Steghorn, Wildstrubel & Wildhorn: Glacier Trekking in the Bernese Alps

While I had done a few alpine climbs before, I never did one where I had to walk over a proper glacier. So far, it had either been without snow at all, or the glaciers were that far gone already that I could just walk over it. For a long time I had it in my mind to start doing those glacier treks, but a few things were holding me back: the gear that I would've had to purchase, a course that I would've had to visit to learn the handling and the guided tours that I would've had to join, because I didn't know anybody doing those climbs. Everything taken together, it simply was too much of an expense for me. During my hiking guide training however, I met Alex, who does a few alpine climbs every year and he asked me if I wanted to join in on an easy one this summer. As the date of the tour fell exactly into my summer holidays, I simply had no excuse to say no. :) Fortunately, he also was able to lend me some stuff, so I only had to buy the crampons and a harness. The plan was to try our luck on the Steghorn, the Wildstrubel and the Wildhorn, three peaks over 3000 meters within four days in the heart of the Bernese Alps. Being a bit nervous, but full of anticipation, the time had finally come in the middle of July and if you want to know how my very first glacier trek turned out, then keep on reading. :)

Day 1: Steghorn

Meeting up in Leukerbad at around 9 am, I had to get up at 5 o'clock, to catch the very first train in the morning. In Bern, I met Miguel, another friend from my hiking guide course and unfortunately right there, the train had some technical difficulties, resulting in a 15 minute delay. Therefore missing the bus to Leukerbad, we arrived half an hour later than planned. Alex and his childhood friend Jonas, which was joining in as well, were already waiting for us and without any further delay, we headed to the cable car that took us to the Gemmipass. Lucky us, the weather forecast for today was sunshine only and the 30 minutes delay, for now, wasn't too much to worry about. Our first goal was the Lämmeren hut, which was in sight from the Gemmipass already. Starting our adventure shortly after 10 o'clock, we walked along a wide mountain plateau at first.

View towards the Lämmeren hut. It was the perfect terrain to have a chat about what we all have been up to since our course had ended :)

At the end of the plateau, the ascent to the hut was awaiting and as we didn't want to waste too much time, we made our way up there without taking a break or slowing down our pace. Arriving at the hut, we decided to leave some things behind that we didn't need for our climb to the Steghorn and using the opportunity, we also took the time to strengthen ourselves with a small snack. Eventually leaving the Lämmeren hut behind, we headed directly into the lovely Lämmeren valley, following the official hiking trail for a while.

In the mountain wall towards the left, the Leiterli can already be spotted :)

Soon enough however, we turned left and started to walk along an unofficial trail towards the so called Leiterli. While we hadn't known what was awaiting us exactly, we were happy to see that the path was well made and that the Leiterli, which basically was kind of a natural stairway, seemed to be absolutely doable. Coming upon the bottom of the Leiterli, it still looked fairly easy, but because there was a slight chance of rockfall, we decided to put our helmets on. Once everyone was ready, we began our climb and while there even were some chains in between to hold on to, the scramble itself wasn't too difficult and we all made it up safe and sound.

Alex and Miguel heading up the Leiterli

Rocks, debris, snow and a lovely view awaited us at the end of the climb and while we enjoyed the surroundings for a moment, we also had to figure out where we had to go next. There was no path anymore, but looking into the distance, we could see some cairns indicating the way. Among the thousands of rocks, it wasn't that easy to spot all of them and it took us a moment to find out where the way was going through exactly. Not surprisingly, it led further upwards and right into one of the steepest slopes of the day. :)

And off we go... :)

Walking over the beautiful barren land, we slowly headed towards two massive rocks with a gap residing in between. Reaching the said gap about 15 minutes later, we stepped onto the other side and as we took a look back, enjoyed another fantastic view that by now already included almost the whole Wildstrubel area.

