Eiger - Mittellegi hut and Beyond

August 20, 2017
Eiger Mountain, Switzerland
Mittellegi Ridge Integrale

Almost two weeks ago Laura and I were run off the Eiger by an incoming blizzard. We had climbed the mountain from Grindelwald, past Ostegg Hut, and up the lower part of Mittellegi ridge to Mittellegi hut. The entire ridge, called Eiger Mittellegi Integrale is rarely climbed from base to summit because of its increased difficulty versus just the upper half of the ridge, but we felt that to really be able to say we climbed the Eiger, it was the route we must do.

Day one on the Eiger is here.

Obviously a good route choice, we learned that we missed professional rock climber and base jumper Steph Davis by just one day. She was climbing by the same route as we were. Probably not a big task for her as she has free soloed a 5.11 route on Longs Peak diamond, but it would have been pretty cool to hang out at the hut that night and BS with someone who seems so down to earth and is a huge proponent of helping others to improve through climbing education.

Saturday morning, we woke up at camp near Zermatt on the other side of the country. Our plan was to head south and east to do some rock climbing for a few days and then head back up to try again to summit this famous mountain. After checking weather, we knew plans would once again change. We had a 2 day weather window in Grindelwald and hoped that the snow from last week’s blizzard had cleared enough to make the route a go. We had no idea if the route was in condition but knew we had to go for it now or probably miss our opportunity.

We packed our gear and boarded the train for the 3 hour journey north. When we arrived in Grindelwald, we once again headed for Grindelwald Sports, just as we had done several weeks before. This is the guide center for the Eiger and the staff there are all amazing and helpful. We spoke with a person who regularly guides groups up the mountain and he said that the mountain was coming into condition but that it was still too dangerous to take guided groups on.

Upon calling the hut, Corinna, the hut guardian, informed of no new snow and a party summiting just that morning. It was a go! We asked for a reservation and boarded the next train leaving up to Eismeer Station. This is the route the vast majority of people who climb take up the mountain. It goes to Mittellegi hut and ascends the upper half of the ridge. We were okay with this since just two weeks prior we had spent more than 12 hours climbing there from our camp in Grindelwald, 7,000' below.

Windows of the Eismeer station in the Eiger

When you get off the train at Eismeer, you’re in a tunnel through the middle of the Eiger. You walk down a long dark tunnel and out onto the glacier. Most of the glacier is easy walking with crampons but about half way across we encountered a very thin snow bridge dropping into a several hundred foot deep crevasse. We saw tracks through, and also noticed that some of the bridge had collapsed just hours before, taking some of those tracks away. There was no other way across, so we roped up and Laura put me on belay. Carefully, I descended the slippery snow to the 2 foot wide bridge. Before crossing completely, I dropped down to the side and jumped across to more stable snow and a 15 foot vertical wall. Luckily the snow had softened in the afternoon sun and I was able to kick steps and climb the short section with relative ease using my ice axe as a contact point with the snow. I belayed Laura across, and as usual she had no problems following my track.

The snow bridge we would have to cross

I don't think the rope is doing much at this point

Our tracks across

To get to Mittellegi hut, you have to move off the glacier and into the rock. We had a lot of difficulty finding a section where it separated only a short distance - far enough where we could leap from snow to rock. We finally found a spot and ascended a 5.7 crack for about 100' before reaching easier ground. We knew that the path traversing to the hut was high above us since we had walked down it just days ago so we began scrambling up and up. We were moving slowly having spent too much time getting across he snow bridge and off the glacier so at one point we were checked in on by a helicopter. It was clear that Corinna was expecting us and had become concerned. The chopper came within close proximity of us, made sure we were still moving and headed off again. It was somewhat comforting to know that someone out there knew our plan and wanted us safe.

We're going to have to jump across the gap

About halfway up the steep rock, I had told Laura to go ahead while I coiled the rope. She did and I ended up in a pretty scary situation. I ascended a set of cracks that slowly ran out. I couldn’t climb up any further and would have had a tough time down climbing as well. Luckily, Laura and I always stay within voice contact so I called for her knowing she was above me. She dropped several slings for me to grab and I easily stepped my way out of a scary situation. Within a few minutes we had found the worn path to the hut and climbed the last few hundred feet.


