The pass itself lies within the canton of Valais, at a height of 2,269 metres (7,444 ft) above sea level.

The pass lies between the Daubenhorn (2,942 metres (9,652 ft)) in the west and the Plattenhörner in the east.

The pass is mentioned in the Sherlock Holmes story The Final Problem.

[3] The American writer Mark Twain also visited the pass in August 1878, and described it in a letter to his wife.

The pass itself is also used as a vantage point, because of the view of some major peaks in the Pennine Alps, such as the Dom, Matterhorn, Weisshorn and Dent Blanche.