With the Leite via ferrata done and the sun, against all expectations, still shining brightly, we headed to Imst for another short via ferrata. Imst also has the longest 'alpine coaster' in the world. So we thought: let's give the inner child in us a treat, and combine the via ferrata with a ride on the coaster.  ...

The little Madrisa Land amusement park is still deserted as we start our walk from the Madrisa cable car. The first target of the day is the Geisshorn. The summit is marked with a wooden post, a little to the west of the marked path. A nice view rewards those who make the small detour to reach it (T3-T4 depending on the exact...

For my brother's initiation into via ferrata, we picked the Aletsch via ferrata. The route circles around the Gibidum reservoir (which received its water from the Aletsch glacier) without much ascent. A good thing for my brother, since he was still recovering from the MountainMan half marathon the day before.   ----...

The Jegihorn (or Jägihorn) Klettersteig is the highest via ferrata in Switzerland, summiting at 3206 m above sea level. Still, access is relatively easy, thanks to the Hohsaas cable car, or (as we did) with an overnight stay at the SAC Weissmieshütte.   First the bad news: the difficult "Zitterpartie" variation...

Right next to the most touristic of all passes - the Great St. Bernard - there's a very scenic alpine route. It is described in the SAC guidebook "Die Klettersteige der Schweiz", with the disclaimer "more of a alpine hike than a proper via ferrata, but in return: panorama, panorama!" That's a pretty accurate summary. From the...

Above the massive ski resort of Courchevel, lies (according to the Cicerone guidebook "Via ferratas of the French Alps") "one of only a few proper mountain via ferrata's in France, and also the highest route of the country": the via ferrata de la Croix de Verdon. It is conveniently accessed with the Saulire cable car, though this...

The beautiful Cormet de Roselend pass is home to one of the most scenic via ferratas in France. There is a CAF hut, the Refuge du Plan de la Lai, conveniently located along the road at the start of the approach to the route. We spend the night there, and at 8am we set off for the Roc du Vent via ferrata. ---- The well...

With the Gotthard being the nearest location to Zürich where sunshine could be expected, it was a good opportunity to try out one of the routes in the recently published SAC guidebook "Alpinwandern/Gipfelziele Gotthard": Monte Prosa (along its south ridge) and Pizzo Fortünei. ---- It's a scary sight travelling through the...

The Tälli Klettersteig was, when it opened in 1993, the first real via ferrata in Switzerland. Through kletterportal.ch, I met up with Steffi to do this route, her first via ferrata, together. ---- The Tälli cable car starts immediately next to the Sustenpass road near Gadmen. Since you can see directly from the bottom...

Thank god for September, trying to do its best to make up for a lost summer. Another fine weekend brought the opportunity to complete a two day tour in the Göschenertal that has been on my tick list for a long time.   ---   When David and I get off the train atGöschenen, our goal for the day is already on the...

Enjoying the Monday off for Knabenschiessen, I was free to do my first solo hike in quite a while. Usually I get tempted to cover fairly epic distances on such solo hikes, when I don't have to take anybody else into account. This time however, I was still tired from a two day tour in the Göschenertal over the weekend, so I...

Another sunny September weekend gave me the chance to tick some more via ferratas off my list. I made use of an open invitation on CouchSurfing from Eloïse and Patrick, a friendly couple living in Hauteville on the shores of the Lac de la Gruyère. Together, we made our way to the most famous mountain in the area: Le Moléson....

So... my first "official" T6. As always when taking things to a new level, there is the anxiety of the unknown: "how hard will it really be?" With T6 especially, there still seems to be a lot of variation in difficulty. Sometimes it looks "just like T5, only a bit more exposed"; yet other T6 routes appear more like "bloody...

With a fabulous weather forecast and not really feeling like doing another solo hike, an event on the meetup.com group "Zürich Hike & Outdoor" headed for the Engelberger Rotstock came at the perfect time. I signed up for the opportunity to meet some new hikers and do a route that was on my wish list anyway. In a group of...

If you wanted a quiet a quiet hike on Sunday, you might as well have walked up and down Zürich's Bahnhofstrasse. There could not have been many people left in the city, so many went into the mountains to enjoy the weather!   Back in July 2013, the Rigidalstock was my first Swiss via ferrata. It's also the first one...

"Wintereinbruch" and the definite end of the alpine hiking season? I wasn't having any of that. With less snow in the Valais, I even set my sights on an easy three-thousander: Le Toûno (3018m). With a heavy rucksack prepared for all eventualities (ice axe, crampons, emergency shelter...) I arrived in Saint-Luc early on...

I had met up with Eloïse and Patrick again, my companions from the via ferrata at Le Moléson. After a night out in Lausanne, we set out in gorgeous autumn weather for Leysin. Leysin has two via ferratas, one high up on the Tour d'Ai, the other one ("Plan Praz") near the village. Due to snow higher up, we stick to the second one....

Through CouchSurfing I met up with Michaela enjoy the fabulous autumn weather, which is now lasting even into November. Michaela picked me up at the Ziegelbrücke railway station. We drove up the winding single track road to Matt, where we parked the car at almost 1100 metres altitude. ---- We follow the hiking path to...

I had to be back in Zürich by mid-afternoon, so I had to choose a relatively short hike this Sunday. I selected the Rigi Hochflue, taking advantage of the Urmiberg cable car, which was open for the final day this year. I wasn't the only one with this idea... ---- A queue isalready forming ten minutes before the cable car...

The Tichodrome via ferrata is closed each year from the start of January until the end of July to protect the birds nesting in the rock face. On the other hand, the route does remain open until the end of the year. The route follows a band in the wall that is exposed to the sun and well sheltered from snowfall. Hence it even...