Keusen said 2m cubic metres of the Eiger in the Bernese Alps, Switzerland - twice the volume of the Empire State Building - was rapidly working its way loose. He said the mountain appeared to have cracked open as an indirect result of global warming.
...
Mr Keusen began monitoring the mountain at the end of last month after spotting a long crack on the east face. Measurements taken by instruments located on Bäregg, on the other side of a valley from the Eiger, initially showed the fissure was opening up at a rate of five centimetres a day.

But on Friday, he told the Guardian: "The crack is now widening at 75 centimetres a day.

http://travel.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1815404,00.html

[NNadir]

1. Quite a show, I'd guess.

I wonder how many people drove long distances just to see it.

[dipsydoodle]

4. If you've you've ever been to the Eiger

Then you'd know the answer is very few . Mountain railcar up from Wengen maybe. :) Apart from that it's a bit difficult to drive very far in any direction in Switzerland.

[NNadir]

6. That's good to hear. I've only been to Switzerland once.

To be honest, I was driven through it, in a minibus sort of thing. I didn't get out of vehicle except to pee and eat. We went straight from Milan to Strassbourg if memory serves me well.

It was a business trip quite some time ago, and my memory of the exact itinerary is foggy.

In any case, it is nice to hear that not all that much driving is necessary.

[izzie]

8. It sounds sort of interesting. Old Man of the Mt. fall a few years ago

I wonder if they will get any pictures? I do not think any one saw the old man go.

[hobbit709]

2. Earwig time

All I can thinks of is Hendrix-"If 6 Was 9" running through my head after reading this.

[Dead_Parrot]

10. Not "Voodoo Chile"?

Well, I stand up next to a mountain
And I chop it down with the edge of my hand...

:D

[hobbit709]

11. No! more like

"Fall mountains, just don't fall on me"

[otohara]

3. Think of The Gas

used to get there to watch this -

[eppur_se_muova]

5. Put up a Webcam ... save all that driving (or um, railing?). nt

[eleny]

7. A link to Google Earth is here

Click to download and you'll be directed to enter a code provided. Then Google Earth will open showing the location of the mountain.

http://www.googleearthhacks.com/dlfile1727/Mt.-Eiger,-Switzerland.htm

[dipsydoodle]

9. That's cool

Thanks for that. It was as expected - North Face in perpetual shade. That's what the people on the terrace of the restaurant sit and watch through their telescopes. Even so the climbers probably still look like flys on a wall.

I've skied down on my to Wengen for the bottom of the Eiger. That was the day after I first learned to ski ! I must confess I wasn't too popular with the other skiers.