Mike Esten writes (below!):
This route, running through Central Switzerland from Realp in the South to Engelberg in the North looked so tempting that this year saw the usual team of decaying oldies hyping themselves up for it. The plan was for four of us to start from Realp, to be joined a few days later by Richard Morgan as we passed through the summer rock-climbers’ Mecca of Goscheneralp. However, whilst I was away in NZ, plans changed. Two of the team due to start from Realp dropped out leaving Dave Lindsey and I to do the most difficult first section as a twosome. The other change was however a bonus in that that Richard, entering at Goscheneralp, would now be accompanied by his son Jon .... who just happened to be a guide coming along for the fun of it, and just happened to be fresh back from a winter ascent of the Eiger North Face. Well, that would certainly be a help !
Dave and I had a pleasant ski up from Realp to the Albert Heim hut although the following 5am breakfast didn’t appeal. The route from there climbed steeply up to the Winterlucke but it was a pity about the view from the top ! The weather was crystal clear with exciting views all around …. until we looked westwards toward the Lochberg where we could see our route leading up from an bottomless couloir where it would be crampons and skis on the rucksac. It looked very exposed and …. we chickened out ! Had there been a third member in the team we would probably have gone on (a twosome is a bit lonely for ski mountaineering) ….. and had it been a misty day obscuring the view we would certainly have gone on ! Having neither of these advantages we skied back down the 1500m of descent to Realp, caught the train round to Goschenen, and walked up to Goscheneralp where we met up with the Morgans.
The following day’s pull up to the unguarded Chelenalp hut carrying our food etc went well enough until the last few hundred metres where it was skis on sac and miserable steep scrambling over rotten snow and rotten rock. Not surprisingly we had the rather spartan hut to ourselves. Next morning saw a continuation of the same terrain until we could get our skis on to climb through a beautiful glacier basin to the Sustenlimi col from where a glacier designed perfectly for ski-tourers led comfortably down between seracs towering dramatically on either side to the comfortable Steingletscher bunk-house and therapeutic beers.
A steep climb the following morning led up through the elegant rock architecture of the Funfingerstock where in worsening weather an unusually steep descent (i.e. an enforced lengthy sideslip for normal people) led to a complicated traverse line to the Sustli Hut which fortunately was guarded.
The following day led past the summit of the Grassen from where, in bad visibility, Jon unerringly picked out our route to the next col, the Wendenjoch where a cornice with a drop of some 10 ft on the other side awaited us. Great stuff ! A wet ski in the mist and sleet down the glacier on the other side under the massive walls of Titlis led to Engelberg and a chance to clean up.
It was a really good quality tour. After leaving Goscheneralp the Swiss Alpine Club ski touring guidebook graded all days between alpine AD and D. And what about the day which Dave and I chickened out on? Well, that was graded D+ and at my age I don’t feel too embarrassed about being chicken at that level ….. but given a bit of mist and we would probably have done it !!!