Our view of the route when we arrived at Mittellegi Hut

Arriving at 7 pm, Corinna immediately says "You’re late!" She was unhappy with our arrival time and had clearly been concerned. She served us dinner, which was supposed to be at 6. The three course meal filled us both up and we were finally able to relax and focus on tomorrows climb.

We spent a few hours chatting with a Swiss duo who were going for Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau in a day as preparation for a bigger linkup they were planning. There were also two guys from Holland who were talking about their traverse of the Schrekhorn glacier that same day. End running many crevasses and running and jumping across, sticking in the other side with crampons and ice tools, their stories made our simple snow bridge crossing seem pretty insignificant.

Contrary to the Matterhorn where we were the most experienced group, the Eiger attracts an entirely different level of climber. We were the new ones, and obviously the least experienced group at the hut that day.

After dinner, it was snowing and we all were unsure of what conditions the mountain would offer in the morning. We retired to bed, each with different wake up times. First the Swiss, then us and finally the Holland guys an hour later. When we woke up, the railings around the hut were frozen on the north side. The south side was relatively dry. We geared up, ate breakfast and headed out into the cold and darkness.

The upper Mittellegi ridge route is very easy to follow. Simply stay on the ridge proper the entire way to the summit. Easy to say and even easier to do – it’s only about 2 or 3 feet wide most of the way, each side dropping off sharply, thousands of feet down. Within minutes we had reached the first set of fixed ropes. They assist with hands and provide passage thru the most difficult parts of the ridge. We were roped together, so I clipped our rope to large bars as we climbed while running several secure pieces between us. Laura brought them with her as we moved together about 30 feet apart. Up the narrow ridge and along amazing rock, I couldn’t believe how amazing this mountain was and how much fun I was having. At one point I was so excited I belted out a "Wahoo, were climbing the Eiger! This is so awesome! I’m having so much fun!" Laura concurred, but hurried me onward as were both cold and awaiting the first rays of sun to warm us.

At the top of a long successive section of fixed ropes, the sun did finally rise. Beautiful orange lit up the sky. Our spirits immediately lifted. We moved steadily to the final part where it turns to continuous snow to the summit. Putting on crampons and fighting a cold wind blasting up the north face, we made the summit just 5 hours after leaving the hut. 

 It was 8 am and we were now headed down. The descent is said to take 1.5 times as long as the ascent so we wasted no time getting moving. The south ridge of the mountain descends to a saddle via several rappels and a lot of exposed down climbing. Once at the saddle, you have a long mixed snowy and rocky ridgeline to follow toward Monch. At the upper saddle, you exit west and traverse below the face of the Monch, across the glacier around the mountain and finally over to Jungfraujoch train station. Looks scary and long from above and is similar difficulty to Mittellegi ridge but with more route finding to be had. Don’t get off route here as if you do, you end up on the terrible west flank.

We moved consistently, knowing time was important. Reaching the upper saddle and final glacier walk, we finally relaxed a bit. It looks like forever, but the walk across the glacier and around to Monch hut was uneventful. We reached the cleared path that leads to “The Top of Europe”. Jungfraujoch is a crazy tourist attraction and the highest train station in Europe and as we walked back, rope around our shoulders and gear on our climbing harnesses, several people asked to have their pictures taken with us. They were especially impressed with Laura- a real woman mountaineer! As the tourists stared and pointed, we took off all the gear, coiled the rope and headed inside.


Looking at Monch - we could see several groups of climbers on the top ridge

The route weaves through the crevasses all the way around Monch to the Sphinx (Jungfraujoch)

Doing the tours and seeing the ice caves inside the glacier, we spent an hour there before being picked up by the train. It took us Just 10 hours after leaving Mittellegi hut to reach Jungfraujoch. 5 up and 5 down. We were very pleased and happy with our effort for the day!

