Day 13: Gasenreid to Domhutte!

The Domhutte

Chris’ stomach hurt this morning and he didn’t eat much. I was wondering if he’d even be able to hike but eventually he felt a little better. By now, our anger, or any frustration we felt about the difficult trail, was taken out on Kev – the author of our guide book. We’d already grown tired of making fun of his disdain for the ski industry. We dropped to the level of speculating why he uses the word Pennine so much and that he has wet dreams about the hamlet of Jungu. Today was the last straw, because he hardly mentions the trudge up to the Europaweg and uses the word “belvedere” to describe what I can only guess is the trail. So our insults were in full force when we could actually gasp out a few words because the first 2 hours of the hike were brutal!

There's a fine belvedere over there somewhere ....

I just might not make it!

We finally reached the fine belvedere and our moods improved with the expansive views. The day before, as looked across the valley to the slopes where the Europaweg lays, I wondered where on earth the trail could possibly be – the mountainsides were so steep and rocky. It turns out that those two words also accurately describe the Europaweg. Sometimes the going was very slow because of all of the boulders we had to pick our way through. The Weisshorn, meanwhile, continued to look like one of the most bad ass mountains I’ve ever seen and a huge glacier on one of its flanks began to come into view.

We finally reached the Europahut at 3:30, after leaving Gasenreid 7 hours earlier! We held out a small hope that they would have 2 magical openings so we could stop hiking and enjoy the afternoon. So, to say we were bothered by what we found would be an understatement! First, the hut was full because someone had rented it for a private party, and every single one of the people relaxing on the deck with a beer had been flown in by helicopter! When I heard this, I had to get Chris and I out of there ASAP because we began to think of many not-so-nice things we wanted to say to the people walking around in $50 United Colours of Bennington t-shirts. This greatly diminished the Swiss Alpine Club in my esteem. I guess I thought they harbored ideals of outdoorsmanship, but when someone offers you a load of cash to turn away all hikers for a night – the very clientele you were purportedly founded to serve – well, who can blame you for accepting, right?

Second, one of the hut hostesses kindly informed us that the Europaweg was closed between there and Zermatt. We would have to detour down to the valley floor and then do the heinous hike back up if we wished to take the famed Europaweg all the way. Yeah, right. Well, as upsetting as these two pieces of news were, I believe things worked out for the better. We began hiking to the Domhutte on the trail labeled “alpine route” on our map. It quickly went from steep to SCARY! The fixed cables, hand-holds, and ladders were usually on some pretty exposed rock. The beginning was the worst because were going along a ridge or nose of rock that began to make me very nervous. I was also anxious about the trip back down the next day. Going down always seems scarier than up, for whatever reason.

About an hour into the trail, we took a break and almost decided to turn around. But we kept going and eventually left the crazy death-defying jungle gym for a boulder field which was much easier to navigate. Still, you can’t imagine our relief when the hut appeared above us. I was so happy I cheered and gave Chris a kiss. He was too exhausted to celebrate with me. The hut is on a broad slope below one of Dom’s many ridges. It is right beside an impressive glacier spilling down the ledges of the mountain. But the most impressive part was the view! The tallest mountain around, Monta Rosa, was a huge mass dominating the upper left side of the valley. Part of the mountain is in Italy, so it’s not officially the tallest mountain in Switzerland. That distinction belongs to Dom. Directly across the valley was the Weisshorn. And between that peak and Monta Rosa was the royal queen of the Huate Route – the Matterhorn. Yes, I’ve finally seen it in it’s entirety. It is an impressive pyramid rising imposingly above the valley. That mountain is really fickle though, it is often covered in clouds. I think some of the other mountains around it don’t get the proper attention for their own individual badassness. In any case, the vista from the Domhutte is probably one of the best anywhere in the world and made the strenuous hike up well worth it.

Staying in the hut was a humbling experience. While the “alpine route” had challenged our nerves and bodies, most of the people in the hut were preparing for an epic 12+ hour climb to the top of Dom in the morning. I was very impressed and have never been around so many crazy, death-defying people!

A couple of views along the Europaweg

I was so relieved to make it to the hut!