Saturday, January 01, 2011

From Jaunpass to the Baederhorn

The forecast called for hochnebel up to 1000-1500m, so we needed to start high in order to see anything. After the Christmas adventures, seeing something was definitely a must, so we traveled for a bit longer than we normally would for a day trip.

We start at the Jaunpass by walking through the campground (full of Dutch, of course, even in winter) and the small ski area, then around the corner and over the hill, past Bäderberg, and then up the hill to the saddle at Pt. 1745. Here things start getting a bit steeper, so we put on the snowshoes and then take the diretissima up the ridge. Along the top of the ridge for a bit and we reach the Bäderhorn itself. We're completely alone and can enjoy an early lunch in the warm sun with an absolutely fantastic view of the Swiss alps (Mont Blanc, Matterhorn, Wildstrubel, Bietschhorn, Jungfrau, Mönch, Eiger, etc.).
As we're getting ready to leave, the next group appears (perfect timing!). We take a more direct down the face of the mountain (the usual descent route for ski touring, but the snow is nothing like suited for that today) back down to the huts at Grosse Bäder and then back to Jaunpass. Once there we decide that there's not really enough daylight to continue on to Sparemoos, so we enjoy the sun, some cold beverages, and a plate of fries on the sun terrace of the restaurant before catching the bus back down to Boltigen and the completely packed train ride back home.

A short day of hiking, but really great weather and it was just soooooo good to be out in the sun!