Original at
http://www.ivo.se/mike/hornli.html
Originally written in English by a Swede
The Matterhorn: Hörnligrat, the north-east ridge
The path up to Hörnlihütte
The Race
The Englishman Edward Whymper arrived in Valtournanche, on the Italian side
of the border, on the 7th of July 1865. He persuades Jean-Antoine Carrel
to climb Matterhorn with him, but the weather was bad. Three days later
Carrel abandons the idea, who gets other commitments. At dawn on the 11th
of July, while Whymper is still asleep, Carrel and some friends sets off
for Matterhorn. Whymper is outraged. Now he can not get to Zermatt, nor
porter or guide is at hand. During the day he meets Lord Francis Douglas
and Joseph Taugwalder, one of Peter Taugwalder's sons, who have just arrived
in Breuil. Their plans are also to climb Matterhorn.
They cross the Teodulpass into Switzerland together. The weather is still
bad. In Zermatt they meet with Peter Taugwalder sr. and persuade him to
join the group. On the way to Hotel Monte Rosa Whymper bumps in to the Chamonix-guide
Michel Croz, whom he has hired on several occasions Previously. Croz is
already engaged with two clients, the reverend Charles Hudson and young
Robert Douglas Hadow, but they decide to tackle Matterhorn together.
At four-thirty in the morning of the 13th of July eight men set off for
Matterhorn under a cloudless sky, Peter Taugwalder sr. with two of his sons,
Croz, Whymper, Douglas, Hudson and Hadow. They walk up via Schwarzsee to
a plateau somewhat higher than Hörnlihütte is today, where they
erected their tents. During the afternoon Michel Croz and Peter Taugwalder
jr. explores the lower part of the mountain. Meanwhile, the Italians, led
by Carrel, has reached about 4000 meters on Lionridge, where they set up
bivouac.
At dawn Whymper's group starts up the Hörnliridge, all but Joseph Taugwalder,
who returns to Zermatt. They keep good pace on the east side of the ridge,
later they change sides of the ridge to reach the snowclad Shoulder. They
take two breaks, after the second break Croz takes over the lead from Whymper
and Hudson. Here they encounter the first technically difficult passage,
but one after another they reach the summit. A fruitless search for tracks
convinced them that they where the first men to reach the summit.
The Disaster
Croz and Whymper discovers the Italians about 200 meters below the summit.
The Italians have been to slow. After a long break on the summit, they decide
in which order to descend. They leave bottle on the summit containing a
piece of paper with their names on it, before Croz takes the lead downwards.
He is followed by Hudson, Hadow, Douglas and at the end of the ropes are
Peter Taugwalder sr., Whymper and Peter Taugwalder jr. Soon they reach the
"roof", which is not easy when all the cavities and hollows are filled with
snow and ice. For security reasons they only move one at a time. Croz has
laid aside his ice axe, to help young Hadow down, when Hadow slips and pull
Croz, Hudson and Douglas down with him into the abyss. Whymper and the two
Taugwalders stand alone, in shock.
For a long time they stand there, before recovering. Terrified they continue
the descent down the Matterhorn. It is soon dark, they spend the night just
above 4000m. After a long night they climb down to Zermatt, where they tell
the villagers the sad news. The next day, the 16th of July, Whymper brings
three British mountaineers, two frenchmen and three guides up the mountain
to search for the casualties. The mountain guides of Zermatt could not come,
they had to attend the morning mass, or they would be banned by the priest.
They find three bodies on the Matterhorn glacier, Croz, Hudson and Hadow.
The only sign of Douglas where a few belongings. Three days later 21 mountain
guides carry the three bodies down to Zermatt. Lord Douglas body was never
found. Hadow and Hudson where buried on the north side of the catholic cemetery,
Croz was buried in the middle. 46 years later Hudson was moved to the English
Church in Zermatt. Some of their belongings are still kept at the alpine
museum in Zermatt.
The Interrogations
They had been tied in with three ropes when descending, the first from Croz
to Douglas, the second from Douglas to Taugwalder sr. and the third from
Tagwalder sr. to Taugwalder jr. The middle rope was the weakest, and after
the accident rumours began to spread that Whymper or Taugwalder sr. had
cut the rope. An investigation committee was set up. The interrogations
continued for three days. No criminal act could be proven, the case was
dropped. In spite of this the villagers were still suspicious. Peter Taugwalder
sr. who was questioned twice, had his good reputation as a mountain guide
destroyed. He went to America, but returned to his home village a few years
later. He died in 1888, near Schwarzsee, probably as a consequence of appendicitis.
The accident caused a big wave of excitement in the press, in Switzerland
and abroad. The emotions were hottest in England, where the grief soon gave
way to indignation. Newspapers all over the world reported the tragedy on
the Matterhorn. No other Alpine event has ever caused more headlines. Queen
Victoria of England decided, after long talks with Lord Chamberlain, not
to forbid mountaineering to all Englishmen. Zermatt became world-famous,
probably the beginning of the development of Zermatt as a tourist resort.
Information
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First ascent:
Edward Whymper, Charles Hudson, Robert D. Hadow, Lord Francis Douglas, Michel
Auguste Croz, Peter
Taugwalder, father and son, 14th of July 1865.
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Height:
1218 meters from Hörnlihütte to the Swiss summit.
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Difficulty:
III-. Mainly rock, often loose. Snow and ice from the shoulder to the summit.
Fixed ropes on the steepest parts.
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Time:
5-6 hours.
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Starting point:
Hörnlihütte.
The Route
The difficult part is to find your way. I strongly recommend a good guide.
Descent
Via Hörnligrat, 4 hours, or via Liongrat.
Huts
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Hörnlihütte.
3260m. S.A.C. At the foot of Hörnligrat. 50 places. Manned from 15th
of June to 15:th of Sep. Phone: 028 / 67 27 29. 4,5 hours from Zermatt via
Hotell Schwarzsee (2584m, 12 places). Seilbahn to Hotell Schwarzsee from
7 am. to 5.50 pm. From there two hours walk to Hörnlihütte. Hörnlihütte
was built in 1880, renovated in 1915 and knocked down 1964. A new, larger
hut was built in 1965.
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Hotell Belvedere.
3260m. Private. Next to Hörnlihütte. 10 places. Phone: 028 / 67
22 64. Built 1909-1911. The Hotel had then 20 rooms and 40 beds. Renovated
step by step 1980-1985.
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Solvayhütte.
4003m. Emergency bivouac. No water. Always open. 10 places. 3 hours from
Hörnlihütte. Built 1915, renovated 1966. Was equipped with a solar-powered
radio in 1976.
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