Inside the glacier at Jungfraujoch

Laura’s friend and coworker Rick inspired the trip to this mountain when we first told him that we were going to Switzerland. We are glad he did. From the beginning, this was my mountain- the Matterhorn Laura’s. I think I won this one as the Eiger did not disappoint. Mittellegi Integrale is a spectacular route on a demanding peak and one I would go back to many tines over!

Eiger complete! Hell yeah!

Eiger - Grindelwald to Mittellegi Hut

August 7, 2017
Eiger Mountain, Switzerland
Part 1

We finally made it! Almost a year of planning had finally gotten us to Switzerland! We arrived in Zurich at noon and immediately jumped on a train to Grindelwald about 3 hours away. When we arrived, we went straight to Grindelwald Sports to get weather information for the following days. Our primary objective, the infamous Eiger Mountain. Our original plan was to sleep and get organized, but the weather forecast was terrible. It appeared that we would have just one day of nice weather before the rain and snow came, so we headed to camp and slept for 4 hours before our 2:30 am wake up.

There is a train that will take you 3/4 of the way up the Eiger and drop you off, but we felt like this was cheating. We wanted to climb Mittellegi ridge in its entirety. The lower section is long and far more difficult than the upper, including a via ferrata, 6,000' of elevation gain, lots of 5.6 climbing, several rappels and a few pitches of 5.9 climbing. For this purpose, almost all that attempt Mittellegi ridge choose to bypass this lower stretch of the route and focus on the upper 1/3rd to the summit, which is relatively straight forward and has fixed ropes to assist in the difficulties. We left our camp in Grindelwald at 2:45am and walked through town to reach the beginning of the Eiger trail. Following this for about an hour, we found the route to steadily steepen. First fixed ropes, then cable to hook into while you traverse ledges and finally, a via ferrata leading to the Ostegg hut. After 4 hours of hiking and climbing, most people choose to stay the night at Ostegg, but we didn’t have the time for that. We rested for a half hour, ate some food and continued toward Mittellegi hut, far up on the ridge.

The views from Ostegg and above really open up. You get unobstructed views of the Schrekhorn and Wetterhorn, both 4,000 meter peaks with impressive climbing. We hope to climb Wetterhorn after the Eiger if the weather improves since we climbed the mountain with the same name at home in Colorado.

Above Ostegg is where the route really gets interesting. Extremely exposed with fatal consequences if you fall, climbing difficult terrain in the loosest and most fragile rock either of us had ever experienced. The route finding was difficult at best and the climbing required complete concentration. Together we seemed to make good route finding choices and we had a fair idea of where we needed to go so for the next 6 hours, we worked our way up loose gulley’s to knife edge ridges, getting ever closer to the still distant Mittellegi hut.

Looking down at Ostegg Hut and Grindelwald

After gaining what seems to be an impassable section on the mountain, you traverse left for a ways to find a window in the rock that you have to crawl through. So small that you have to take off your pack to get through, this window gives passage to the final section of the ridge to the hut, amazing views of the upper portion of Mittellegi ridge and access to the most difficult part of the entire route - the reason a huge majority of climbers choose to take the train to the upper hut - a 45 meter section of mandatory roped technical climbing.

The window you crawl through; it's not the obvious one, it's in the cave down and left of that one

window cave to the right

You start by working your way up a clean face with very small hand holds, using mostly your feet to keep you stuck to the wall. Then you make a technical traverse left for about 15'. There are no hand holds here but since we climb a lot of slick sandstone at home, we found the gneiss quite sticky for our feet. You reach out to a fixed bar in the mountain, and together with the bar and a bolt, there is a 4' portion of webbing you can grab onto. It the interest of safety and time, I reached for the webbing and quickly came to a belay. The belays here are interesting corkscrew type bars fixed into the mountain. They are placed for the guides to use and help them move efficiently, so I utilized their system. I secured myself and belayed directly off the corkscrew as Laura made her way up.

