Hörnlihütte, Switzerland

I have now “climbed” to the Hornlihutte three times, most recently on July 27th, 2010. While technically a hike, there are places, particularly towards the end of the trek to the Hutte, in which the route seems more a climb than a walk. Often, it is only the presence other people above you, going up or down, that indicates where the path is. Is it worth it? Oh yes! My first ascent in 1995 was from Schwartzee, a total vertical ascent of about 680 m over a horizontal distance of perhaps 2.5 km, not counting switchbacks. The wanderweg signpost at Schwartzee suggested it would take about 2 hours but at the tender age of 50, and in fairly fit condition, I made it in 75 minutes. The view from the top was glorious and the Matterhorn looks quite different from the Hornlihutte: less chocolate box white and grey, more black and forbidding. My second ascent in July of 2000 was all the way from Zermatt, via Zmutt and Staffel, meeting the trail to the Hutte above Hirli. The total ascent was about 1640 vertical meters and, while it did not appear to be so on maps, this route was worse. The climb up to Hirli was on a very steep 3:1 slope of loose shale both difficult and treacherous to walk on. As I prepared to descend on this occasion it began to snow heavily and there I was in shorts and with no gloves. Not completely stupid, I had brought my jacket with hood, thank heavens. Never attempt the Hornlihutte without a wardrobe of clothing for all possible conditions. I spotted a fellow hiker ahead of me and resolved to follow him down. Soon, however, he stopped and it became apparent, even given my weak grasp of French, that he wanted to follow me. How I found my (our) way back down to Schwartzee being able to see less than 20 feet ahead and having made this descent only once before (and that 5 years earlier), I do not know. Eventually, the Zee at Schwartzee came into view and I waved au revoir to my companion who was as relieved as I to be off the Matterhorn. When I finally wobbled into the Kirchplatz in Zermatt I had covered about 16 km of horizontal distance, again not counting switchbacks, and 3260 m of vertical distance, half up and half down, in about 7.5 hours. In July of 2010, now pushing 60 years of age, I wisely decided to do the Hornlihutte from Schwartzee again. The day was glorious but, while it did not snow this time, it was bitterly cold and windy between Schwartzee and my destination. I was very glad to have brought my new Mountain Equipment Coop Gortex jacket and under layering as well. As it was, on the descent, a gust of wind took my almost new Kangol hat right out of my pocket where I had stowed it while raising my hood and deposited it somewhere on the Northwest face of the Matterhorn. So, my advice is: Do it. But make sure you are fit and acclimatized and properly dressed. Rain in Zermatt becomes snow on the Matterhorn. Finally, while not essential, a pair of walking sticks will come in very handy especially on the descent.

The highest point where you can spend a night before continuing up to Matterhorn. You can reach the hotel with some effort as the trails are excellent. The view down to the valley is spectacular as is the view up the Matterhorn.

Climb to the Hörnllihütte even if you're not going to climb the Matterhorn. It's a great climb and you'll see the steepness of the mountain with your own two eyes. It's incredible. One guy I met in Zermatt climbed the Matterhorn by trailing a guided group that started the climb here one morning. There are risks though, at least one person died on the week I was here so don't do anything crazy...

User attached a link to matterhorn-group.ch

Beautiful ski resort with spectacular views, although I wouldn't recommend this to a nervous skier not comfortable with heights, open spaces, gorges etc because there is plenty of exposure there, and fences are used sparingly in places that feel quite dangerous. This place has the best infrastructure (lifts, mountain trains etc) of any ski resorts to where I've been to.

You can get to the top of Klein Matterhorn with a skilift. It's probably the highest place to ski in the Alps and has snow through summer. I was there is July and people were skiing while is was climing on the glacier. The skilift itself is a nice experience, as it rises very rapidly at the end.

Our route to Courmayeur went through Aosta and we stopped by to check the town as a potential place to stay when visiting Cervinia. The old town, piazza and pedestrian areas were pictoresque but overall the town was a bit shabby and under construction.

As climbing the Matterhorn was expensive with a guide and I wanted to go on the glacier I joined a group to climb the Breithorn. It was a rather easy walk up the mountain but it made me sweat still. The view was great when I finally made it to the top!

If you're looking for a great place for hiking in the Alps Zermatt is just that. I was there for 5 days and each day was a new adventure on a new route. It was great climbing glacier (it was July) and the views were truly breathtaking in so many ways.

Restaurant Zum See is the best restaurant in Zermatt. It´s located at the end of the slopes (bottom of Matterhorn facing the village)

Lovely village... access to neighboring countries.

While traveling we always taste the original food traditional for the country where we stay.
The cheese, fondue and double cream with raspberries were in Switzerland (June,2009). Our "degustation" took place in Gruier. Gruier is a medieval village that located at the foot of the ancient Gruier Castle and is famous for its cheese (with the same name) all over the Europe. This cheese has a specific smell and it is without holes. Smell is represented by typical aromas, such as the flora of the high pastures and the hay. Deeply suggestive odours! I and my wife are fond of milk products and in summer when we spend time in our summer cottage we always buy ecologically pure milk and scream from the farmer whom we know well. But we have never tasted such a delicious cream like in Gruier village! The large Market Sqare in Gruier is full of tents where we tasted different sorts of Gruier cheese and took 2 kg to bring it home. Her we saw how fondue was prepared and tasted it too...
What is fondue? It is a Swiss communal dish which arose many centuries ago as a result of preservation methods. I didn't understand how it is prepared and we bought a package to entertain friends. The only thing to do is to mix the contents of the package with wine and to heat it softened into a thick sauce.
The original Swiss folklore with alphorns came to the Market Square - five men with long alpine horns (nearly 3,5 metres long) and a man behind them throwing the national flag into the sky and then catching it with great skill. A marvelous and charming performance!