It was quite a journey to be able to capture this photo

This mountain needs little to no introduction. Sitting at 4478m, half in Switzerland and the other half in Italy, the Matterhorn is the most prominent peaks in the Alps and certainly is one of my favourite peaks. It is seen in movies, travel commercials and chocolate bars. It is one of the most iconic peaks in the world. The Hörnli Ridge has been a classic objective for climbers and mountaineers and many had braved the infamous north face.

So naturally, when my supervisor agreed to give me a week off. I started obsessively checking the weather in Zermatt across 5 different weather websites. It has long been a dream of mine to photograph the Matterhorn at sunrise, with its tip illuminated in golden sunlight. It is a simple objective but if I had learned any thing it was that simple did not mean easy. I spent days in front of my laptop researching on Google Earth and choosing several locations that potentially will be ideal for the sunrise.

Finally I caught a weather window and all the forecasts indicated clear skies in the next few days. I quickly booked buses, trains and mountain huts. My plan was to take a 7 hour bus ride at 4 A.M. from Würzburg to Zürich, then from Zürich take a train to a town called Visp then a final trail to Zermatt. Then hike 8km up a mountain to get to the hut. I knew that it would surly be an exhausting day both mentally and physically but I could’ve never foreseen how the trip would take a turn for the worst on the first day.

Barely gotten any sleep, I packed up my bag and headed to the train station to wait for the bus at 3:30 A.M.. It was a funny scene when I ran into my roommate coming back from a party the same time I headed out, good thing he was quite drunk to question my behaviour. Around 4:00 I got an email notification: the bus was delayed by 45 minutes, classic German public transportation. There I had to sit by the side of the road trying not to fall asleep. Finally the bus came, I hopped on and tried to catch some sleep.

The bus took a few detours and stopped at some places to pick other people up. I was able to get some shut-eye but I could definitely feel the sleep deprivation catching up to me. Finally we entered Switzerland, it was a bit weird to see border control within European countries.

The bus rolled into Zürich bus station at around noon. I put on my backpack and quickly hopped off the bus as I wanted to figure out how to get the the train station ASAP. It turned out that it was just a 10 minutes walk away but the tricky part was looking for the platforms. For some reason the Zürich station was very confusing to me just like the Frankfurt airport. Even thought everything was in English I was having a hard time finding the right place. After some struggle and asking a kind Swiss gentleman for directions, I was at the right platform. Swiss trains are incredibly on-time, I was definitely comparing it to the German trains.

Sat down, I was quite tired from all the transitions and the long bus ride, I told my self there was one more train ride to go and I can start hiking up mountains — which seemed a lot more attractive than sitting in a metal box.

I have the habit of checking for important belongings everytime I switch places when I am travelling — getting off trains, buses etc. I realized that I forgot to do it when I got off the bus so I started checking , passport, phone… and the wallet was not in my right pocket anymore. I thought to myself that I must had put it in a secured place like a zipper bag inside my backpack so I frantically checked all of them but it was not there. All my credit cards, debit cards, IDs were in that wallet. At this point I was quite sure that it somehow slipped out of my pocket (which was unzipped). I quickly started thinking through all the options and was panicking a little. It’s funny how everything can just go to crap in the span of half an hour.

I figured that there isn’t much I could do for now except for locking my card. Fortunately most things on the trip was prepaid, but I have yet to book any return trains and I had only 100 Euros cash with me to buy food (which will not last that long in a place as expensive as Switzerland). After some thinking I came up with a plan: I was using an online bank, which means that it basically allows one to pay without using the physical card. I can set-up apple-pay (which for some reason I had never used before) with that card and it should work in most places.

It was a bit ironic when I hopped on the last train, surrounded by the beautiful Swiss Alps but I was not in any mood to enjoy it. I told myself that what’s happened has happened and there was nothing I could do until I got internet and tried to appreciate the fact that I was where I was.

Finally the train arrived, I got off and the Matterhorn was there, looming above the village, even more majestic as I’ve seen on the internet.

The Swiss railway is Tiwan Railways’ sister railway, interesting

Following my maps, I found the trail leading up to the hut. It was a bit of a steep incline, combined with my travel fatigue and the altitude, my legs felt heavy and I was breathing quite heavily. It was good that it took my mind off the fact that I lost my wallet and I was finally able to enjoy the views.