The most technical part of the route is up the crack to my right

Justin in the first pitch of the 5.9 portion



We had been hearing loud crashing all day and wondered if it was distant thunder, but at this belay station I was fortunate to see the glacier calving, making the familiar sound. A huge block of ice, maybe the size of 20 houses broke off and fell down creating a mini avalanche below. This was a cool spectacle I had never seen before.

The following section is about 100' feet chimney and a small hand crack in a corner. The crack has moss and weeds growing most places so this section was also ascended using mostly our feet, with few good hand holds for security. After we made it past the final difficulties, we climbed up and down several huge gendarmes, staying as close to the ridge as possible. We reached the Mittellegi hut after 13 hours of hard work.

We planned to stay at Mittellegi hut for the night and make a decision on weather and a summit attempt the following day but when Laura walked into the hut, it was empty. The attendant informed us that everyone had cancelled and that there was a blizzard coming the next day. She gave us the option to stay but said we could end up stuck there for a few days until the weather cleared. She told us that if we hurried, we could catch the last train down from the Eismeer station. We had about an hour and a half to make it so we made a quick decision and took off down a steep scree slope. Rappelling to a low angle section of rock, we traversed for 45 minutes to another rappel that landed us on the glacier to walk across to the train station cut into the middle of the mountain. We crossed the crevassed terrain and raced up through the tunnel.

The train station was empty so we found a phone and Laura called the train station. The conductor answered and said he would stop for us in 10 minutes! Phew, we just made it and didn’t have to add another 10 miles to our already very long day.

The train eventually got us back to Grindelwald where we stopped at the grocery store for dinner supplies and headed back to camp. We relaxed and looked at where we had been over the last 17 hours to a hard earned bottle of wine and a tasty jetboil sausage and pasta dinner. When we awoke the following morning, the weather was clear but quickly confirmed that we had made the correct decision heading down the day before. There was a fresh coating of snow on the Eiger and the rain soon arrived in town. Surely it was snowing 10,000 feet above - a bad place to be!

Matterhorn, Switzerland

Thursday August 17, 2017

The Matterhorn

Weather had been terrible for several weeks leading up to our trip to Switzerland. 70 cm of snow at the Zermatt ski area in the last week put the Matterhorn in full winter condition. Our original plan was to hike from Zermatt, up over Theodul Pass, moving around the southeast side of the mountain and up to Carrel hut in Italy. From there, we would ascend the Lion Ridge, or Cresta de Leon. But with the unusually high snow levels, there was no way we were making that happen; so as always, be flexible!

Lots of snow on the Matterhorn

We had heard horror stories about crowds, crazy guides, lines at fixed ropes and general chaos climbing the Swiss side of the mountain, the Hornli Ridge or Hornligrat. The most popular route on the Matterhorn seemed like it might be the only accessible route for us due to the high snow levels, so after much discussion we decided we would take it if it came into condition.

As the snow began to clear in the next two days, Laura and I would go back and forth on what route to take. Looking at the mountain from town, we really wanted Lion Ridge but both knew it was most likely unobtainable. We would watch weather almost hourly and every time I checked and with each different weather source, it would change. By this point the indecision about when to go and what route to take was bothering both of us and I had just about given up on chasing mountains at this point. I knew that a big part of alpine climbing is patience, but I wanted to get the mountain done and get on with our trip to the Eiger and rock climbing in the Yosemite of Switzerland, the Albigna Valley.

Still lots of snow

With spirits high, Monday morning we woke up early and made the 20 minute walk from our camp to the train station in Tasch, something we had become very accustomed to. The train takes 20 minutes to Zermatt, the town at the base of the Matterhorn, and put us in town around 7 am. Our plan for the day was to approach to the Hornli hut near where the route begins. We began our approach but by the time we stopped to check weather and see the crazy wind and snow coming in the following days, we cancelled our plan and decided to head back to camp.

In looking for something to pass the time while we waited on better weather, we grabbed the rock climbing gear and headed back toward Zermatt. We settled on climbing an 8 pitch rock route up Riffelhorn; an excellent rock climb below the current snow level and was a good substitute for the lost high alpine day.