Only the Wildstrubel itself can't be seen on here. The peak was to the right side of this picture, just next to that vast patch of snow

Fortunately, the next slope wasn't as steep as the one before, but the way still knew only one direction: upwards. :) The underground didn't change much either and remained a mixture of snow, debris and bigger rocks, as we kept well away from the Steghornglacier to our left. Keeping a steady pace, the peak of the Steghorn came closer and closer and with it the decision, if we wanted to go all the way to the summit or if we turned around before. As we were about to cross over the Steghornglacier during the descent, we still had to do some practice on what we had to do if one of us fell into a crevasse, as neither Miguel nor I had any training in that before. And then of course, there was the way back to the Lämmeren hut, which would take quite some time as well. Due to the delay in the morning, we were a bit behind our schedule, but after a short talk, we all agreed that there was enough time to include the summit as well.

Just an impression from along the way. :) Looking towards the peak of the Steghorn

Continuing our walk upwards, the scenery became more and more impressive and when we eventually reached the top of the Steghorn, a breathtaking 360° panorama met our eyes. Alex announced a 10 minute break, which was almost a bit short for all the things we had to do. Well, in the end, we stayed around 20 minutes and even that was barely enough to enjoy the view, eat lunch and put on our harness. :)

Despite the sunshine, it was decently cold on the peak, due to the rather strong wind up there

Staying longer wasn't really an option though and so we started to walk down a snowy slope until we reached the edge of the Steghornglacier.

The view during the descent was just insane! You can see the Steghornglacier right in front of us

Before we stepped onto the glacier however, Alex gave us a well needed introduction into the crevasse rescuing techniques. Fortunately, the chance that one of us was falling into a crevasse on the Steghornglacier was rather low, as there apparently weren't that many. But safety always comes first and so we listened for about half an hour what Alex had to say. Feeling ready afterwards, we put on the rope that Alex had prepared and one by one ventured out onto the glacier. As it had snowed just a couple days ago, there was no ice to be seen and therefore we had decided to not put on our crampons. That was certainly the right decision, as the snow was soft from the sunshine and made for easy walking. Alex led the way and with some distance, Jonas, Miguel and I followed. The walk in that first part was nothing short of amazing: the whiteness of the snow, the high mountains around us, the blue sky, the solitude, the silence, it simply was phenomenal. :)

With a big smile on my face and a heart full of joy I walked over that glacier :)

The scenery changed once we had crossed the plateau and started to descend, the new panorama however, was just as gorgeous as the one before. :) Alex led us safely to the end of the glacier and while we took a short break to hand him back the rope, I concluded that that had been the best possible start into my glacier trekking career. :)

The Bernese Alps at its very best :)

Back on familiar terrain, we were once again walking over a mixture of snow, rocks and debris, while always looking out for the next cairn, to make sure we were still on the right way.

By now however, the way was more or less obvious :)

Walking around the Lämmerenhorn, we also had a closer look towards our goal for tomorrow, the Wildstrubelglacier and the Wildstrubel itself. Eventually, coming upon the bottom of the Wildstrubel valley, we came across an unofficial path, which brought us all the way back to the Lämmeren hut. It had been a long day already and although the walk to the hut was super lovely as well, the few short ascents in between were rather strenuous. :)

Arriving at the Lämmeren hut for a second time today :)

Being back at the hut around 5 o'clock, we checked in for the night at first, before we put away our stuff in our room. Afterwards, Jonas headed to a nearby lake for a swim, while Miguel, Alex and I sat down to celebrate our successful first day with a beer. :) Jonas joined in as well after his swim and because it was a bit late already, we soon had to relocate to the dinner table. The food and the mood were good and around 9 o'clock we headed to bed, tired from a long, but absolutely fantastic day.

Day 2: Wildstrubel

Another reason for the early bedtime the day before was that we had to eat breakfast today already at 5 o'clock. If you do alpine climbs, this is just normal however and so we sat down to eat something, even though we weren't that hungry. As the Wildstrubel is a very popular destination for glacier treks, three other groups that had the same goal were at the breakfast with us. Naturally, either of the groups had their own timetable and so we all left the hut separately. Our start was at 6 o'clock, a bit later than intended, as we adjusted our crampons first, doing that rather in the warm hut, than at the cold glacier. :) Cold was what we had expected anyway, but when we stepped outside, we were quite surprised that it actually was pretty warm. Of course, that made the start into the day a bit easier. :) Taking the same trail as yesterday, we headed around the Lämmerenhorn and once more into the Wildstrubel valley. The turnoff towards the Wildstrubel appeared soon enough, indicated by a bridge, which we used to cross over a glacial stream. As we had seen the bridge during yesterday's descent, we for once were in no need to look out for any cairns. :)

