With 3 weeks in Grindelwald, we had high hopes for this year's trip to the Alps. The Eiger (via the Mittellegi ridge) was high on the list, as was the Mönch traverse, the Jungfrau via the Inner Rottal ridge, and the Finsteraarhorn. However, the weather had other ideas... I once wrote a trip report called 'The Torridonian Alps', with apparently alpine weather in the NW of Scotland - unfortunately this time it appeared to be Scottish weather in the Alps...
With quite a bit of rain, we ended up doing a fair bit of walking & running in amongst the lower hills (Shwarzhorn, Lauberhorn, Eiger trail, etc), and some sport climbing in the valley during brief drier spells (nice limestone crag within 5 minutes of the road near the Gletscherschlucht Hotel). While it was raining in the valley, it was snowing high in the mountains, meaning many of the higher routes were out of condition. The Mittellegi hut was closed, and the advice of the local guides was that the ridge wouldn't be climbable for a few weeks...
In the middle of the holiday we had about 5 days good weather, and during this time we got a few big mountain routes in - the SE ridge of the Joderhorn (D, on the Swiss-Italian border above the Mattmark dam), a traverse of the Mönch (up the SW ridge, AD, then down the SE ridge, PD), and a traverse of the Gross- and Hinter-Fiescherhörner (up the NW ridge of the Gross-Fiescherhorn, AD, then across to the Hinter-Fiescherhorn, PD, and down its SW rib, PD, before a long slog up the glacier back to Jungfraujoch).
The Eiger - looking far too snowy to climb...
Gletscherschlucht cragging
SE ridge of the Joderhorn
Joderhorn SE ridge seen from the approach
Setting off up the crux pitch (IV+)
Summit cross
One of the natives on the way down...
Mönch traverse
Approaching the SW ridge
Crux pitch (III)
On the summit, Jungfrau behind
On the summit, Eiger behind
Starting the descent of the normal route, with the Fiescherhorn in the distance
Fiescherhörner
Alpine dawn
On the NW ridge, looking across the top of the Fiescherwand
Looking up the NW ridge
Looking down the NW ridge, Eiger beyond
Panorama from the summit of the Gross-Fiescherhorn
View from the summit
On the summit
On the Gross Fiescherhorn summit, Eiger beyond
View to Ochs and beyond
Finsteraarhorn from Fiescherhorn
On the Hinter Fiescherhorn
View of the Grunhorn on the way down
The long trudge back up the Ewigschneefald
