July 26: St Niklaus to Zermatt

Distance: 11.8 miles
Ascent: 2,100 ft
Descent: 200 ft

This was supposed to be another easy day of hiking, which in a sense I suppose it was as it didn't require any climbing.  However, towards late morning it got hot and the hike was somewhat long (12 miles) so it ended up being very draining. The cumulative effects of nine days of previous hiking were also kicking-in at this point.

The day's hike followed the Matter Vispa River up the valley and usually didn't stray too far from the river.  We skirted a number of towns but we didn't actually go through any.  We didn't end up seeing the Matterhorn until the last 30 minutes of the hike.  All in all, unless one is a purist (wanting to hike every step of the route, as some do) this section could probably be skipped -- but it was nice to finish off the hike with a walk into Zermatt.


A house in St Niklaus

St Niklaus - an image found 
around the town



Finally -- the Matterhorn!

Celebratory dinner -- fondue, of course!


Next Dayhttp://callihan-haute-route-2012.blogspot.com/p/july-27-zermatt-switzerland.html