Alex and Miguel in the heart of the Wildstrubel valley

While a maze of rocks and debris awaited us after the bridge, the way through there was perfectly clear as well. First, because it simply was impossible to get lost amid the thousands of cairns and second, because we could see two of the other groups just ahead of us, being also still on their way to the tongue of the Wildstrubelglacier. Reaching the said tongue at around a quarter past 7, it was about time to rope up and put on our crampons. Like yesterday, there was no ice to be seen, but as the snow on the glacier was really hard and we had to ascend a super steep slope, there was no way to do it without the crampons. As it was the very first time walking with them, I was a bit surprised how easy it went. The spikes were giving me a good hold and I had no problem ascending. Alex once again was leading the way, today however navigating was a bit easier for him, as there were plenty of traces in the snow already. Nevertheless, he opted to add some additional serpentines, which made the steep ascent a bit less strenuous.

As you can see, we weren't the only ones heading up or down the Wildstrubel :)

So, in reality, the Wildstrubel isn't a single peak, but a total of three peaks with pretty much the same height. Interestingly, they are rather far apart from each other and earlier on, we already had decided to skip the popular Mittelgipfel. As we had planned to descend on the other side of the official Wildstrubel summit, the Mittelgipfel would have been quite a detour. Therefore, we didn't turn right, once we had the steepest part of the ascent behind us, but kept walking more or less straight ahead towards our goal.

Although the slope had leveled off quite a bit by now, the plateau that we had to cross over to get to the summit wasn't the flattest ever :)

Being finally in the heart of the Wildstrubelglacier, the walk once again turned into pure pleasure: the views, the blue sky, the vast plateau, hearing only our crampons on the hard snow and nothing else, to me it was glacier trekking at its very best. :) Fortunately, also the Wildstrubelglacier doesn't have too many crevasses and as there still were traces in the snow to follow, Alex led us safely over the plateau and to the bottom of the final ascent. That last slope wasn't a challenge anymore and before long we had reached the big cross that marked the top of the Wildstrubel.

The official peak is actually just one meter higher than the two others. :) This was the view towards the Pennine Alps...

Glad that Alex refrained from announcing another ten minutes summit break, we were able to enjoy the absolutely fantastic panorama for the next half an hour. :) Only the wind was a bit cold and kept us moving around the wide peak, as to sit down wasn't as comfortable as we would have liked.

...and this the view towards the lowlands

Well, the wind was the only minor nuisance, as otherwise our time on the Wildstrubel was an absolute highlight. And lucky us, the next highlight was just waiting around the corner. From the top, we already could see the magnificent plateau of the Glacier de la Plaine Morte and that was exactly where we were heading to. :) At first though, a longish descent was ahead of us and as the sunshine in the meantime had softened the snow, we decided to pack away our crampons. For the first few steps, that didn't seem to be a good idea, but already a couple meters below the summit, the going got significantly better, also because the slope turned out to be mostly free of snow. As Jonas had decided to keep his crampons on, he walked on the snow as best as it was possible, while the rest of us descended through the debris. Things got even easier once we came upon the unofficial trail that leads up to the Wildstrubel from the Fluhsee hut and when we eventually reached a wide part without any snow at all, Jonas took his crampons off as well.

 For the best part of the descent, we were overlooking the Glacier de la Plaine Morte and the panorama we got in that hour was just unbelievable...

Down and down we went and shortly after a bigger group had passed us on their way up, we arrived at a prominent ledge. Turning right at the ledge, we started to walk along the mountainside and did that on a path that alternated between snow and rocks. Where there was snow however, it was completely frozen, making it super difficult to follow the tracks in it. Where there were rocks, there were only big and loose ones, making the walk in those parts just as challenging. That we had to pass two ascending couples right in the most difficult part of the day, also didn't make things easier. :) Fortunately, a bit further along, we were able to take a short cut over some loose debris and eventually had left the worst behind us.