Hiking up, the Breithorn glacier is obscured by the clouds

It took me about an hour to get to the hut. I was greeted by the lovely host Rico and her husband Phillipa, who I’ve later learned, have climbed the Matterhorn multiple times. They asked about my journey here and I told them that I had lost my wallet. Rico offered to lend to money. I kindly declined as I knew that there were still many options left before I absolutely had to go there. Right off the bat I knew that they were amazing people and I was lucky to be where I was.

View from the terrace of the hut, looking down at Zermatt village and Dufourspitze (4634m, highest peak in Switzerland) in the clounds

I don’t remember the last time I had such a fancy accommodation for such a low price (24 Swiss Francs with breakfast)

The Breithorn Glaciers are just outside my window

Connected to WiFi, I quickly set up apple pay and requested a new card. Tested with Rico and it worked. I knew that my problem was solved for now and the trip was able to continue. A huge weight was off my shoulders. Although losing my wallet did suck a lot, I tried to not let it get to me on this once in a lifetime trip. After some food and a nap, I didn’t want to waste a minute so decided to head out for a hike just to explore the area since I have yet to see the Matterhorn close-up.

I was told to follow the trail just behind the hut to get a good view of the Matterhorn so I did.

Heading away from the Hut, the sun is setting and the valley is in the shadow

After 30 minutes I cleared the tree and the views started to get ridiculous so the camera was out.

First clear view of the Breithorn (4164m)

Hohtälli and Stockhorn capped by some funny clouds

I turned the corner and there she is

My first close-up look at the Matterhorn in all her glory. The Hörnli Ridge looks spectacular

This is one of my all-time favourite trail

Although physically tired from the long of travelling, I gathered some strength and took a steep trail up the mountain to my right. However, after 2 hours of hiking up I still could not see where the trail ends and the day was getting dark so I decided to go back and come back the next day. Later I learned that this would be a 20km round trip route with more than 1500m of elevation. I was certainly not in the good state to tackle it.

It was a slow jog down the trail but I did have to watch my footing carefully as there were quite some loose rocks. I looked back at the Matterhorn one last time before turning at the bent and headed to the opposite direction. The sun was setting and the mountain ranges were slowly turning golden.

Dufourspitze slowly showing herself as the clouds started to clear up

Finally saw Dufourspitze (the peak to the left). Although it looked shorter than Zumsteinspitze (the peak to the right, still obscured by clouds)

The Zermatt valley looked extra gorgeous at sunset and I was astounded by the variety of terrains and mountain ranges surrounding this small town. There is an almost 3000m altitude difference from the bottom of the valley to the top of one of these high peaks. Looking around one sees the transitions from grasslands to skinny trees then to to high alpine and glaciers. Hiking, backpacking climbing, mountaineering, paragliding and base jumping… This truly is a place of infinite possibilities.

Coming down back to the hut, it appeared that I was the only one staying there that night. I really enjoyed the quite and Rico told me that most people would prefer staying in town where it’s more convenient (but expensive). I’m glad that I could stay away from the majority of the crowd. She then offered me some homemade cake and a cup of tea for free. I of course could not reject. They were delicious.

After some food I stayed out side and watched the sky turning pink at sunrise. Chatted again with Rico and she said she was from London. I asked how she felt about the transition between living in a metropolitan city to living in the mountains. She laughed and said living in the mountains was great. She then asked what I did and we had some interesting conversations about physics. She was genuinely curious so it great.

It was getting cold so I thanked Rico again for the cake and tea then headed back to my room. The day was a roller coaster but I was happy that everything seemed to work out for the best in the end. I set an alarm for 4 A.M. the next day to catch the sunrise and fell asleep.

Alarm went off, I gathered my strength and rolled out of bed. Changed, packed, put on my headlamp and I stepped into the darkness and started hiking up. Hiking through the woods at night alone required some courage and I would be lying if I said I was not a bit scared. I was alarmed by even just a little bit of commotion even thought I knew it was either wind or some small animals. Being used to hiking in Canada, the fear of being mauled by a bear was rooted in my mind (even thought there are no bears in the Alps).

I didn’t know how long it took as time seemed to behave weirdly when I was just in the bubble the light created by my headlamp, but I was finally out of the woods and started to see a bit of my surroundings. It was windy and cold and I couldn’t see the stars or the moon. I knew the sky must be covered with clouds and my shot at seeing the sunrise would be slim. Nevertheless, I pressed on for another hour but it appeared that the Matterhorn was completely clouded in. Disappointed, I headed back down and went back for some supplementary sleep.

When I woke up it was around 9 and it was cloudy but the sun would poke through the clouds every now an then. I decided to do this 15km loop from Zermatt to Zmutt that was recommend by Rico and get some resupplied from town. It was a lovely hike and it turned out to be a blue bird day.

