Switzerland · Grimsel
Sagittarius
A Grimsel granite classic: low-angle slabs lead to the famous 6a+ crack pitches and a thin 6b traverse, then steeper, sculpted ground. Sustained at 5c/6a throughout.
6b13 pitches400 m
Roadrunner
Gerstenegg – Donald Duck slab (Räterichsbodensee) · Grimsel · Switzerland
Easy to bailBolting confidence: medium
Seven pitches of smooth, low-angle Grimsel granite, almost all pure friction, with two short steeper steps. Technically easy, but you have to trust your feet. A gentle introduction to Grimsel slab and to multipitch rope work.
- Hardest pitch
- 4c
- Pitches
- 7
- Length
- 200 m
- Approach
- 20 min
- Aspect
- E
- East-facing
- Rope
- 2×50 m
The route
Overview
Roadrunner climbs the left end of a long, low-angle granite slab at Gerstenegg, above the Räterichsbodensee dam on the Grimsel Pass road. It is seven pitches, four of them 4c, almost entirely on friction with two short steeper steps. The climbing is easy for anyone used to slab, but there are few positive holds, so first-time slab climbers find it unsettling. Parties call it a good place to practise rope work and to find out what Grimsel slab feels like, and some find it a little monotonous. You abseil the route.
The climbing
Pitch by pitch
3a3c4c4c4c4c3c
| Pitch | Grade | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| P1 | 3a | Easy slab. |
| P2 | 3c | Slab. |
| P3 | 4c | Friction slab. |
| P4 | 4c | Friction slab. |
| P5 | 4c | Friction slab. |
| P6 | 4c | Friction slab. |
| P7 | 3c | Easier slab to the last belay. A further optional pitch of 5c exists above (2018 report and the photo-topo). |
Getting there
Approach
To the parking
The Grimsel Pass road runs from Innertkirchen (Meiringen side) over to Gletsch in Valais and is open roughly from late May or June to October. Park at the foot of the Räterichsbodensee dam, or at Chüenzentennlen (1596 m) about 1 km below it. A postbus runs from June to October. Lodging is at the Hotel Handegg or in Innertkirchen.
On foot · about 20 min
From the parking at the foot of the dam take the Bächlihütte path, which climbs south-west. When you reach a small canalised stream, follow it west for about 300 m. You pass below a slab about 100 m high with bolted routes (Azalée Beach), then reach a second, low-angle slab that goes on for hundreds of metres. The start is at the far left (south) end of this slab, by a steel rod cemented into the rock. Two routes of similar difficulty start here: the left one (Donald Duck) has 4 pitches, Roadrunner is the right one. About 20 minutes.
Finding the route · 1 photo
OverviewThe Gerstenegg slabs seen from the Grimsel road by the dam, with the approach paths drawn in pink and the sectors named. The Donald Duck sector, where Roadrunner starts, is on the left above the path that comes in from the dam ('Barrage').Photo: Michmuch38 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Map of the walk-in
- Crag
- Parking
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
46.59062, 8.32794
Räterichsbodensee dam (camptocamp waypoint 133701)
Point from camptocamp waypoint 475853
For your phone or watch
Download GPX
Contains the route point and parking. Opens in most mapping apps and GPS watches.
Points are compiled from published sources, with the precision stated above. They were not surveyed on the ground: check them against a current topo.
Coordinates: 46.59044, 8.31553 (crag) · Parking: 46.59062, 8.32794
Getting down
Descent
Abseil the route from the equipped belays. Because the slab is so low-angled, the ropes do not run cleanly and the abseils are slower and fiddlier than on a steep wall.
Retreat
Bailing off the route
Easy to bail
Abseiling the route is the normal descent and the belays are equipped for it, so you can retreat from any belay. On such a low-angle slab the ropes need careful handling. If rain is coming, go down early: the slab becomes a water slide.
- Retreat from
- Any belay.
- Point of no return
- None.
- Carry
- Two 50 m ropes.
