After a Halloween party it is an early start on Saturday. Today Nicolas is out with his friend Julian. On our last trip to Graubünden not all the larches had turned yellow yet. Now we are trying our luck again, this time in Zermatt.
At 6:30 am we leave Basel SBB on the EuroCity to Domodossola. The train is very full because one carriage was not coupled on. Even people with seat reservations no longer have a seat. At 8:31 am we arrive in Visp. Because the Matterhorn Gotthard Railway is renewing bridges, stations and level crossings, among other things, in the Matter Valley until 9 November, we continue to Täsch on the replacement bus.
Zermatt is car-free, and anyone arriving by car parks in Täsch, five kilometres before the village. From there the shuttle train takes another twelve minutes to Zermatt. Instead of cars, licensed electric vehicles drive through the village, and every vehicle is limited to 20 km/h.
Up to Gornergrat on the Gornergrat Railway
The valley station of the Gornergrat Railway is directly opposite Zermatt station. At 10 am we ride up. The Swiss travelcard (GA) is not valid on this line, but holders pay half price. For the ride up that comes to 33 Swiss francs. The railway has run up to Gornergrat since 20 August 1898, as the first electric rack railway in Switzerland.
The view from the train is beautiful from the start. First we pass through yellow larches, then through high alpine landscape, and all the way we can see the Matterhorn. It is 4478 metres high, and the border with Italy runs across its summit. Geologically, the mountain is considered a piece of Africa in the middle of Europe. Its summit is made of gneiss that originally belonged to the African-Adriatic plate.
At 10:33 am we are on Gornergrat at 3089 metres. We have perfect weather, no clouds, nothing but bright sunshine. MeteoSwiss measures 8 hours and 55 minutes of sun here that day, the most that is possible. Above the station stands the Kulmhotel with its two observatory domes. It is considered the highest hotel in the Swiss Alps.
We enjoy the view. According to the Gornergrat Railway, 29 four-thousanders can be seen from here. To the south-east stand Monte Rosa with the Dufourspitze, at 4634 metres the highest summit in Switzerland, and next to it the Liskamm. Below lies the Gorner Glacier. After the Great Aletsch Glacier it is the second largest glacier in Switzerland.
On Gornergrat we meet an FPV drone pilot, on YouTube @VISMAFPV. With his long-range drone he flies a 17-kilometre loop from here.
To the frozen Riffelsee
From Gornergrat we walk down to the Riffelsee. The trail is already closed, and there is snow on the ground. A signpost is taped over with barrier tape. We walk the trail anyway. On the way Nicolas flies another round with the drone. Below it lie the Riffelsee and the Rotenboden stop of the Gornergrat Railway.
We take lots of photos, including of ourselves in front of the Matterhorn. Zermatt Tourism calls it the most photographed mountain in the world. The Matterhorn had to disappear from the Toblerone packaging in 2023. Because the manufacturer Mondelez moved part of the production to Slovakia, the packaging was no longer allowed to show the mountain under the Swissness rules. On the way we have a picnic with a view of the Gorner Glacier and down to the Riffelsee. There are ready-made sandwiches from Coop. In the sun it is warm, although the weather station on Gornergrat measures barely above zero degrees around midday.
Nicolas has packed his swimming trunks on purpose. After the warm walk in the sun he wants to cool off with a quick dip in the mountain lake in front of the Matterhorn. But the Riffelsee is already frozen. It lies at 2757 metres, is about 100 metres long and has no outflow. On Gornergrat the temperature never rose above zero from 21 to 24 October, and on the 24th it fell to minus 12 degrees.
So we simply enjoy the view from the frozen mountain lake to the Matterhorn, which is reflected in the ice. For photos we also step onto the ice. It holds surprisingly well. In the middle, though, the ice is thinner, and when we stand there a few cracks appear. So we move back a little towards the shore.
Over Riffelberg to Riffelalp
From the lake we walk on towards Riffelberg. The way leads over snowy meadows, but the snow is only about 15 centimetres deep. In his high hiking boots Nicolas just about gets through fine. Julian has low hiking shoes and soon has snow in his socks. Mark Twain also walked up to Riffelberg, in August 1878. In his book «A Tramp Abroad» he turns it into an expedition of 205 members, counting the cows. Riffelberg is home to the Riffelhaus. According to the hotel, it was built in 1853 and 1854 and was then the highest hotel in Europe with its 18 beds, and it was from here that climbers first reached the Dufourspitze on 1 August 1855.
From Riffelberg we walk on to Riffelalp. This trail is closed too, and for good reason. On the shady slopes there is some snow, already frozen and very slippery. On one side of the path the ground drops away steeply all along. We try to keep one foot on a patch without snow that does not slip. Most of the time it works, but a few times it gets dangerous. We get down safely. On the way we photograph the Matterhorn behind the yellow and orange larches, and it is beautiful.
When we reach Riffelalp, the sun is already setting. So from there we take the Gornergrat Railway back down to Zermatt.
In Zermatt we stroll through the village a little and look at the many shops selling luxury watches. It seems to us as if all the most expensive Swiss brands are here. On Bahnhofstrasse, for example, there are boutiques of Rolex, Omega, TAG Heuer and Zenith.
After that we make a detour to the Fuchs bakery. Nicolas buys a Zermatter Bergführerbrot, a mountain guide’s loaf, 400 grams for 13 Swiss francs. A third of it is fresh apples from the Valais, along with almonds, sultanas, figs, pear brandy, cocoa and cinnamon, and it is vegan. According to the bakery, the loaf is made by hand and takes more than 24 hours to produce. No extra water goes in. The fresh fruit keeps it moist. From the proceeds of the loaf the bakery donates 1000 francs every year to the Young Mountain Guides Foundation, which supports children and young people in mountain and snow sports and future mountain guides in Zermatt. The loaf tastes really good.
In the village, the Matterhorn Museum Zermatlantis displays the rope from the first ascent. On 14 July 1865 Edward Whymper and six companions became the first to stand on the Matterhorn. On the descent four of them fell to their deaths, and the rope to the other three broke. According to Zermatt Tourism, the rope maker Mammut made an identical hemp rope in 2005. It holds only about 300 kilograms, far too little for four men.
We take the train to Täsch and from there the replacement bus to Visp. The bus is faster than planned, and we have to wait an hour for our train. So we go to the McDonald’s, five minutes from the station. Nicolas has a McVeggie with fries and a Coke. Then our 6:54 pm train to Bern is cancelled because of a faulty door. Luckily a good half hour later, at 7:27 pm, there is a train straight through to Basel without a change.
Very tired and worn out we arrive in Basel, after a very full day in the most beautiful Swiss scenery.
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