Hiking down to the valley in the morning sun, I wonder where all the clouds went

Another angle of the Matterhorn looking over the village

The town of Zermatt was a bit too touristy for my liking. I was glad that I made the decision to stay in the mountain hut to avoid the crowds. Although the price I will have to pay was dropping down 800 vertical meter and climbing back up everytime I needed groceries, but I figured I could always use a little extra exercise.

The food sure was as pricey as people described. I learned that Bio meant organic.

I spent the rest of the day doing some random walking around the trails in the vicinity. Gathered the view of the Matterhorn from every possible angle, I was satisfied and started my hike up to the hut. Bag felt a lot heavier with all the groceries and it was a 30km day so my legs were a bit tired in the end.

Coming back to the hut, I indulged myself with a huge bowl of pasta and some bread with sunset on the side. It was the most delicious pasta in my life and I doubt anything would ever top it.

Luxurious Swiss Alps experience, I really was on vacation

I again went to bed early and set my usually 4 A.M. alarm. The forecast said it would be a clear day and I was quite excited about it.

I took the same route as the day before and broke through the trees at around 5. I could see the horizon started to brighten, stars were shining in the sky and I knew that this was the day.

Another hour later I could see the Matterhorn’s outline in the darkness. It was quite a surreal feeling and I stopped multiple times to take in the views. I could see climbers’ headlamps flashing on SE ridge. I wondered if they could actually see me too.

I spent another 30 minutes looking for a good spot and I found one. I went a bit off trail and sat down on a rock. It was still half an hour until sunrise. The wind was freezing cold and I could not feel my fingers fiddling with my camera.

Slowly the sky turned brighter and there was a hint of pink of the very tip of the Matterhorn. It was even more beautiful than I could have ever imagined.

the Matterhorn in the dark, half an hour before sunrise. The white spot on the left hand side is the Hörnlihütte, where most climbers start their climbs

A hint of pink on top, airplane flying by also in pink. This blue in the sky is my favourite colour.

There is it. Better than I could’ve ever imagined.

It must have also looked gorgeous from the top

First clear view of Dufourspitze(left) and Zumsteinspitze(right) together

Seconds before the sun climbs over the ridgelines

Another picture of Dufourspitze and Zumsteinspitze. The morning sun felt good on my face.

I put my camera away and enjoyed the view. I was grateful to have to opportunity to see something like this. I felt extremely lucky as high peaks like the Matterhorn are always covered in clouds due to the nature of them.

I watched as the sun slowly worked its way down the entire mountain, revealing the lower forest and the villages in the valley.

This would be the last time I saw the Matterhorn without any clouds and the first time getting a good look at the lower glaciers

Had to take a selfie with the Matterhorn. It was hard setting up my phone against a rock and of course it was out of focus.

It was difficult to leave that spot. I have seen some gorgeous sunrise but this one hands-down goes straight to the top of the list. Finally after staying there for 2 extra hours than I had planned, it was time to go down and have some breakfast as I was absolutely starving. It was a difficult descend as I kept looking back and almost tripped over loose rocks multiple times, but I managed to make it back safely for a well-deserved breakfast.

A classic mountain hut breakfast (free), I was blown away these mountain huts as I’m used to sleeping in a tent.

One of the 3 cats living at the hut. I wish I were one of them.

I went back to bed to catch some sleep and it was noon when I woke up. I felt good waking up so decided to head out again for a hike up to the famous Hörnlihütte. It would be 25km and 1800m of elevation so I moved quickly so not many pictures were taken. Sitting at more than 3200m, hiking up to the hut was harder than I anticipated as I started to feel the altitude at around 3000m. There was some good old suffering involved in the last few hundred meters but it was also a lot of fun and it was cool to see the Matterhorn so closely. It still looked hard to climb but I thought it was a bit less intimidating than looking at it from a distance. I went from “it’s crazy that people climb this thing” to “maybe it’s doable”.

Hörnlihütte at the foot of the Matterhorn, climbers will follow the ridge all the way to the summit. It usually takes 10+ hours round trip from here

I took a short break at the hut, the price for water here was ridiculous. Then mentally prepared myself for a long downhill back to Zermatt and the 800m climb back t the hut. It was a big day (almost 40km and 3000m of elevation) I was dying a bit on the uphill back to the hut. I was glad that I got to meet up with some friends visiting from New York tomorrow, let the legs rest a bit and do some regular tourist things.