- Basis
- Stated in the sourcesCamptocamp states the descent is by abseil down the route on equipped belays; a 2019 party abseiled off in a thunderstorm.
Safety
Hazards
- Pure friction climbing: the slab is unclimbable when wet. A 2019 party was caught by a thunderstorm and abseiled down running water.
- Bolts are spaced on the easy sections, where a slip would mean a long slide.
- In summer 2023 camptocamp carried a warning that the lakeside path beyond the dam was closed because of rockfall risk, cutting off the routes above the lake. A party still climbed the neighbouring Donald Duck in July 2023, but check the current access situation.
Sun and weather
Conditions
East facing at about 1800 to 1950 m. In hot weather climb in the afternoon, when the slab is in shade; in cool weather go in the morning. The slab is reported to dry quickly. A late October party found it dry but cold.
Usual season · Jun to Oct
JFMAMJJASOND
Sun on the wall · E-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
- January: not yet worked out
- February: not yet worked out
- March: not yet worked out
- April: not yet worked out
- May: not yet worked out
- June (usual season): not yet worked out
- July (usual season): not yet worked out
- August (usual season): not yet worked out
- September (usual season): not yet worked out
- October (usual season): not yet worked out
- November: not yet worked out
- December: not yet worked out
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
Estimated from the wall's aspect only. Ignores surrounding terrain, gullies and the wall's exact shape. Clock times are local to the wall (Central European time), for the 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun (usual season) | Jul (usual season) | Aug (usual season) | Sep (usual season) | Oct (usual season) | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | −3 | −1 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 17 | 17 | 13 | 8 | 2 | −2 |
| Mean daily low °C | −8 | −8 | −5 | −2 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 1 | −4 | −8 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 14 | 12 | 15 | 15 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 18 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 15 |
| Sunshine hours a day | 6.4 | 7.5 | 9.0 | 10.3 | 10.8 | 11.5 | 12.0 | 10.7 | 9.3 | 8.0 | 6.3 | 5.7 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 1777 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis (about 10 km grid): the wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
What to carry
Gear
8 quickdraws (the photo-topo says 10) and two 50 m ropes. Helmet.
Checklist
- Quickdraws
- 8
- Rope
- 2×50 m
- Helmet
- One each
- Abseil device and prusik
- The descent or the retreat involves abseiling
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
Reader reports
Reader reports are not being collected yet. Until they are, check a current topo and the local club or guidebook publisher for recent changes to Roadrunner.
Worth knowing
Tips
- Allow 2.5 to 3 hours for the climb and descent.
- Krümel and Foxie on the neighbouring Gerstenegg slabs are of similar difficulty; one party linked all three in a day.
- The parking at the dam was reported as overcrowded in July 2023. Arrive early.
Open questions
Where sources disagree
- Quickdraws: camptocamp says 8, the photo-topo on the same page says 10.
- Grade: the photo-topo gives '5c max, 4c obligatory', which counts an optional extra pitch of 5c above the seventh belay; the seven pitches described here top out at 4c.
- The camptocamp page is rated 'great' for quality of description, but the two detailed trip reports call the climbing easy and rather monotonous.
Provenance
Sources
- Camptocamp – Grimsel, Gerstenegg, Donald Duck: RoadrunnerUsed for: pitch grades, approach, descent, gear, sun
- Camptocamp – trip reports 2005–2019 (outings 1128513, 1061227, 84120)Used for: bolt spacing, abseil handling, timings, wet-rock warning
- Camptocamp – Grimsel, Gerstenegg, Donald Duck (crag)Used for: approach time, sector layout
- Camptocamp – Räterichsbodensee (access)Used for: road season, bus, lodging, 2023 path closure notice
- Camptocamp – photo-topo by Hervé ThiviergeUsed for: line, quickdraw count, optional 5c pitch
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Compiled from published sources and last verified October 2026. Bolts, anchors and access change. Climbing is dangerous and you are responsible for your own decisions: check a current topo and read the disclaimer.