August 2024. Today, I'm embarking on a huge race. The traverse from the Schreckhorn to the Lauteraarhorn, one of the longest in the Swiss Alps. These giants of Grindelwald soar into the sky over the bernese alps at altitudes of 4078 m and 4042 m. I photograph them every winter. I love to contemplate these grandiose mountains swept by wind and snow. But this summer, the challenge is quite different, and I'm off with peace of mind. Alongside my guide, Johann Filliez, I'll be climbing the summits the Schreckhorn and Lauteraarhorn.
From Grindelwald to Schreckhornhütte: Assaulting the bernese alps
Our journey begins in Grindelwald, in the bernese alps. Together, we ride the lifts to Pfingstegg. Then we follow the hiking trail from the Gletscherschlucht to the Shreckhornhütte. The scenery all around us is magnificent. Through gorges and the remains of once gigantic glaciers, we advance under the gaze of Ostegg, Mättenberg or Ankenbälli. With each step, nature reveals itself. Ever more beautiful, ever wilder. For hours, we climb the mountainside until life turns to ice. Leaving behind forests and alpine meadows, we finally enter a glacial world. The one I love so much and that makes me dream. The Obers Ischmeer reveals itself before our very eyes, and its decay suddenly overwhelms me. Its ice reduced to shreds, meters of history gone forever. A vanished splendor that remains only in the photographs of decades gone by. Here, the eternal snows are only as bright as we remember them. And I'm dismayed.
But this is no time for desolation. We need to move on and enjoy the beauty the Alps have to offer. The closer we get to the Schreckhorn hut, the more breathtaking the panorama that surrounds us. The glaciers have retreated, but they haven't given up. They're still there, a fabulous exile in the hollow of the mountain. And the beauty of this glacial cirque inspires me to come back and immortalize it next autumn.
As we walk along, a magical world opens its doors. Of gneiss, ice and immensity. Rock faces steepen and glaciers reveal their abstract curves. These cracks, these seracs that thrill me. When light and shadow bring art to life. These sharp, dancing lines inspire me so much that I pause to photograph them. Ice like a muse at the top of the Alps. Then, suddenly, I catch sight of it: the Finsteraarhorn towers above us, as if to remind us of that spring day when we made its ascent on skis.
Our journey is long and the weather is getting warmer. Under a scorching sun, we're soon swimming. All we can dream of is a cool shower. When the Soft sound of water trickling over rock reaches us. A river! We press on to the oasis. How can we resist? The desire is too great and the need too strong to refresh ourselves. For the first time in my life, I dive into the white water without hesitation. It cools my legs, firms my muscles and invigorates me. What an extraordinary sensation! Johann follows me into this bath of rejuvenation. A thrill of well-being in the heart of nature.
It's a pleasant experience, but time flies and night doesn't wait for the climbers. We set off again and, after a 4.5-hour hike, finally arrive at Schreckhornhütte. Daylight fades and mist envelops the Schreckhorn and Lauteraarhorn. We won't discover them until the following day. Happy to be up there, we contemplate the Obers Ischmeer, the Finsteraarhorn, the Klein Fiescherhorn and all the mountains that sculpt the horizon.
Then, at 6 p.m., we have a quick dinner before going to bed. Johann is adamant that we must leave the hut by 2.30 a.m. if we are to complete the entire traverse. A grueling 15-hour run from the Schreckhorn to the Lauteraarhorn. A never-ending day that will demand the best of us. But as I enter the dormitory, my legs give way. The hut is old and we're crammed together, our mattresses close together in this cramped room. How can I fall asleep in such close quarters? I toss and turn, watching the hour go by. I know that, to be in good shape, I need to doze off, but I can't. I'm cold and I can't sleep. I'm cold and then hot, startled every time my neighbor moves. A real nightmare! Finally, I'm just starting to fall asleep when my alarm goes off. It's 1.45 a.m. and I have to get up.
From Gaagg heights to the Schreckhorn summit : Over 4000 m in the Swiss Alps
The next few hours are like being outside myself. I have breakfast, get ready and leave the refuge on Johann's schedule. Because of the melting snow, our run begins with a 120 m descent to the glacier. Then we climb a moraine and follow a trail up to Gaagg, 800 m higher up. Night is still deep at this hour and we make our way under the bright glow of the full moon. I do this climb in my sleep. I'm dozing and yawning until my jaw drops. Just thinking about it makes me yawn again. I feel extremely tired. Never before have I felt so exhausted. Of course, I've had very little sleep. But all I want to do is lie there and close my eyes - I don't understand! How am I going to make such a long crossing in this state? I can't give up now, Johann is counting on me. I can't let him down, not now. I don't want to become a burden, to prevent him from completing this climb. Am I ill, or is my head playing tricks on me? Has this mountaineering season finally finished me off? I don't know, but I have no choice but to keep going.