It was an luxury to sleep in the next morning. After another lovely breakfast I packed up my things, cleaned the room, petted the cat and said goodbye to Rico and Phillipa (as I will be staying with my friends at another place) — my favourite hut hosts of all times and one of the best people I have ever met. They made me felt like I was at home the past 3 days and I was still blown away by the fact that they offered to lend me money when they found out that I lost my wallet. I took one last mental image of the hut and started hiking down. Legs were sore.

I picked up my friend Stella (along with two other friends or hers) from the train station and we made out way to our stay, dropped our bags and headed out to hunt for food. I had a long baguette strapped outside of my backpack (which was laughed at by my friends) so I had that with some ham for lunch. Eating is expensive here and I tried to cut cost as much as possible. If one were to eat at an actually restaurant it could usually cost around 30 Swiss Francs (which is about 50 CAD for my Canadian readers).

My friends were pretty tired from the travelling so we hung around town and spent the rest of the day walking and exploring.

I really liked everyone’s flowers outside their terrace

It definitely was a touristy town.. I was again that I stayed in the mountains.

Tons of cats out here living their best lives

As my friends went back to take a power nap and rest a bit I decided to hop on a random trail and see where it leads to. It was a quite trail and I ran into only two people. The first one was an 80-year-old local grandpa taking a nice afternoon walk and later I met Helena from Vienna. I have never been to Vienna and it always seemed like this romantic gorgeous city from the movies I’ve watched so I chatted with her about what it was like living there. Little did I know that I would be visiting 3 times before I left Europe.

A nice quiet trail with views all over, a good way to avoid the busy town

Feeling tired I decided that it was a good idea to give my legs some rest for the rest of the day so I headed back. I checked my email for any information about my lost wallet as I submitted a lost and found request but didn’t get anything.

The next two days consisted of some more touristy things: taking the train up to Gornergrat and looking at the glaciers and taking an insane cable car up the the base of Breithorn.

Breithorn viewed from another different angle

Looking at the massive glaciers that had receded hundreds of metres since 2000. There is a hut on the other side that one can get to by crossing the glacier.

This looks like an amazing camp spot, except for the thin air up here (3135m)

It’ll be nice to just be a sheep sometime

A very different angle of the Matterhorn, it looks extra pointy from here

Hiker appears small at the foot of the Matterhorn. To the left is the passage to the start of the climb.

Rare sighting of an alpine lake, looking over where I had hiked a coupe days ago (mountains in the backdrop)

Bottom of Breithorn, I started to feel the altitude (3883m), giant crevasse spamming the glaciers

The famous Matterhorn ski resort, you can summer ski here. Great views of the Italian Alps in the background.

People (can you see them?) roping up and heading up to the summit of Breithorn. It was chilly and windy up here.

Those are people, not ants or dust on your screen. The scale of this place is insane.

At the end of the day my sensory was overloaded. Days of travelling and hiking had finally taken a tool and I crawled into bed shortly after sunset. It was a great last day in Zermatt and I was glad that everything has turned out more or less just as planned.

Stella taking in the sunrise on the last morning

The Swiss Alps delivered and surpassed my expectations. Watching the Matterhorn slowly illuminated during sunrise is definitely one of the images that I will never forget. This place is a huge playground and I could spend my entire lifetime living in these mountains and never run out of things to do.

What would also stay with me forever are the people. They bring a smile to my face everytime I think about this memorable trip. This trip would not have been possible without all the kind “strangers” along the way and my friends with whom I shared some short but amazing time with.

After another couple of days travelling across Germany. I finally came back to my town and started dealing with the fact that I had lost my wallet. It was a pain to live in the town without my student card (which was in the wallet) because it gives me free bus rides. So I wrote an email to the university requesting a new one. To my biggest surprise they replied to my email with “good news, someone had found your student card and was trying to get contact you”.

Probably one of the best emails I have ever received

I then messaged Dureid (the finder) and apparently he got one to the bus and sat on my seat when he found my wallet in Milan. He told me he was doing some backpacking the the Dolomites for the next few days but would mail it back to me as soon as he could. I told him that he was god’s favourite child. I told him to take the cash that was in my wallet as my thank-you but he rejected.

A week later I got a mail and it was my wallet that was mailed from Amsterdam (it travelled to more countries than I did). I could not believe my eyes when I saw my wallet again. Dureid, wherever you are out there. Hope you are doing great.

the Matterhorn

Interlaken-Lauterbrunnen-Grindelwald (Part I)

Golden Ears Summit