Climbing the Riffelhorn

Tuesday morning we woke up to fantastic weather and a two day window for no snow. The mountain had been slowly melting out so we decided that we would at least make the trip up to Hornli hut and take a closer look for ourselves.

Approach trail to Hornli Hut

That morning, we rode the cable car halfway up the ski area and made the two hour hike to the hut. There were no guides, and only two other groups there to climb since the conditions were poor. We had heard the hardest part of the climb of Hornli ridge was the route finding so we decided to take an hour and climb the lower portion of the mountain. The part we would plan to do the following day in the dark. Up the initial fixed ropes we went, around the ledge, scree fields covered in snow...is this really the route!?!? We continued on what we thought was the correct path for an hour and then made our way back to the hut.



Relaxing and talking with the other 10 people staying in the normally overbooked 160 person hut was a good way to spend the afternoon and proved to be a good experience to what we were expecting to be madness.

Although we knew conditions were not good, we planned to leave at 2 am the following morning and make an attempt on the mountain. We felt like we had around a 30% chance of making it, but knew we couldn’t sit. We were served a hearty dinner by the hut staff, had some tea and headed to bed to catch a few hours of sleep before what we thought would probably be a 16-20 hour day tomorrow.

Scouting the start of the route with the Bulgarians

The 2 am alarm goes off and Laura looks out the window. The flag is straight out and it's cloudy enough that you can't see the next mountain over. I suggested sleeping till 3 and see what it looks like then. We went back to sleep and woke up to no wind. Gearing up and eating breakfast, I put on my jacket and pack and headed outside to take a look around to learn that it was pouring rain and the deck on the hut was already iced over. I walked back inside and while taking off my climbing harness told Laura "It's pouring. We're not going". She looked disappointed, but knew that there was no argument. We were not going. She sat in the breakfast area with her harness and jacket on for several minutes and then wandered outside as if hoping the rain would stop and somehow the freeze was only in my mind. A few minutes later she came inside and sat with me, both disappointed but knowing we were making the correct decision for safety.

From our breakfast table, we sat and watched a headlight flicker midway up the mountain. We also watched the group of 6 from Bulgaria who had left at 2:30 am slowly make their way up the lower portion of the route. After a while, we went back to bed until 6 am and woke up to another breakfast! I ate again and we watched as parties retreated from their attempt on the mountain.

We waited anxiously to talk to the Bulgarians about conditions. We thought they were the most experienced and likely to make the summit. A father and son team from Manchester was high on the mountain still. They had actually made it to Solvay hut halfway up the mountain; however we later learned that they were air lifted off by helicopter because they had called for rescue. This made 3 rescues in the 3 days we had been around the mountain, obviously a common thing here in Switzerland.



Climbers descending the fixed ropes

In Switzerland, there is some crazy expectation to be way over prepared, very conservative about mountain attempts, requiring a guide even for simple hikes and needing rescue insurance. We just didn't understand. There is constant helicopter activity here. Goods to mountain huts, rescues and more, seemingly never ending. The other thing we had learned is that everyone must think that even for short day hikes you need full winter mountaineering boots?! We were in tennis shoes and people thought we were a little crazy and definitely underestimated us as even being hikers let alone heading into the alpine. "No boots! How many toes do you have?" "Light and fast, you're crazy!" "No climb in shoes, must have boots" "Cold here, way colder than in Colorado!" We disregarded the comments as we know what we are capable of and regularly climb in snow and colder conditions at home with just the gear we have here.

Disappointment after the failed attempt

Anyway, we waited around until the Bulgarians made it back to the hut and chatted with them. I had made pretty good friends with the group the day before so they were friendly and helpful, even asking if they could climb with us at some point. They didn't really understand our preparedness but were interested in how we prepared and looked at the mountain, conditions and gear differently than everyone else around including themselves. They told us that conditions were not terrible, but there was deep snow in sections and that they retreated because of scary clouds and already being rained on. They didn’t want to push their luck and would come back in a year’s time. We completely understood and congratulated them on their attempt.