This picture was taken above the ledge, when the descent was still simple and pleasant :)

Seeing the unofficial path going further along the mountainside, we knew it was about time to take a left turn, in order to end up at the glacier and not at the Fluhsee hut. Scanning the landscape, we were able to spot some cairns in the distance and once more started to follow them. Fortunately, there were again plenty and as the going in general was much easier than before, we dared to take a look back and only then realized how steep the descending slope actually had been. :) Well, the further down we came, the more it leveled off and mostly walking over big rocks and the odd patch of snow, we eventually arrived at the bottom and stood in front of the glacier.

Such an impressive glacier! Our entry point was far on the left side

Fortunately, there was enough time for a break before the glacier crossing and so we sat down to rest for a while. It actually was that nice, we could have stayed there for a couple hours, but Alex had something against it, as he wanted to get to the other side of the glacier as soon as possible. There were two reasons: first, the longer the day, the softer the snow, the more strenuous the crossing. Second, there also was a minimal chance of a thunderstorm in the afternoon and preferably we wanted to be in the hut by then. Of course, he was absolutely right and before long, we had roped up once again and ventured out onto the glacier. Naturally, we had seen from afar that the plateau was vast, but how vast exactly, we only realized when we began to walk over it. While we did a small curve in the beginning, the walk afterwards was pretty much straight ahead to the other side. All in all, that took us about an hour and 15 minutes, covering around four kilometers in distance. Wow!

A picture taken somewhere in the middle of nowhere :)

Overall, the crossing was perfectly fine, but got a bit tedious towards the end, as the soft snow didn't hold our weight anymore and we constantly were sinking in. The views however, easily made up for the additional effort, as the plateau and its surrounding mountains were just beautiful to look at. Once more, Alex led us without any problems over the glacier and when we finally arrived on the other side, we headed to a viewing point a bit higher up where we took a well-deserved longer break.

Taking a look back to the Wildstrubel. 10 minutes later the peak was covered in clouds... :)

Once we had rested enough, we made our way from the viewing point to the official hiking trail just above us and did that under a now cloudy sky. After the intense sunshine on the glacier however, we absolutely didn't mind some shadow. :) Coming upon the trail, we took a right turn towards the Wysshornlücke and started to walk along a narrow path full of snow and rocks. Even for us hikers, the conditions on that path were far from perfect, so we were quite surprised to see some fresh mountain bike tracks in the snow and wondered, who was crazy enough to ride a bike through there. :)

Well, looking at the landscape, we weren't so sure if it was a fun ride... :) This was the view during our ascent towards the Wysshornlücke

Before long, the steepness of the slope intensified and slowly we made our way up to the Wysshornlücke. Being tired enough from everything before, we just wanted to bring the steep ascent behind us, but when at last we were standing on the Wysshornlücke, we had to realize that the ascent wasn't over yet. :) Well, fortunately, the trail led further upwards only for a few more minutes, an exposed section with ropes giving us a final rush of adrenaline, before the ascent finally was over and we started to walk downwards. Our last goal of today, the Wildstrubel hut, was in full view by now and arriving there about 10 minutes later, we were happy that the second day had ended successful as well. :)

The Wildstrubel hut is the smaller building to the right side of the picture

The hut itself was an older one, but super lovely as it was renovated not so long ago. Unfortunately, the surroundings were a bit less lovely, as there were some huge cable car masts just next to the hut disturbing the otherwise beautiful view. Well, today it didn't really matter. As the sun had disappeared behind the clouds and the wind was going fairly strong, it wasn't exactly the best weather to sit down on the terrace. Instead, we sat down inside for beer, cake and coffee. :) Afterwards, there even was enough time for a nap, before eventually dinner got served. Ten minutes after we had started eating, Philip arrived. Being a longtime friend of Alex as well, he spontaneously had decided to join in for our trip to the Wildhorn tomorrow. As he had been working today and had had a rather long journey to the Iffigenalp, it was a surprise to see him that early. Well, he told us that it had taken him only one and a half hours from the alp to arrive at the hut, whereas normally it would take around three and a half... Wow, crazy! Eating dinner all together, we then went to bed early again, as the forthcoming night was about to be even shorter than the one before...