Arriving in Gaagg, we put on crampons to climb the Schreckfirn glacier. I sleep standing up, moving forward on autopilot, without even thinking about it. My pulse is slow, yet I have the feeling it's beating fast. A strange feeling, far from reality. At the foot of the mountain, we take a break. I eat a snack, regain my strength. Then, almost 1000 m above the Schreckhornhütte, we set off for the summit the Schreckhorn. The pace changes, my heart beats faster. And, under the first light of the sun, my body finally decides to come out of its torpor.
We climb up the slopes of the Schreckhorn, along corridors where sport meets technique. Fully focused on the moment, on every step, on every gesture, I forget about fatigue and lack of sleep. And when I look back at the horizon, the awakening Alps unfold their grandeur before my fascinated eyes. All the mountains we've climbed this summer, all the 4000m summits that have welcomed us here, encourage us to continue our quest. They support us and greet us across the valleys and under the dawning dawn. These mythical giants, the Eiger, the Mönch and the Jungfraubut also the giants of the Valais Alps. It's for these unique moments between earth and sky, to experience the absolute, that we venture into the high mountains. Buoyed by the memory of these magical moments, I set off to climb the Schreckhorn ridge. The couloir leads us to a more vertical wall, and we land on the summit at 7.47am. 5 hours 10 of an ascent that my body has experienced as a rebirth.
I pause to photograph the marvellous landscape unfolding before our eyes. Shot after shot, bathed in the light of summer mornings. I even catch a glimpse of Mont Blanc and the Grand Combin. How can there be so much beauty in this world? I draw new inspiration from it, and discover new points of view. The mountains nourish my art and my imagination. At First snows, I'll be there to immortalize the promising brilliance of these vistas.
The Schreckhorn to Lauteraarhorn traverse: An exceptional ascent
We then turn our attention to the next stage of our journey. The descent from the Schreckhorn summit to the Schrecksattel pass 160 m below. This is the kind of terrain I like: broken rock, an unstable ridge, but one that's easy to climb. I'm so looking forward to this route that my steps are quick and we're already on the Schrecksattel. A chance to take a breather and have a bite to eat as we contemplate the sumptuous scenery once again. The Finsteraarhorn is still there, the unshakeable landmark of this expedition. But we can also make out the glacial cirque that flows at its foot, from Obers Ischmeer to Finsteraargletscher. On the horizon, the mountains stretch to infinity.
After a few minutes' rest, we leave the Schrecksattel to reach the summit the Lauteraarhorn via its northern ridge. There are so many needles that we've lost count. One point follows another like the spines of a creature from another time. So we climb, then descend, then climb again, then descend again. Behind each peak lies a new one. And from one gendarme to the next, we make our way. The dynamics of this traverse stimulate and delight me. It's impossible to know when the race will end, impossible to predict the time of our arrival. What a pleasure to be able to walk on the back of a mountain that reinvents itself with every step!
It's 12:12 when we finally set foot on the summit the Lauteraarhorn. 4 hours and 30 minutes of an invigorating and fabulous traverse. I'm so happy to be up there, in the radiant sky of the bernese alps, alongside Johann, my mountain guide and friend. The rock is warm, the sun is shining. How lucky I am to be here, in the heart of this world of rock and ice! Everything is so Powerful. So much fullness and magnificence in one realm: nature never ceases to overwhelm me.
Schreckhorn to Lauteraarhorn traverse: Descent to Schreckhornhütte
But every moment of grace comes to an end, and we have to leave the summit the Lauteraarhorn to reach the Schreckhorn hut. We begin our descent via the Lauteraarhorn's normal route. Then we cross the face of the mountain to reach the ridge that will take us to Schreckhornhütte. Here again, one needle follows another, and the Alps inflict a final ordeal on us. And I can feel the fatigue creeping up on me. The rocks follow one another and end up looking the same. After hours of climbing, I finally tire of this never-ending succession. But we have to keep going, rock after rock. We have no choice. It's our only way out. So I push on without thinking too much about it, until at last we reach Gaagg. The race is over, we've made it. We catch our breath, freshen up and I find my sticks, left there hours earlier. With a final push, the Obers Ischmeer guides us to the Schreckhornhütte.
Our traverse from the Shreckhorn to the Lauteraarhorn took 15 hours. Harrowing hours, but happy hours. And when we look up at the high mountains around us, this time they're neither shrouded in mist nor shrouded in darkness. They rise up in front of us, celebrating our achievement, our tenacity. The Schreckhorn and the Lauteraarhorn, two prodigious colossi that we are proud and happy to have climbed together. Then it's time for Johann and me to go to bed. Another night spent at the Schreckhorn hut for a well-deserved rest, nourished by dreams of adventure in the Swiss Alps.
With the traverse from the Shreckhorn to the Lauteraarhorn, I've climbed my 58th and 59th 4000 m summits . Of the 82 summits in the Alps, only one remains to be conquered in Switzerland. This disproportionate race will always be engraved in my memory. For its demands and for its splendor. I'll see these mountains with new eyes, dazzled and serene. As if our paths were now linked.
