Sunday, August 5, 2012

Zermatt Hike

Our plan, after discussions at the TI, was to do some light hiking higher up and then for me to trudge up 2000 feet to a refuge and then ascend the Mettelhorn the next day. From the Mettelhorn one has a high panorama of the Mattertal's greatest peaks, three of the four highest in the Alps, Matterhorn, Taschhorn, and Monte Rosa, and dozens of major glaciers and high passes. The hike we selected took the funicular up a thousand meters or so and then visited five tarns before returning via the funicular. Looked reasonable according to the map, and the TI babe assured us it was a 2 hour trip.
The funicular; runs up and down inside the mountain and
is thus the world's longest indoor funicular


Us just off the funicular and ready to begin our hike



























Mountain vistas...Monte Rosa?














Taschhorn?














Big glacier; 25 years ago I used to know all the mountains,
glaciers, passes, in this area; now just one...















Vicki by a big old tree


















Flowers abloom all over














Detail














It looks like just a passing cloud, but Whymper would tell
you it's a storm, and if anyone is up there this late in the day,
they're fighting for their lives...

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