Off we went, hiking the 2 hours down to the gondola and back to Zermatt. We again headed to camp, making the 20 minute walk from the train station in Tasch. Looking at weather, we decided that we needed to give the mountain another shot soon before more rain and snow hit. We had 2 days of warm and clear weather ahead so we did a load of laundry at camp, rested and made the plan to head back up again the next day. We were undecided as to what the real plan of attack would be but we knew we had to get back up there, even with the mountain being in bad to moderately poor conditions.

Summit day:
Walking the 2 miles to Tasch and taking the train, we arrived in Zermatt Thursday morning at 8 am. We had discussed a variety of options on our ride down to Zermatt. Stay at Hornli hut again, explore the lower part of the mountain and head down, see how weather is and head to Solvay hut halfway up, and that seemingly positively known but unspoken plan of going all the way to the summit and down in one big push. Laura was 100% positive that we would stay at Solvay and try for the summit on Friday, but I had a different plan in mind. I know how far I can push myself and how strong Laura is on long days. Those 50 and 100 mile runs really pay off for her in the alpine...me, I don't run!

We again took the cable car up the ski area, made the hike to Hornli hut and went to the beginning of the climb where the first fixed ropes are. We would start climbing and evaluate our options every 2 hours. Weather was perfect and was forecasted to stay good so we were in little danger of getting caught in a storm.

Climbing the fixed ropes at the start of the route

The start of the climb is up a set of very large fixed ropes with several metal ladder pieces set into the rock to use as steps. With heavy backpacks, rope, climbing gear, winter gear, food and a jetboil camp stove in case of an emergency, we worked our way up. It is strenuous hand over hand climbing for the first 250 feet. Probably 5.9 or so without ropes, but we gladly took the assistance and made the first three ledges in about 5 minutes. Up the first section of scree and across loose ledges we went making it in just 20 minutes to where we had scouted over an hours’ time just a day before.

The previous day at the hut, I had talked with a guide based out of Chamonix France, Pete. He used to live in Colorado so we had much to talk about. The main point he kept repeating about the Matterhorn was that you need to follow crampon marks and stay out of the loose stuff. He repeated "If you feel like you're off route, stop immediately and go back to where you last knew you were correct. Do not proceed!"

We were making good time but started having route finding difficulty just above where we had scouted. At each successive ledge and gully, I would pull the topo map and compare to trip reports I had saved as a backup plan in my planning stages back home a month ago. 20 meters left to the base of the first gully, climb for 60 meters on 5.5 terrain with the occasional metal stake in the rock and across a well-marked path. We found the well-marked path - pretty obvious when you see the red arrows painted on the rock! We felt good that we were on route and continued on.

We passed a guide on his way down from taking a client to the summit earlier in the day but as expected, he said nothing and simply passed us by offering little knowledge. When they reached the bottom, we figured he spoke about us heading up so late because we started seeing helicopter activity and from then on, they regularly checked on us. "They're spying on us" Laura says. "I'm not going with them; I'll walk down in the dark."

So on we continued, solving route finding problems one after another but still making good time to Solvay hut. Guides who know every step of the mountain and are said to "drag their clients up at a ridiculous pace" do it in 3 hours. We made it in 3.5 not even breathing hard. All those inclines and steep night hikes with 30 pound packs are really paying off. We passed a group of two who were planning to stay at Solvay hut due to exhaustion. Solvay is supposed to be for emergency bivvies’ only but it was clear that this was their plan from the beginning. We passed by, made a stop at the hut for food and water and as agreed earlier, discussed our options.



Last section of the lower Mosley slabs before Solvay Hut



View of the upper mountain from Solvay Hut

With clear skies and low winds, we decided to make push for the summit. We thought it would take 1.5 hours in prime conditions but estimated 3-4 hours on this day due to snow. As we started the upper half of the route, the route finding difficulties eventually eased. We got into a solid boot pack on the snow and onto the ridge once again. Metal pins, stakes and pigtails showed the route. Several fixed lines and cables lead to more fixed rope - the big ones like at the beginning, but this time we were tired. One after another up very steep and highly exposed terrain, it seemed like 50 but was probably 15 rope lengths or so.

