The Ober Gabelhorn (4063 m) is a
mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...
in the
Pennine Alps
The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
in
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, located between
Zermatt
Zermatt () is a municipality in the district of Visp in the German-speaking section of the canton of Valais in Switzerland. It has a year-round population of about 5,800 and is classified as a town by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO).
...
and
Zinal
Zinal is a village in Switzerland, located in the municipality of Anniviers in the canton of Valais. It lies at an elevation of above sea level in the Swiss Alps in the ''Val de Zinal'', a valley running from the Zinal Glacier, north of Dent Blan ...
.
Geography
![Mountet](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Mountet.jpg)
The Ober Gabelhorn lies in the Swiss canton of
Valais
Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 ...
at the southern end of the Zinal valley (part of the
Val d'Anniviers
The Val d'Anniviers (old name in German ''Eifischtal'') is a Swiss Alpine valley, situated in the district of Sierre in Valais, which extends south of the Rhône Valley, on the northern slopes of the Pennine Alps. The valley was home to six munic ...
). It rises, together with the
Dent Blanche
The Dent Blanche is a mountain in the Pennine Alps, lying in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. At -high, it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps.
Naming
The original name was probably ''Dent d'Hérens'', the current name of the nearby D ...
(west) and the
Zinalrothorn
The Zinalrothorn (4,221 m) is a mountain in the Pennine Alps in Switzerland. Its name comes from the village of Zinal lying on the north side and from the German word ''Rothorn'' which means ''Red Peak''. When it was first climbed in 1864 the mo ...
(north), above the
Zinal Glacier
The Zinal Glacier (french: Glacier de Zinal) is a long glacier (2005) situated in the Pennine Alps in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. In 1973 it had an area of . The glacier gives birth to the river La Navisence, which runs through a cave. ...
. On the south side lies the
Zmutt Glacier
The Zmutt Glacier (german: Zmuttgletscher) is a long glacier (2005) situated in the Pennine Alps in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. In 1973 it had an area of .
See also
*List of glaciers in Switzerland
*List of glaciers
*Retreat of glacie ...
in the valley of Zmutt, which extends west of Zermatt.
The Ober Gabelhorn has a pyramidal shape, similar to the nearby
Matterhorn
The (, ; it, Cervino, ; french: Cervin, ; rm, Matterhorn) is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the main watershed and border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of the ...
but on a smaller scale. Only the smooth north face is completely glaciated, the other faces being mostly rocky. The south-west ridge is called the ''Arbengrat'' while the north-north-west ridge is the ''Arête du Coeur''. The south-east ridge looking over the ''Ober Gabeljoch'' (3,597 m) is the ''Gabelhorngrat''. The
Wellenkuppe
The Wellenkuppe is a mountain of the Swiss Pennine Alps, located west of Zermatt in the canton of Valais. It lies on the range separating the Val d'Anniviers from the Mattertal, just east of the Ober Gabelhorn
The Ober Gabelhorn (4063 m) is a ...
is a lower prominence on the north-east ridge; it is usually climbed as part of the normal route.
Huts serving the peak are the Rothorn Hut (3,198 m), the
Grand Mountet Hut
The Grand Mountet Hut (2,886 m) ( French: ''Cabane du Grand Mountet'') is a mountain hut located in the Pennine Alps near Zinal in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. It is used at a start point for the ascents of Besso, Zinalrothorn, Ober Gab ...
(2,886 m) and the Arben Bivouac (3,224 m).
Climbing history
The first ascent was by
A. W. Moore,
Horace Walker
Horace Walker (1838–1908) was an English mountaineer who made many notable first ascents, including Mount Elbrus and the Grandes Jorasses.
Alpinism
Born in 1838, Walker was the son of Liverpool lead merchant and mountaineer Francis Walker ( ...
and
Jakob Anderegg
Jakob Anderegg (11 March 1829, in Oberwil im Simmental – 17 September 1878, in Meiringen) was a Swiss mountain guide and the first ascensionist of many prominent mountains in the western Alps during the golden and silver ages of alpinism.
...
on 6 July 1865, via the east face.
The second ascent of the peak, and the first by the north-north-west ridge, was made one day later by
Lord Francis Douglas
Lord Francis William Bouverie Douglas (8 February 1847 – 14 July 1865) was a novice British mountaineer. After sharing in the first ascent of the Matterhorn, he died in a fall on the way down from the summit.
Early life
Born in Scotland at C ...
