Regards to all,
—B2
Hello forum members! A few of us are planning to hike from Chamonix to Zermatt next summer, and I found a great deal of relevant information on this forum so I thought I'd join. We'd be delighted to correspond with anyone who has done this trek recently or who would like to talk about trekking in Switzerland generally. We are experienced wilderness backpackers in the US but have never been to Switzerland and have not done a lot of international hiking.
to the EF, B^2!
Switzerland is very different from the States, and the Haute Route is a very different experience from the AT! There are several threads here on mountain camping; all I can say is that I have never seen a tent, or a hiker carrying a large backpack, on the Swiss trails. The overwhelming majority of hikers doing the Haute Route use the huts.
I assume that you are familiar with Kev Reynolds' Chamonix to Zermatt - The Walker’s Haute Route ; almost all trekkers use it. My site, Walkers Haute Route, Chamonix to Zermatt has useful resource links, as well as what I think is a more interesting route.
Remember the time zone difference between the US East Coast and Switzerland; you posted after midnight, Swiss time, so do not expect many responses before tomorrow!
Welcome,
http://www.chamonix.net/english/trek...route_walk.htm
I am presuming that you have already found this website for information, as a starting point. It also has links to other sites for you. The walk is considered to be a very difficult one due to the level of fitness suggested as being need for the steep uphill sections and also because even in JUly there could be unseasonable snow to deal with, along with some unstable parts. But the route will be a spectacular one for you.
A difference I have found between trekking in the USA and here, is that in the USA there can be huge, neverending distances between points of civilisation, whereas here, you are never (comparitievely) far from a village.
Welcome to the Forum.
Could we keep this Thread for 'Introduction comments and replies' and have the questions and answers to the hiking route in the Activities area where other folk looking later for the same stuff will be able to find it. Thanks guys.
Hello and welcome to this special forum
Haute route is indeed a beautiful trek, but since is quite popular, either go with agency or book your huts ahead (unless you backpack with all equipment). We are thinking about doing it in early spring ski-touring style. Definitely be prepared for glacier crossing (normal route), so either join group/hire a guide or have proper training and equipment.
It is not very demanding regarding altitude, and as mentioned you are never too far from civilization here. Better buy some advanced health insurance for high mountain rescue, rescue is very costly otherwise (and we all know Murphy's laws )
Enjoy this magnificent country's beauty!
B2,
how did the trek go? I'm planning on doing the route in August. I wonder how long it took you and what kind of mileage you did. Like you, I have a lot of experience hiking in US, but have not done the Alps. All the guide books state that it takes roughly 13 days.
I appreciate that the guide books like to play it conservative and are catering for all types, but 13-14 days seems extraordinarily conservative for a 180k hike. When I hiked the AT a few years back I averaged between 25k to 48k per day. The slowest and the most difficult being the Presidential range in New Hampshire. I was a little younger then (24 instead of 34) and I was traveling light (set up for bivy sack wild camping). But even then, I wonder if 7 to 8 days is not more realistic for the Haute Route.
I would enjoy hearing from anyone on the forum with views.
Thanks,
Mike
Please see the rest of this discussion here: Anyone done the Chamonix Zermatt walkers route?
We are experienced hikers in our early 60s and found the days to be about right. We felt challenged but never rushed, finishing most days around 3:00 PM or so with time to wander about the village or chat with other people in the mountain huts.
Thanks B2. That's a perfect reference point. Very much appreciated!
I am planning to hike the Walker's Haute Route in early July this year. I have never used a hut system before but have extensive experience in extended wilderness backpacking. I am looking for recommendations on backpacks more suitable than my large expedition pack for this trip. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
to the EF (and soon to my beloved Valais)!
Rather than specify a specific capacity of bag let us think of what you will be carrying (or rather not carrying).
If you are following Kev Reynolds' book you will be spending roughly half the nights in villages with self laundry facilities and food stores, so you will not need to carry many changes of clothes or much lunch food. Obviously no tent, no stove, no sleeping bag (though a bag liner is strongly recommended if not required). You will want to carry plenty of warm clothing and foul weather gear (I have been snowed on in mid-August).
If you are still in the planning stage you might want to have a look at my site: Walkers Haute Route, Chamonix to Zermatt . Note that I have not updated it recently, the Europaweg has been re-routed since (at least one thread on it here: Europaweg re-routing ).
Yes that is a logical method, I will have to figure out the volume of gear necessary for this type of trip. I am also well aware of the fickleness of high mountain weather and we will be prepared for cold and precipitation. Thanks.
Oh, I forgot to ask, is the snow pack heavy this year such that crampons will be necessary if you follow the trail in Kev Reynolds book? We don't intend to walk on glaciers but I am thinking about steep snow patches covering parts of the trails and passes. We will be hiking the first two weeks in July.
I am also looking for information on the Haute Route snow conditions and am wondering if it is even possible or not. All I know is that this year has less snow than last year and that last year it was pretty impassable mid June.
http://www.snow-forecast.com/resorts...2013-05-21/mid
http://www.snow-forecast.com/resorts...ts/current/mid
Whats the best way to figure this out? To call the huts? or the tourist offices?