Bernese Oberland Haute Route - West

Day 1: Rendezvous at the group hotel in Aigle, near Martigny

KE Land Only package services begin with dinner and overnight at the hotel. Meals included. Dinner (D).

Day 2: Transfer to the Col du Pillon, cable car to the Sex Rouge and trek to the Cabane Prarochet

After breakfast at our hotel, we have a transfer 45 minutes to the Col du Pillon (1546m). From here, we take the cable car to the Sex Rouge (2940m) and start our trek. A short downhill section leads onto the Glacier de Tsanfleuron, where we will have a brief introduction to the techniques of glacier travel and the use of crampons. We then make the 2-hour ascent to our first peak, the Summit des Diablerets (3209m), a great viewpoint. We descend, intitially by the same route and continue to our overnight stop at the Cabane de Prarochet (2555m). 5 to 6 hours walking. 300 metres of ascent. 700 metres of descent. (B,D)

Day 3: Trek via the Arpelistock to the Gelten Hut

Today we descend to the Col du Sanetch (2252m) on the watershed between the river Rhine (flowing north to the North Sea) and the river Rhone (heading south to the Mediterranean). From the pass, we climb a long shale ridge, the Arete d’Arpille, with great views of Mont Blanc and the 4000-metre peaks of the Swiss Valais Alps. As we gain height, the path becomes rocky, clinging to the south-west slopes of the Arpelistock (3035m). It takes us 3 hours to reach this summit, another good viewpoint, with the Alps of the Eastern Oberland now coming into view. From the summit, we descend in a north-westerly direction towards a small col which we cut off and head for the Gelten Glacier. Avoiding the ice on the left of the glacier, we reach a second col at 2685 metres after a section of rocky down scrambling. We descend into the tranquil Furggetali Valley, crossing scree slopes and the remnants of on old glacier, to reach the Gelten Hut. This small and friendly establishment has good food, draught beer, showers and hot and cold running water. 8 to 9 hours of walking, on rocky terrain with little sign of a path at times. 970 metres of ascent. 1035 metres of descent. (B,D)

Day 4: Cross the Col des Audannes to the Cabane des Audannes

After an early breakfast, we leave the hut on a well-marked trail taking us into the Rottal Valley. The ground is level to start with and there is a massive waterfall on the left. We then climb a steep grassy moraine on a good trail, branching off at around 2300 metres at a large rock marked Col du Brochet. Crossing a river, we climb via scree slopes and rocky terraces to the Gelten Glacier at about 2600 metres. In suitable conditions, there is the opportunity to climb the glacier to the summit of the Geltenhorn (3065m). We descend via the same route and cross to the ‘Rhone side’ of the watershed. Beyond the Col du Brochet, we descend rocky terrain to the Grand Gouilles and from here pick up a good path that steeply zig-zags up to the Col des Audannes. The final ascent to this pass is aided by some fixed ropes and ladders. We then drop down for close to 400 metres through some amazing geological terrain to the Cabane des Audannes. This is a modern, private hut, owned by local villagers. It has cold water only and no showers. 7 to 8 hours walking. 1250 metres of ascent. 730 metres of descent. (B,D)

Day 5: Climb the Wildhorn and overnight at the Wildstrubel Hut

This is the big day and an early start is essential! We leave the hut by a short descent, which takes us across the north side of the Lac des Audannes and gives us easy access to a steep zig-zag trail that leads to the Col des Eaux Froides (2640m). From here, we leave all beaten trails behind and scramble up low-angle limestone slabs until we reach the glacier at about 2900 metres. Donning our crampons, we ascend easy glacial slopes and reach the rocky summit of the Wildhorn (3247m) after around 3 hours from the hut. Great views yet again! We descend the glacier in a north-easterly direction to an exit point at around 2800 metres. From here, we descend into the ‘Valley of the Rocks’ and this, eventually, leads us to join the main marked trail coming down from the Schnidejoch. A short respite from the rough terrain follows, with the beautiful Lake Tenchet below us, before a series of limestone pavements demand our attention once again. Finally, we reach the Plan des Roses (2350m) and have a section of straightforward walking, before a final ‘sting in the tail’ in the form of the 400 metre pull up to the Wildstrubel Hut (2791m). Here, we get a warm welcome (and a well-earned beer) from Heinz, the guardian of the hut. This hut has washing facilities but no drinking water. 9 to 11 hours of walking. 1200 metres of ascent. 900 metres of descent. (B,D)

Day 6: Via the Glacier de la Plaine Morte and the Wildstrubel to the Cabane Lammeren

We have a short climb up to the Weisshorn Pass, followed by a descent to the mass of ice known as Plaine Morte. Putting on crampons, we cross this huge flat glacier for close to 4 kilometres, to the base of the south-west ridge of the Wildstrubel (3242m). The climb follows a good trail on shaley terrain to the summit. Time to relax on the summit and take in the view. An hour further on sees us on our second summit of the day, the Mittlerer Gipfel (3242m). From this summit, we make an exciting descent of the crevassed Wildstrubel glacier, leading to moraine on the left bank. We pick up a good trail which takes us down to the ‘new’ Lammeren Hut – the old one (70 metres away) was destroyed by a winter avalanche in 1990. This is a lovely place to relax, with a good sun terrace and views of the Balmhorn and Bietchhorn. 6 to 7 hours of walking. 650 metres ascent. 850 metres descent. (B,D)

Day 7: Descend to Sunnbeil, cable car to Kandersteg, train to Aigle

A long but easy walk takes us down towards Kandersteg and the end of our journey. First descending to Lammerenboden and passing close to the Gemmipass (2322m), we continue along the west shore of the Daubensee, At the northern end of this lake, we pick up a 4WD trail which takes us to a coffee stop at the Schwarenbach Berg Hotel. From here, we descend further to the wooded area of Arven Wald and the grazing pastures of the Spittelmatte. An easy ascent then leads to the cable car at Sunnbeil and we take this ride down to the floor of the Kandersteg Valley, with impressive rock faces on all sides. From the pretty green village of Kandersteg, we take the train back to Aigle and our hotel. 4 to 5 hours of walking and 3-hour train ride. 560 metres of descent. (B,D)

Day 8: Services end after breakfast

The KE Land Only package services end after breakfast. (B)