Day 3: Wildhorn

Breakfast was set for 4 am and even though getting up was kinda hard, we all sat down together to eat something. The departure itself was planned for 5 o'clock, but when we were all set and done at ten to five, we put on our headlamps, said goodbye to the Wildstrubel hut and were on our way. Like yesterday, we had thought it would be cold outside, but again, it was that warm that we all had to take off a layer about ten minutes into the descent. :)

T-shirt time at 5 in the morning. :) The Wildhorn is the mountain in the back to the left with the glacier below the peak. Quite a way to go yet :)

We also had thought that a long and strenuous descent down to the Rawilpass awaited us, but actually it wasn't that bad. The slope leveled off sooner than expected and what ensued was a lovely walk over a wide mountain plateau. Seeing the full moon going down ahead of us and the sun rising for another beautiful day behind us, we soaked up that wonderful early morning atmosphere and were glad that for once it didn't go either up or down.

If only every dawn would be as lovely :)

Coming upon the Rawilpass, we took a left turn and followed a similar path to the Plan des Roses. There we stayed for a few minutes, basically only to admire the gorgeous mirroring of the mountains in the small lake. :)

Truly a fantastic sight to behold!

Turning right at the lake, we continued to walk straight ahead for a while, before the going got tougher again. Partly that was, because the ascent to the Schnidejochpass had started, but mostly because the trail went along a vast mountainside full of karst. While being stunning to look at, the walk over it was quite tricky: with plenty of holes in the rocks and the razor-sharp edges of the karst itself, we had to be absolutely careful where we placed our hands and feet. Additionally, the slope we were in was pretty steep and so, our pace was obviously a bit slower than before. :)

Those karst landscapes are just impressive!

Fortunately, the rather strenuous ascent was rewarded with some additional views, as the Pennine Alps and the lovely artificial lake of Rawil made their appearance along the way. Up and up we went and when we just had walked around a longer bend, the view finally also opened up towards the Wildhorn mountain range and the Schnidejochpass. It was the perfect spot for a longer break, since we had been walking for over two hours already.

A picture taken somewhere in that longish bend. The Schnidejochpass was still hiding around the corner :)

When we eventually set out again, we soon came upon the Lac de Téné. Right there would have been the possibility of a shortcut to the Wildhorn, but looking at the terrain, we decided without stopping that it wasn't worth it. Instead, we continued towards the Schnidejochpass and while it already had been pretty hot before, the trail now led into the shadow of the towering mountain to our right and suddenly it was cold, colder even than at our start at 5 in the morning. :) But, as the slope was steep and the heart was pumping, we only put on some additional layers once we had reached the pass. On the pass itself, the wind was blowing strong and although the views on both sides were super lovely, it wasn't too inviting to stay there. That suited our intention to be on the glacier as soon as possible perfectly fine and so we started our descent on the other side right away.

The view from the pass back to where we had ascended from. At the horizon you can see the mighty Pennine Alps

While I had expected to be on the glacier shortly after the pass, we first had to descend for another 25 minutes until we finally reached the tongue. Apparently, the glacier had been bigger and higher in the past, making access a bit more difficult nowadays. All in all, it had taken us about three and a half hours to get there, much too long to have our mission fulfilled, to be on the glacier when the snow was still hard.

The Chilchliglacier is unfortunately not what it used to be...

Nevertheless, we all wanted to give it a try. At first however, we had to find some water for Jonas, as he had none left. One should expect enough water at a glacier, but the only thing we found were a few frozen puddles and after some hesitation, he cracked the ice of a bigger one and filled up his two bottles. Putting on the rope and our crampons, we eventually set out and started to walk upwards on a fairly steep slope. For the first time, we also could see the ice below the snow and because the best part of the beginning was still in the shade, the crampons were a good help. Once we were out of the shade, an even steeper part up to a snowy ledge was just ahead of us. It looked kinda tricky from below, but we had no other choice, as it was the only possible way to get from the Chilchliglacier to the Wildhornglacier. Slowly climbing upwards, some deep tracks left in the snow by other trekkers were really helpful in not losing the footing. Turning left at the end of the slope, we walked along the narrow ledge, taking our time there, as we didn't want to risk a fall. Eventually overcoming that obstacle, the view to the other side opened up and we took a short break to admire the scenery.