We made it out onto the north face and followed more pins and stakes, clipping each one as we were roped together for safety. The steep snow slope was long but eventually I spotted the statue just below the short summit ridge. I finally knew we would make it! A short walk later we stood atop the mountain we had planned and dreamed about for so long. The most photographed mountain in the world. The one over 450 people had perished on. The mountain so many travel to Switzerland to see up close. The Matterhorn.

It was 5 pm. 7.5 hours after we had started. Probably way too late to be on summit and we would positively be descending in the dark. We stayed for 5 minutes and took some pictures before starting the long descent down.

The slightly lower Italian summit in the background with the cross. 

The snow up high was very unstable and made it far too dangerous to down climb the upper sections. We had been practicing simu-rappelling at home for a few months as a technique to move faster in the mountains, so we rappelled, both at the same time on the same rope, making double time like we knew we had to. 5, 10, 20 rappels later we made it to where we could down climb to Solvay hut. When we arrived there were 4, or maybe 6 people in the 2 beds. None English speaking, 2 seemingly sketchy and upset we walked in and none offering any assistance. They asked if we would stay but without confidence in being safe there overnight, I told them we were only stopping to eat and that we were planning to go down. They seemed amazed and shuffled under the wool blankets and torn mattresses.

Rapping down above Solvay

We left Solvay hut, again rappelling time after time. Slowly we lost light and this is where the adventure turned into an epic. We began descending a snowfield, around a rib on the east face. There were tracks in the snow in every direction, but I felt that we were heading the correct way. Laura is the best route finder I have ever climbed with so when she says something doesn't seem right, I almost always go with it. Something didn't seem right. We had read too many times not to go out on the east face. Our friend Chris went too far out on the east face. My friend got lost and shivered a night away out there just a month ago. Don't go too far out on the east face!

We turned around and headed back up to the ridge, traversing over until we located rappel slings. The mountain is littered with them and we should have known we were going wrong. Tired and unsure of what to do, we rappelled a few times and discussed where we thought we were at. It was now late in the night, dark and impossible to see. We were lost. Neither of us had been in this situation before but I am proud of the way both of us handled it. We collected our thoughts, considered boiling water for warmth and bunking down for a few hours, consulted maps and pictures we’d taken earlier in the day and made a solid plan. Warming our hands and feet, we decided we were way too high on the ridge and that we should have descended around the rock rib we were at earlier. We needed to keep moving down, so we rappelled on old slings along the mountain and when those ran out, made some of our own down lower.

After being lost and off route for nearly 4 hours, we found what we thought was the correct path down. We followed the crampon marks down rock ledges and loose scree. Down climbing consistent 5.2+ terrain. Past the solar area and "the vacuum cleaner" as Laura called it. Down, down, down for 3 more hours before making it to the base of the route where we had started almost 16 hours before. We went to the hut where all the climbers were up and preparing for their climb that day. As we sat and rested in the dry room away from the breakfast area, climbers came in and out, none of them suspecting that we had attempted, let alone sumitted the Matterhorn as they slept. We relaxed and ate for an hour or so and then made the walk down to the cable car.

We caught a short nap from 6-7 am on the concrete before being woken up by stray sheep almost stepping on us as Laura screamed “watch out, crazy animals were heading right for you!” We caught the first gondola back down to Zermatt, had breakfast, took the train back to Tasch and made the 20 minute walk once again back to camp.

The fighting sheep that almost trampled Justin in his sleep

We made it, the Matterhorn. I really couldn't remember the details until I actually sat down to write this blog the following day. Lying in the tent that morning at camp, everything seemed to blur together at first but now the details are clear. What a fun day out. It is amazing how quickly the body can recover, forget the pain and cold and all you remember is the amazing scenery, the stars and the sun, the crescent moon rising as we descended and all the choices we made and paths we took that day.