White Hare is THE classic in Grindelwald. And the snow in the shadow of the north face of the Eiger promises powder fun until April. Even days after the last snowfall, the wide slope is still not completely covered because you can't get there without a 10 to 20-minute ascent. (You can read how the route got its name in the book with the best freeride runs in the Jungfrau Region...)
Ascent
From the Eigergletscher mountain station, traverse as high as possible towards the north face of the Eiger. From P. 2247 m, walk along the ridge in the direction of Rotstock (via ferrata). After about 50 meters you can enter the wide slope at the foot of the Eiger north face. If you want an additional beautiful and somewhat steeper slope, you can take another 50 vertical meters under your feet and climb up to the start of the via ferrata "Rotstock".
Descent
From there, everything is in the fall line, or first traverse under the north face of the Eiger and from there descend in the fall line towards the railroad line/gallery of the Wengernalpbahn. Cross this and continue down the fall line, partly through undergrowth, until you reach the Mettlen valley descent again at Tschingelbach.
Then follow the valley descent to Brandegg station or down into the valley to Grindelwald Grund.
Information
Difficulty (5-level scale): ***
Special dangers: Sometimes there are deep ditches (streams), especially in early winter when there is little snow. Be careful not to obstruct the trains when traversing the tracks of the Wengernalp Railway. The gallery can also be skipped.
Maximum gradient: 30-35°
Exposure: North
Altitude difference start and finish: 2330 m | 1620 m
Altitude difference uphill and downhill: 50 to 100 m | 800 m
Duration: approx. 1 to 1.5 hours
Best time of year: January-April
How to get there: By car or train from Interlaken Ost to Lauterbrunnen or Grindelwald. The Wengernalp Railway (WAB) runs from both valley towns to Kleine Scheidegg. From there, you can take the Jungfrau Railway up to the Eiger Glacier station or, even better, ski down to the Arvengarten, from where the chairlift "Eiger North Face" takes you to the starting point of the route.
Topographical maps: Swiss Map 25'000 sheet "1229 Grindelwald" or "2520 Composition Jungfrau Region". The Freeride Guide Jungfrau Region also includes a 50'000 map.
Literature tip: This is one of 43 variant descents from the book "Freeride Guide Jungfrau Region", which can be ordered here.