Should have eaten a snack instead of taking a picture... :)

While the Wildhornglacier had been more or less connected with the Chilchliglacier in the past, that connection isn't there anymore and big rocks had taken over that area. Cairns once more started to lead the way and because we didn't take off our crampons, we tried to keep to the snowy parts as much as possible. Unfortunately, there simply weren't that many and so my newly bought crampons got their ultimate test. To walk on rocks with crampons was just like a walk on eggshells and not to mention the terrible sound that came with it. :) As we had taken off the rope for that section, we all made our own way over the rocks, until at last, we had reached the beginning of the Wildhornglacier. Roping up once again, we stepped onto the snow and started to walk up a seemingly endless slope. All I could see was a white horizon and because I had forgotten to eat something at the last break, that slope turned into quite a challenge. I was thirsty, I was hungry, my legs were tired from the long walk in the morning and it didn't help either that the pace up the hill was just a little bit too fast. Also the snow was super soft already, making every step twice as hard. All in all, that stretch was probably my least favorite of the whole weekend. :) Luckily, everything changed once that slope was behind us. Suddenly the peak of the Wildhorn appeared and just seeing our goal up ahead gave me some newfound strength and motivation.

Not that much left to go. :) If you look closely, you can see a group coming down from the summit

We also took a short break and eating a snack and drinking some water had rarely felt so good. :) Moving on, it helped as well that the next part was a bit flatter, but the relief was only short-lived, as before long the final ascent was awaiting. Steeper than anything before, Alex again led us upwards in serpentines, trying to make it as easy as possible. Nevertheless, we had to take a few stops in between, as ascending in the soft snow took its toll on most of us. Fortunately, also the most arduous ascents come to an end and eventually reaching a saddle below the peak, the worst was finally behind us. Taking off the rope, we turned left and five minutes later had arrived on top of the Wildhorn. Funnily enough, the summit was marked with a cairn only, while a nameless neighboring peak had a huge cross on it. Wouldn't Alex have known where the actual summit was, we would've walked to the wrong one. :)

So, you might wonder if the view was worth the whole effort? Oh, hell yeah, it definitely was! :)

Even though there already were some clouds in the sky, the panorama still was absolutely fantastic. Sitting down for lunch, we enjoyed the good weather, the views and the solitude. Basically, the solitude was the one advantage of arriving late, as we had the summit all to ourselves. :) Philip and I decided to also visit the neighboring peak, which was reached over a rocky ridge. It looked more difficult from afar than it was in the end and for a while we enjoyed the scenery from there. Once we were back on the Wildhorn, we stayed for another 10 minutes, before it was about time to descend.

The views from the Wildhorn were nothing short of incredible

Deciding to avoid the glacier on our descent as best as we could, we kept to the left side of it, where there were plenty of rocks to walk on. Naturally, that was no ground for crampons and so we had put them in our backpacks on the peak already. Rocks and vast patches of snow alternated during the next half an hour and while we slowly walked downwards, there also was enough time to enjoy the magnificent view ahead of us.

Descending with a top-notch view :)

The long slope that I had struggled with during the ascent was naturally easier to go down to, although the soft snow made the whole descent strenuous enough. Down and down we went, until we came to that ledge above the Chilchliglacier. Being aware that the snow there was soft as well, we decided to try it without crampons and just go slowly. While the ledge was still pretty tricky to navigate, the steep part afterwards was much easier, as we just walked down in the snow, next to the deep tracks that we had used during our ascent. Philip was the one who went ahead to point out all the difficult places and like that, all of us made it back onto the glacier safe and sound.

Philip leading the way down, making sure that all of us knew where we had to be careful

Knowing that there wasn't that much snow left on the Chilchliglacier and we therefore could see the few crevasses easily, we decided to keep on going without roping up. Eventually arriving back at the glacier tongue, all that was left to do now, was to head to the Wildhorn hut. Rejoining the official hiking trail where we had left it some hours ago, we soon could see the hut from far above, residing in a beautiful valley at the end of a huge moraine.