,
Peter Taugwalder
Peter Taugwalder (4 April 1820 – 10 July 1888) was a Swiss mountaineer and guide. Along with his son of the same name, Taugwalder was one of seven men that made the first ascent of the Matterhorn in July 1865. He was also one of the three men th ...
and Joseph Vianin on 7 July 1865. At the time of their ascent they were not aware of Moore and party's success on the previous day.
![Arbenhorn, Ober Gabelhorn und Wellenkuppe](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/75/Arbenhorn%2C_Ober_Gabelhorn_und_Wellenkuppe.jpg)
Douglas and Taugwalder made several attempts before they reached the summit. P. Inäbnit accompanied them on the first attempt from the south-east ridge. They didn't have enough time to go higher than the base of the mountain. On the second attempt they reached the
Wellenkuppe
The Wellenkuppe is a mountain of the Swiss Pennine Alps, located west of Zermatt in the canton of Valais. It lies on the range separating the Val d'Anniviers from the Mattertal, just east of the Ober Gabelhorn
The Ober Gabelhorn (4063 m) is a ...
(3,900 m) on the north-east ridge (the normal route today) but they considered that the ridge above was too difficult to continue. They finally reached the summit on their third attempt (Inäbnit having been replaced by Viennin).
[Helmut Dumler,Willi P. Burkhardt, ''Les 4000 des Alpes'', ] They were disconcerted to see some footprints on the east face (made by Moore, Walker and Anderegg on the previous day), but were relieved that no traces were visible on the summit. Not aware of the dangers that might have made the previous expedition turn back, they sat down on the summit to have lunch. Suddenly an avalanche started and everything on the summit began to fall away from them. Douglas and Taugwalder were swept away, but they were roped to Viennin who was a little distance below the summit. Viennin was able to
belay
Belaying is a variety of techniques climbers use to create friction within a climbing system, particularly on a climbing rope, so that a falling climber does not fall very far. A climbing partner typically applies tension at the other end of t ...
Taugwalder and Douglas with the rope, which didn't break. Francis Douglas returned to Zermatt, and was killed a week later on 14 July on the first ascent of the Matterhorn.
[
]
The Arbengrat was first climbed in 1874 by H. S. Hoare and E. Hulton with guides J. von Bergen, P. Rubi and J. Moser. The route on the Gabelhorngrat was opened three years later by J. Walker Hartley, W. E. Davidson, P. Rubi and J. Juan.[
The north face, similar to but 'rather steeper' than the north-east face of the ]Lenzspitze
The Lenzspitze is a mountain in the Pennine Alps in Switzerland. It is the southernmost peak on the Nadelgrat, a high-level ridge running roughly north–south, north of Dom in the Mischabel range, above the resort of Saas Fee to the east, an ...
,[Collomb, Robin G., ''Pennine Alps Central'', London: Alpine Club, 1975, p. 92] was first climbed on 30 July 1930 by H. Kiener and R. Schwarzgruber. They started from Zermatt at midnight and made a direct 2,000-metre ascent to the Triftjoch. They reached the base of the north face after having traversed the crevasses of the Ober Gabelhorn Glacier and successfully climbed it. This route was repeated only once until 1951.[
]Christian Klucker
Christian Klucker (28 September 1853 – 21 December 1928) was a Swiss mountain guide who made many first ascents in the Alps, particularly in the Bernina Range, the Bregaglia and the Pennine Alps.
Amongst his first ascents were:
:*''Gurgel'' ( ...
and L. Norman-Neruda made the first ascent of the east-north-east ridge on 1 August 1890. Nowadays most of the climbers use this route, starting at the Rothorn Hut (above Zermatt) and passing over the summit of the Wellenkuppe. The major obstacle, the Klucker tower, is equipped with ropes since 1918.[
]
See also
*List of 4000 metre peaks of the Alps
This list tabulates all of the 82 official mountain summits of or more in height in the Alps, as defined by the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA). All are located within France, Italy or Switzerland, and are often refer ...
References
* Dumler, Helmut and Willi P. Burkhardt, ''The High Mountains of the Alps'', London: Diadem, 1994
External links
The Ober Gabelhorn on SummitPost
The Ober Gabelhorn on Mount Wiki
{{Portal bar, Mountains, Switzerland
Alpine four-thousanders
Mountains of the Alps
Mountains of Valais
Pennine Alps
Mountains of Switzerland
Four-thousanders of Switzerland