Gabelhorn (3136)

From Grächen with cable car to Hannigalp (2120), then along the high route, past the Wannihorn to Pt 2599, down to Heidnische Tossu (2512), partly on ski slopes. Many wildflowers still in bloom. Then by more ski slopes to a flat area at 2750 where an unused ski slope goes directly south and after 600 meters meets a derelict ski warden hut at 2890.  There the ski routes end and the ascent through meter-sized blocks begins. A tedious scramble (T3+) gets to the Gabelhorn pass (3052). Avoid going too far right to the Platthorn (3246) with its obvious radio tower.  From the pass you can look down to a jewel of a lake with the ice just breaking at this time of year.  A further scramble up the blocks to the north (T4-) gets almost to the summit.  The true summit on an adjacent block, with its cross and summit book, was a few meters away, but inaccessible to us without technical equipment.

Views to the north showed the Aletsch glacier and the Rhone valley; to the east the Saas valley and the Weissmies (4017) beyond; to the south around the side of the Platthorn: Gugla (2277) and Grächen's Breithorn (3178); and to the West, the Matter valley with the Weisshorn (4506) and the range to its north, standing over St. Niklaus.

We came back down the way we went up, mostly. There were two young chamois on the platform at 2750, grazing on what seemed to us only rocks. After an hour more we were at Stafel (2210), but the Hannigalp cable car had closed at 4:30 pm so we hiked down through the forest to the Seeli (little lake) (1720) and thence to Grächen (1615).