The hut is right in the middle of the picture and can be seen fairly well. :) The lake in the back is Lake Iffigen

The trail led right over that moraine and thanks to the lovely surroundings and the still shining sun, we absolutely enjoyed that last part of the descent. Arriving at the hut mid afternoon, we decided to celebrate before our check in and had some cake along with the mandatory well-deserved beer. :)

Five happy faces. :) From left to right: Alex, Philip, Jonas, Miguel and me

Afterwards, Philip left us, as he descended to the Iffigenalp and went home the same evening. As there still was plenty of time before dinner, Jonas decided to lay down in the sun, while Miguel and I got a closer look at how to rescue someone out of a crevasse. Alex introduced us to the most common technique and although there was no glacier awaiting anymore, it was nice to get a better idea of what we have to do if an accident happens. After that interesting lesson, there was time for one more beer, before we had another delicious dinner, even though we got meat loaf the second time in a row. :) Bedtime came once again early, but that only was, because we were pretty tired from the long day. :)

Day 4: Iffigen Valley

As there was absolutely no need to wake up early today, we slept in and only got up at half past 6. Wow, what a treat! :) Already yesterday, we had decided that we would only hike back to the Iffigenalp, as today's weather forecast wasn't that good and because we quite simply had done more than enough walking during the past days. :)

The Wildhorn hut in the early morning sun

So, we packed our stuff after breakfast and before long were on our way along the bottom of the valley in the direction of Lake Iffigen. The lake appeared at the end of the valley and was a beautiful sight to behold.

Lucky us that the sun was still shining, so the colors were super intense :)

While the official hiking trail led along the mountainside at first, it soon took a right turn towards the lake. Instead of going down to the shore however, the path led along it a bit higher above, giving us some good views over the lake and its surrounding mountains.

Lake Iffigen in all its glory :)

Coming to the end of the lake, the trail eventually led down to the shore and as there was a small stony beach, Jonas and Alex decided to take a bath. Miguel and I joined in as well and we all had a brief swim in the decently cold water. After three days without a shower, you can imagine how refreshing that was. :) Feeling clean and good, we continued with our descent and soon afterwards entered the stunning Iffigen valley. The path led down steadily, all the time sporting fantastic views over the whole valley and its steep mountain walls on either side.

What a last view! A fitting ending to our whole trip :)

Down and down we went until we came upon the bottom of the Iffigen valley and the hiking path turned into a wide gravel road. Walking along that road until we had reached the Iffigenalp, our adventure eventually was at an end. 25 minutes later we sat on the bus to Lenk im Simmental and it actually wouldn't be wrong to call that bus ride an adventure too, as we headed down a narrow, steep and winding mountain road. Arriving in Lenk about half an hour later, we took the next train to Spiez where we said goodbye to Miguel and after a stop-over at the Lake of Thun for lunch, it was about time to say goodbye to Alex and Jonas too. Heading home tired but happy, the conclusion that I drew from those four days in the Bernese Alps was pretty simple: glacier trekking rules! :)

Wow, what a great trip that was! The weather, the mountains, the glaciers, the company, it simply was a perfect trek. Naturally, there were times where it was difficult and strenuous, but doing alpine climbs isn't only about reaching the peaks, it's also about overcoming those situations and making the best out of it. While this was the first time on the trail with them (not counting the hikes we did in our hiking guide course), I couldn't have asked for better companions. Alex, Miguel, Jonas and Philip made this trip to what it was and I'm looking forward to join in again in the near future. Thank you guys once more for those four fantastic days! It was hore geil! :)

Highlights of the trip: the Steghornglacier, the views from the Wildstrubel and the Wildhorn, the view over Glacier de la Plain Morte and the great company

This trek is for you if:

- you've never walked over a glacier with crampons before

- you're looking for the best views over the Bernese Alps

- you want to stand on three summits over 3000 meters within three days

- don't mind walking up and down a lot :)

This trek is not for you if:

- you don't like to get up early :)

- you have no experience in alpine climbing at all

- you don't know how to read maps and navigate in the high mountains

So, usually you get a map below my blog entries with some additional information about the hike/trek and the exact route I took. As this one here isn't your everyday hike however, I decided to not post a map. If you want to do this trek by yourself, then join a guided tour, an experienced friend, or simply deal with the routes, maps and everything else by yourself. As this is an alpine climb over proper glaciers, you have to be aware of all the dangers you face (weather, crevasses, rock fall, etc.). Just because we had four days of perfect conditions, doesn't mean you will have that too. So, if you head out there, make sure you're prepared as best as you can! As usual, if something happens to you, I won't take any responsibility.