For many decades, the Belalp – Riederalp trail passed only over the Aletsch glacier. Even small livestock was taken across to the other side of the glacier in this way. Metal ladders were later required on account of the shrinkage of the glacier, and today a suspended bridge crosses the ice-free gorge.

The suspension bridge is 124 metres long and spans the 80-metre-deep Massa Gorge. This is a thrilling experience - not for the faint-hearted and only for those with a good head for heights! The suspension bridge is situated in front of the Aletsch Glacier's snout or lower end.

Having crossed the hanging bridge, you soon discover the biotope-like “Grunsee” located in the Pro Natura Reserve - and ancient Aletsch forest on the Riederfurka – Riederalp path.

Hiking from Belalp to Riederalp you experience the exceptionally peaceful atmosphere surrounding the Aletsch, enjoy views of the ancient and protected Aletch forest and are permanently accompanied by the powerful Aletsch Glacier.

Meeting point:
- We meet at the Brig Bahnhof bus station at 10am (right in front of the Brig train station) - http://goo.gl/maps/kE2xd
- We then take the bus to Blatten bei Naters Post (22 minutes)
- We take the cable car from Blatten bein Naters - http://goo.gl/maps/HpNmD to Belalp (10 minutes)
- We then walk to the Hotel Belalp from were we will start our hike - http://goo.gl/maps/dTghy

Returning from Riederalp:
- We take the cable car from Riederalp Mitte to Morel (12 minutes) - http://goo.gl/maps/vQpYU
- We take the train from Morel to Brig Bahnhofplatz to rejoin the cars, if you came in one (12 minutes)

Difficulty: Medium
Hiking time: 4h20
Length: 11.3 km
Assume you'll spend around 30 CHF in transportation as mentioned above (this assumes you don't have a reduction)

For a drunken bird's eye view of the trail see here:
http://www.geotrails.ch/3d.php?trailid=134283

For a more sober version of the trail map see here:
http://wanderland.myswitzerland.com/en/routen_detail.cfm?id=339420

Wonder what the bridge looks like? see here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkYi90GtyyA

For the weather forecast see here:
http://www.meteocentrale.ch/en/europe/switzerland/weather-riederalp/details/S069196/

For car sharing please use this:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AtKNyZWHpF4SdFFHblcwbk9UWnBhTWotSHRHTmVCS1E&usp=sharing


Disclaimer: As with every other event, by signing up, you release me from all responsibility in case of accidents, injuries, illnesses, and disappointments that you might experience during this event. I am not a professional travel agent or event organizer. Join at your own risk. You are responsible for your own safety and your own satisfaction during this event.

Note: For those of you who are not properly insured for mountain rescue and evacuation, please be aware that you can obtain coverage through REGA for 30 CHF per year. If you do not have any insurance whatsoever that covers this type of events, and you end up requiring helicopter evacuation, this could cost you 3000 CHF at a minimum. So if you do a lot of hiking, don't be cheap when it comes to your own safety.
https://www.rega.ch/en/support-rega/become-a-rega-patron.aspx
(I don't get paid for writing this)